Colon disease and digestive diseases in general affect 60 to 70 million Americans.  This is a very common problem, but luckily there are treatments.

First, what is the colon?

The colon is a tube shaped structure that goes from the where the small intestine ends and extends down to the anus.  In an adult, it measures approximately 5 feet long.  The job of the colon is to remove water and nutrients from your food and store the rest as waste, moving it out of your system.

There are four main diseases of the colon, including Diverticulitis, ulcercerative colitis, Crohn’s disease and polyps.  Although they all affect your colon and your digestion, you may experience different symptoms for each condition.

Diverticulitis occurs when pockets inside the colon bulge outward and the pockets become infected.  The most common symptoms of diverticulitis is abdominal pain and tenderness along the left side of the lower abdomen.  Additionally, if this condition advances to a severe infection, which is possible, you can have a fever, nausea, vomiting and cramping.  These symptoms can become severe if your infection increases without treatment.

The treatment for diverticulitis is likely a high fiber diet to help improve your waste elimination and pain medications.  If the condition is serious, it may require a surgery.  Diverticulitis can be caused by constipation and may have some genetic factors.

Ulcerative colitis is another disease that causes inflammation and sores.  These sores are called ulcers.  An ulcer occurs when inflammation kills the cells that line the colon.  The ulcers can bleed and produce pus inside your body.  These symptoms are similar to Crohn’s disease, so it may be a problem to diagnose between the two.  Ulcers may also be hereditary or can also be stress related or related to other medical conditions.

The most common symptom for ulcerative colitis is abdominal pain and bloody diarrhea.  You can develop this condition at any age, but it can usually start at ages 15 to 30 or 50 to 70.  The treatment for colitis depends on the severity and usually includes drug therapy, usually surgery is not required.

Similarly with Crohn’s disease, you develop inflammation usually is the lower part of the small intestine.  The symptoms of Crohn’s are abdominal pain in the lower right abdomen and diarrhea, similar to ulcerative colitis.  The treatment again is usually drug therapy and possible nutritional vitamins or supplements.  And as always, surgery is a possibility as the condition advances.

Finally, another colon disease you can develop is polyps.  Polyps are abnormal growths that develop throughout the body.  These polyps are not visible and usually aren’t detected until you are checking for some other condition or problem you are having.  However, there are symptoms, which include bleeding from the anus or blood in the stool.  Some polyps may be found to be cancerous.  To remove a polyp, you usually will have to undergo a surgical procedure.