New IBD Nutrition Navigator Tool Shows the Way to Integrating Nutrition Into IBD Care.

By Nutritional Therapy for IBD editors

Diet can affect the onset and development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and its benefits go beyond improving malnutrition and resolving nutrient deficiencies. Nutrition can help reduce inflammation and symptoms, boost medication response, decrease complications after surgery, and avoid steroids.^1,2,3 

However, navigating the myriad of nutritional therapies available can be overwhelming. Because nutrition is so nuanced, guidance about diet therapies for IBD is controversial and uncertain for many patients and clinicians, and there is a well-described need for credible resources on the role of diet in IBD^4,5

Nutritional Therapy for IBD, founded in 2019 to enhance the well-being and health outcomes of patients with IBD, has just launched the IBD Nutrition Navigator^™ tool to help integrate evidence-based nutritional guidance into every stage of IBD care, from the initial diagnosis to long-term care.

It has been developed by a team of physicians, gastroenterologists, IBD dietitians, and nurse practitioners with the support of an educational grant from Takeda Pharmaceuticals. “We are pleased to bring the IBD community a valuable new resource to facilitate nutrition discussions between healthcare providers and patients and appreciate the extensive international collaboration in its development”, highlighted Kim Beall, co-founder and managing director of Nutritional Therapy for IBD.

What makes the IBD Nutrition Navigator^™ valuable is that it is the first-of-its-kind algorithm-based tool that digests the best in the literature on nutritional therapy in IBD and provides the output in a very simple, step-by-step and practical way for the patients, said Dr. Ashwin Ananthakrishnan, a professor of medicine at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Likewise, physicians, gastroenterology fellows, and registered dietitians can benefit from the practical algorithm provided by the tool that is ready to print and use in clinical practice and supported by relevant scientific references.  

‍

The objectives of nutrition therapy as part of IBD care, also called medical nutrition therapy, are more successful when set by patients with IBD and can overlap with the objectives used for medication management. They include achieving remission, eliminating symptoms, restoring nutrition status, promoting age-appropriate growth in children, preventing and correcting nutrient abnormalities, and improving food-related quality of life, explained Kim Braly, a researcher and IBD-specialized dietitian.

As each patient is unique regarding their disease state and nutrition history, the new tool follows a patient-centered approach and shared decision-making at every step. The healthcare provider and the patient choose the right nutritional therapy after assessing nutritional status, evaluating the disease state, and considering the patient’s goals, resources, and interest in dietary treatment. 

Registered dietitians are central during the IBD journey from onset to diagnosis to treatment and assist in guiding the nutrition care plan and supporting treatment objectives. In addition, dietitians screen for malnutrition and disordered eating, both common in patients with IBD and needed before advising a patient to begin any therapies⁶.

Last but not least, the tool incorporates a monitoring and evaluation step. Evaluating interest and motivation for change and resources, such as support networks, cooking skills, and financial security, is a critical step in determining if nutritional therapy is sustainable for the patient, said Kaylie Nguyen, a nurse practitioner at Stanford Children’s Hospital. 

‍

References:

<sup>1. Issokson K, Young Lee D, Yarur AJ, et al. The Role of Diet in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Onset, Disease Management, and Surgical Optimization. Am J Gastroenterol. 2024. doi: 10.14309/ajg.0000000000003085.
2. Hashash JG, Elkins J, Lewis JD, et al. AGA Clinical Practice Update on Diet and Nutritional Therapies in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Expert Review. Gastroenterology. 2024; 166(3):521-532. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2023.11.303.
3. Halmos EP, Godny L, Vanderstappen J, et al. Role of diet in prevention versus treatment of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Frontline Gastroenterol. 2024; 15(3):247-257. doi: 10.1136/flgastro-2023-102417.
4. Fusco, S., Briese, K., Keller, R., et al. (2024). Are Internet information sources helpful for adult Crohn’s disease patients regarding nutritional advice? J Clin Med, 13(10), 2834. doi: 10.3390/jcm13102834.
5. Gkikas, K., Wan, M., Svolos, V., et al. (2024). YouTube as a source of information for food, diet-related items, and advisory comments for the management of inflammatory bowel disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis, 30(3), 347-356. doi: 10.1093/ibd/izad076.
6. Mintz KM, Donnelly ME, Lynett A, et al. Incorporating a GI Dietitian into Your GI Practice. Gastroenterology. 2024. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2024.10.022.</sup>

‍