Nutritional issues and therapy in inflammatory bowel disease.

Nutritional issues in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) often receive inadequate attention both in regard to therapy and nutritionally related complications of IBD. This article reviews much of the research that has evaluated the role of diet in the causation, primary treatment, and adjunctive therapy of both ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). Benefits have been demonstrated in the use of elemental diets or polymeric diets in CD in both acute flare up or maintenance of IBD. A careful team approach can overcome problems in implementing nutritional therapy. Nutrition also has a critical benefit in postoperative CD and perioperative UC. Numerous easily corrected, nutritional abnormalities are often overlooked in patients with IBD, which may have significant consequences. Nutritional therapy may have a central place in the hierarchy of treatment in IBD and further research is critical in this area to better define the benefits of nutrition in IBD.