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Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a group of chronic, immune-mediated inflammatory conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, comprising two main forms: Crohn’s disease, which can affect any part of the digestive tract and involves transmural inflammation often in a discontinuous (“skip lesion”) pattern, and ulcerative colitis, which is limited to the colon and rectum and involves continuous mucosal inflammation.
IBD arises from a complex interaction of genetic susceptibility, dysregulated mucosal immune responses, gut microbiota alterations, and environmental factors including diet, smoking, and early-life exposures. Common features include abdominal pain, chronic or bloody diarrhea, weight loss, fatigue, and nutrient malabsorption, and IBD is associated with an elevated risk of anxiety, depression, and cognitive symptoms, in part through microbiota–gut–brain axis mechanisms.
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Editorial responsibilityReferences and further reading
- Ren, Z. Y., Guo, Z. Y., Diao, Q., Hashimoto, K., Yang, J. J., & Zhang, G. F. (2026). Constipation is associated with an increased risk of depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. Translational Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-026-04138-8 View source
How to cite this entry
Ephi Morphew-Lu. (2026). Inflammatory Bowel Disease. In Encyclopedia of Nutritional Psychology. The Center for Nutritional Psychology.
https://www.nutritional-psychology.org/encyclopedia/inflammatory-bowel-disease/Know a term that belongs in the Encyclopedia?
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