Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome is a disease.

False.

Irritable bowel syndrome is not a disease. It is a functional disorder, which means that there is a problem in how the muscles in the intestines work. Irritable bowel syndrome is characterized by gas, abdominal pain, and diarrhea or constipation, or both. Although the syndrome can cause considerable pain and discomfort, it does not damage the digestive tract as diseases do. Also, irritable bowel syndrome does not lead to more serious digestive diseases later.

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Taken from The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC), a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).