Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are collectively known as inflammatory bowel disease or IBD. You can describe them in one word - misery. They can destroy the quality of your life and leave you feeling drained of energy.

An article on Newsday.com suggests that IBS may be a gene-related problem.

"Years ago, no one wanted to talk about the disease," said Edda Ramsdell, executive director of Long Island's division of the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation in Garden City. "People thought it was food-based or emotionally based. Now we know that genes are involved."

The article goes on the describe Crohn's and ulcerative colitis this way:

Some sufferers make at least a dozen trips daily to the bathroom, racked by painful diarrhea that is tinged with blood from tears in the intestinal lining. Ulcerative colitis is typified by open sores in the colon, and though painful, the disease is not as debilitating as Crohn's. An estimated 500,000 people nationwide have been diagnosed with the diseases.

My thanks to the Crohn's Disease Blog for their excellent information on the gene research. The blog gives sufferes a reason to hope for a cure:

Undoubtly, this could play a major role in further treatment research, leading to drugs that treat the CAUSE and not just the symptoms.