Ulcerative Colitis Summer Reading

For many of us, summer is an opportunity to sit down with a great book - preferably while stretched out on a lounge chair near the beach. Whether you'll be under the bright yellow sun or the glaring fluorescent lights of your office, however, ulcerative colitis sufferers can find hope and answers in some of the best books written on the subject.

1- Coping Successfully With Ulcerative Colitis by Peter Cartwright

Known for a few excellent autobiographical works, Peter Cartwright targets ulcerative colitis in one of the best books about this disease. Rather than taking you through the same recycled information you can find anywhere else, however, he presents scenarios that are common to ulcerative colitis victims, and explains how you can overcome them.

From probiotics and prebiotics to surgery and diet, Cartwright outlines some of the most challenging obstacles that ulcerative colitis sufferers face. This is recommended for summer reading because it isn't very long (104 pages), and because you can pick it up and set it down without worrying about losing your place.

2- The New Eating Right for a Bad Gut by James Scala

Taking you in a completely different direction for your summer reading, James Scala publishes a book about the ins and outs of diet for ulcerative colitis sufferers. Interestingly, he talks about diet as it relates to certain aspects of ulcerative colitis, rather than the disease as a whole. For example, he talks about the times after flare-ups when you need to focus on intestinal healing, and presents dietary recommendations specifically for that purpose.

Of course, this bit of summer reading is focused not only on ulcerative colitis, but on all IBS and IBD disorders. This helps those with UC understand that the entire gastrointestinal tract is involved in their illness, and that advice doesn't always have to be disease-specific.

3- Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis: Everything You Need to Know by Fred Saibil

I resisted the urge to buy this book because I never believe a title as ambitious as this, but author Fred Saibil comes pretty close to fulfilling his promise. This 225-page mammoth of a book takes a unique tour of ulcerative colitis and other gastrointestinal disorders for your summer reading. Rather than starting with information about the disease, he instead begins by explaining how your gastrointestinal system is supposed to work.

For comparing and contrasting your symptoms against those of "healthy" people, this book is great for summer reading because it is long enough to fill those empty summer days, but not so complicated that you'll get lost in the medical jargon. This is definitely a must-read for anyone who wants to understand their disease.