A woman has described how she lived on bran flakes and Haribo sweets for a year rather than trying to get help for her digestive problems.
Sianny Thomas, from Swansea, South Wales, chose to eat this way because they were the only foods that prevented her from being sick.
Eventually, she was diagnosed with Crohn's disease - an inflammatory bowel disease - and has now joined a campaign to encourage others to not delay seeking care.
Charity Crohn’s & Colitis UK warned that delaying treatment can leave people needing stronger medication or even emergency surgery to remove part of the bowel.
Ms Thomas spoke on her experience and said: “I lost three stone, my eyes became sunken with dark circles, and my hair and nails went really dull.
“I ended up in hospital after my condition flared, and was finally diagnosed with Crohn’s.
“If I’d been diagnosed earlier I needn’t have had such strong medication, nor developed a bad relationship with food.
“So if you have diarrhoea, stomach pain or blood in your poo, even if your symptoms come and go, use the symptom checker on the Crohn’s & Colitis UK website to see if it could be Crohn’s or colitis, then send the results to your GP so you both have everything you need to get the right diagnosis and the right treatment as early as possible.”
Crohn’s & Colitis UK are launching a campaign called 'Cut The Crap: Get Checked For Crohn’s and Colitis' as a way to promote public awareness of the problem.
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It is aimed at younger adults, with it urging people to use its online symptom checker and talk to their GP about digestive health.
You can find the online symptoms checker at the charity's website here.
What are the symptoms of Crohn's disease?
According to the NHS website, the main symptoms of Crohn's disease are:
- diarrhoea – which may come on suddenly
- stomach aches and cramps – most often in the lower-right part of your tummy
- blood in your poo
- tiredness (fatigue)
- weight loss
Some other, less common symptoms are stated as:
- a high temperature
- feeling and being sick
- joint pains
- sore, red eyes
- patches of painful, red and swollen skin – usually on the legs
- mouth ulcers
A full specification of symptoms, diagnosis and treatment for Crohn's can be found on the NHS website here.
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