Home > Medical > Digestive health Digestive health All sections in Digestive Health » About Gastro » Anal & Rectal Disorders » Digestive Disorders » Common Symptoms » Dehydration » Digestive Health » Gastro & Food Illness » IBS » News » Tests & Procedures Crohn’s Disease support Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that affects the small intestine and colon. Extra vitamin D may ease crohn's symptoms Diet swap provides clue to colorectal cancer risk Vit D could fight Crohn's disease India announces low-cost rotavirus vaccine See All Digestive health News » What is Digestive health? Digestion involves mixing food with digestive juices, moving it through the digestive tract, and breaking down large molecules of food into smaller molecules. Digestion begins in the mouth, when you chew and swallow, and is completed in the small intestine. Common digestive disorders include ulcerative colitis, gastritis, constipation, diarrhoea, hiatus hernia, worms, Crohn’s disease, diverticulosis and diverticulitis, haemorrhoids and colon polyps. Diarrhoea can be caused by a wide variety of factors and agents. Spoilt food that has either started to ferment or gone sour, or is infected with microorganisms (both bacteria and viruses) is a common cause of diarrhoea. Constipation occurs when stools become hardened and difficult to pass. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or spastic colon is one of the most common gastrointestinal disorders. Take Action Test Calcium calculator » Test Is my heartburn serious? » Follow Health24 on Pinterest » Ask CyberDoc » The Stool Tool Worms in Humans Slideshow advertisement About gastro Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CHS) Liver toxicity Gastrointestinal (GI) / Stomach cancer Gastrointestinal disorders See All About gastro » Common digestive disorders Living with Crohn's Disease Your complete guide to Irritable Bowel Syndrome You and your digestive system Celiac disease See All Common digestive disorders » Dehydration Diarrhoea Nausea and vomiting Is your child dehydrated? Signs and symptoms of dehydration See All Dehydration » Gastroenteritis and food illness E. coli Gastroenteritis Salmonella infection Food poisoning facts See All Gastroenteritis and food illness » Tests and procedures Large bowel resection Colostomy Lower GI Series Upper GI Series See All Tests and procedures » Anal and rectal disorders Your anus Rectal cancer Ulcerative colitis Haemorrhoids - graphic See All Anal and rectal disorders » Common symptoms Facts about your fart Diarrhoea Constipation Got gas? See All Common symptoms » Digestive health Parasites - from Natural Standard How your digestive system works Diverticulitis: can diet help? IBS - spastic colon See All Digestive health » Irritable bowel syndrome Beating IBS with the low-fodmap diet Do you suffer from IBS? Living with IBS IBS - spastic colon See All Irritable bowel syndrome » From our sponsors Hill's Science Plan Canine Mini range What is Diabetic Neuropathy? There are more than 200 different viruses which can cause a cold A clinically proven skin care range is now available