Crohn’s and Colitis: date of awareness week, this year’s theme and symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease

Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week takes place every year, raising awareness of inflammatory bowel disease. But when does it take place this year and how can people get involved? Here’s what you need to know.

What is Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week?

Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week takes place every year and aims to raise awareness of inflammatory bowel disease. The event takes place from 1 to 7 December 2022.

What is Crohn’s?

Crohn’s disease is a lifelong condition where parts of the digestive system become inflamed. It’s one type of a condition called inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Crohn’s disease affects people of all ages. The symptoms usually start in childhood or early adulthood. The main symptoms are:

• diarrhoea
• stomach aches and cramps
• blood in your poo
• tiredness (fatigue)
• weight loss

What is Colitis?

Ulcerative colitis is also an inflammatory bowel disease. It is a long-term condition where the colon and rectum become inflamed. The colon is the large intestine (bowel) and the rectum is the end of the bowel where poo is stored, the NHS explains. Small ulcers can develop on the colon’s lining, and can bleed and produce pus.

The main symptoms of ulcerative colitis are:

• recurring diarrhoea, which may contain blood, mucus or pus
• tummy pain
• needing to poo frequently

You may also experience extreme tiredness (fatigue), loss of appetite and weight loss. The severity of the symptoms varies, depending on how much of the rectum and colon is inflamed and how severe the inflammation is.

What is the theme of this year’s Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week?

This Awareness Week people are being asked to add their voice to the early diagnosis campaign. The Crohn’s and Colitis UK charity said it’s currently taking too long for people with Crohn’s and Colitis to get diagnosed.

Many people aren’t aware that symptoms such as diarrhoea, blood in poo and stomach pain could be signs of a serious, lifelong condition. They may put off a visit to the GP because of fear or embarrassment, the charity explained.

The charity’s campaign, Cut the Crap: Check for Crohn’s and Colitis seeks to change that. It wants to reach people who may be struggling with symptoms by providing information that is vital for their health.

How can you get involved?

This Awareness Week the charity is asking people with Crohn’s and Colitis to speak up about their experiences of diagnosis. Each day, the charity will be sharing ways to make your voice heard as well as stories of people affected by Crohn’s and Colitis.

You can follow the charity’s social media account and the #CrohnsAndColitisAwarenessWeek hashtag to stay up to date with what’s happening across the week.

These are also some of the other ways you can support the event, including:

• Telling your story - DM or send the charity a video – you can email [email protected] 
• Share social media posts and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram  
• Get in touch with your local media, using the tips and templates 
• Let local politicians know this is important to you and back the call for early diagnosis 
• Open up a conversation at home, work or in your community