Product Review New Heme Iron Supplement: OptiFer® Alpha When patients develop gastrointestinal diseases and disorders, nutritional deficiencies are a common manifestation. Inflammation can reduce the body’s ability to absorb certain nutrients in untreated Crohn’s disease and celiac disease. Gastrointestinal bleeding can lead to iron loss in Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and ulcer disease. Some patients [...]
Rotavirus Vaccine Success Rotavirus infection is a serious disease that usually affects young children. Over the course of the infection, which typically lasts a week, children experience severe vomiting and diarrhea, and become highly susceptible to dehydration due to these symptoms. In Canada, children often make a full recovery during hospitalization, but for many children [...]
The Effects of Smoking on Inflammatory Bowel Disease Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a term that primarily refers to two diseases of the intestines: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. These diseases cause chronic inflammation, and include symptoms such as severe abdominal pain, diarrhea, and rectal bleeding. In Crohn’s disease, the inflammation can be anywhere in [...]
Is a Cure for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Close? For those who are living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, a cure for these inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) would be a life-changing dream come true. That is the goal of Vancouver-based biopharmaceutical company, Qu Biologics, which aims to cure IBD and other serious illnesses through state-of-the-art [...]
MS and the Gut Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system. In those with MS, the immune system attacks the protective covering of the nerves (myelin) in the brain and spinal column (known as the central nervous system, or CNS). Without this protective covering, nerve cells can’t send messages [...]
Aging and the Digestive Tract: Videos We have just released two videos about the effects of aging on the digestive tract, each in English and French, with the financial support of the Province of British Columbia Ministry of Health. One video focuses on an overview of the digestive diseases and disorders that [...]
Bariatric Surgery Obesity is a complex disease with many potential causes and influences. It occurs when you have enough excess body fat that it increases your risk for other diseases. The first line of treatment for obesity is typically lifestyle modifications, including diet and exercise. If this doesn’t work, your physician might prescribe a medication [...]
Obesity Survey Results Obesity is a multi-factorial, chronic, relapsing disease that occurs when a person has an excessive amount of body fat (adipose tissue) that might increase health complications. Obesity is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 or greater. Over the past few decades, obesity has become increasingly common in [...]
Changes to How Drugs Are Priced in Canada and Why This Should Matter to You Update: On June 29, 2021, Health Canada has, again, postponed the implementation date of the new PMPRB changes from July 1, 2021 to January 1, 2022 in recognition of the ongoing challenges brought by the COVID-19 [...]
Your Rights to Personal Health Data Along with twenty other patient organizations and individual advocates, the Gastrointestinal Society has endorsed the Declaration of Personal Health Data Rights in Canada.1 People own their personal health data while stewards of that data own the records. Since people own their personal health data, they have corresponding rights over [...]
More PMPRB Revisions During Legal Challenges, COVID-19, and an Election As you may know, the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB), is a quasi-judicial federal agency that calculates the maximum prices of patented medicines. There have been several developments in the past few years, including three delays to the implementation of the PMPRB changes, court [...]
Stomach Cancer Gastric cancer, more commonly known as stomach cancer, is an umbrella term that refers to several cancers originating in the stomach. In this article, we focus on gastric adenocarcinoma, which is a type of cancer that develops from the glands in the lining of the stomach. It makes up about 90% of all [...]
Hidradenitis Suppurativa and its Connection to IBD Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) primarily refers to two diseases: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. These both involve inflammation in the gut, but in ulcerative colitis the inflammation is limited to the inner lining (mucosa) of the colon whereas in Crohn’s disease it can affect any part of the [...]
IBS Updates 2021 Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common digestive condition in the world, yet many people who have symptoms do not seek help. Defined by abdominal pain, bloating, and altered bowel habits, including constipation and diarrhea, IBS can greatly affect quality of life and be an isolating experience. Those affected might find [...]
Bacteria, Viruses, and Antimicrobial Resistance Bacteria and viruses are extremely small organisms, also known as microorganisms, that can live on our skin, in our body fluids, and throughout our digestive tract. They are different from one another, from their biological makeup, how they develop into an infection or disease (pathogenic), and the types of treatments [...]
Unmet Needs in IBD Survey Report Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a condition defined by inflammation in the digestive system. There are two primary subtypes of IBD: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, which differ in the area affected. In ulcerative colitis, inflammation always begins at the rectum and moves upward, affecting only the mucosa [...]
Gail Attara’s 26 years of service and counting! Message from the CSIR and GI Society Boards of Directors Gail Attara’s first day as executive director of the Northwestern Society of Intestinal Research (SIR) was March 14, 1996. She was a single mother of four who signed on to work from 9 am - 2 pm [...]
Product Reviews There are many products on the market that claim to help people with gastrointestinal diseases and disorders. We review some of these products in our newsletter, the Inside Tract®. If you would like to see our review of a specific product, choose one from the list below. The GI Society receives [...]
Health & Nutrition On this page you will find links to many articles about good health and proper nutrition. Many of our nutrition pages are written by registered dietitians. Click the links below to see the articles we have available. Image Credit: © marctran | 123rf.com
Appendicitis The appendix – a 3 to 6 inch tube-shaped sac of tissue attached to the large intestine, located in the lower right section of the abdomen – has no known function. Normally, the appendix is open to the intestine. Appendicitis occurs when there is a blockage where the appendix and the large intestine meet. [...]
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