When experiencing colitis symptoms, the sufferer has to endure the expected diarrhoea, bloody stools, abdominal pains, nausea, fatigue, plus a loss of appetite and strength. Yet there are further hidden challenges the sufferer should be aware of that can, if effective measures are not taken, pose further risks to their health that will require additional treatment.

It is almost guaranteed that when colitis symptoms appear, the sufferer's appetite will greatly reduce. It is only natural when feeling unwell with such symptoms that eating is not a priority. Quite often it is the thought of food that can make the sufferer fell queasy. The last thing that they wish to do is eat and then later on sufferer from the inevitable increase in bloodied stools and diarrhoea and the associated pain that this brings. Though by sticking to a very restricted diet to stave off the worst of hunger plus also not to cause excess bowel motions, a sufferer call fall into the trap of poor nutrition with a lack of essential vitamins and minerals. If the colitis is very active with fierce symptoms, subsequent problems of malnutrition can appear.

As can be appreciated, a proportion of colitis sufferers can face the prospect of entering a dangerous cycle where fever and diarrhoea cause a loss of appetite, yet with a raised metabolic rate, there needs to be a consistent intake of calories to reduce the prospect of poor nutrition and malnutrition. It is a challenge to maintain a suitable intake of calories but to avoid such amounts of food that will result in problems of increased bowel activity.

Apart from trying to maintain an adequate food intake, there can be an additional challenge that sufferers require to be made aware of. As symptoms, such as frequent diarrhoea, can last for weeks at a time resulting in trips to the toilet numbering well over twelve in a twenty four hour period, this can lead to serious dehydration. It is thus vitally important to replenish the body's water supply at regular intervals. A further problem to face can be temporary lactose intolerance resulting in the inability to digest milk sugars. The effect of this is for lactose to ferment in the colon resulting in cramps and unfortunately yet more diarrhoea. Obviously, this is the last thing that a colitis sufferer will want to inflict upon themselves. In addition, lactose intolerance can also indirectly lead to a calcium deficiency, a leading factor in loss of bone density.

Sufferers of colitis symptoms are faced with many challenges yet by recognising some of the less prominent ones and ensuring that they counter these by easy solutions, they can ensure that they are doing everything that they can to lessen the disease's impact. Through such effective colitis management, the person will be able to feel that they have some control over their symptoms and ensure that further problems are not being created through lack of knowledge.