What Is Irritable Bowel Syndrome - IBS?

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common conditions of the bowel and affects an estimated 15% to 20% of the population in the US alone. The term, irritable bowel, is not a particularly good one since it implies that the bowel is responding irritably to normal stimuli, and this may not be accurate. The several names for IBS, including spastic colon, spastic colitis, and mucous colitis, attest to the difficulty of getting a descriptive handle on the condition and each of the other names are in themselves as problematic as the term IBS. Read more