Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Dec;10(10):1047-1053.
doi: 10.1002/ueg2.12319. Epub 2022 Oct 19.

Environmental risk factors for inflammatory bowel disease

Noreen Singh  1 , Charles N Bernstein  2
Affiliations
Review

Environmental risk factors for inflammatory bowel disease

Noreen Singh et al. United European Gastroenterol J. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic, progressive immune-mediated inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract. Environmental risk factors play a role in developing either type of IBD, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis; although the exact mechanism is still unknown. Herein, we review environmental risks from early life exposures, lifestyle and hygiene, vaccinations, surgeries, exposure to drugs and gastrointestinal pathogens that may increase the risk of developing IBD.

Keywords: Crohn's disease; environmental; inflammatory bowel disease; risk factors; ulcerative colitis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

References

    1. Zhao M, Feng R, Ben‐Horin S, Zhuang X, Tian Z, Li X, et al. Systematic review with meta‐analysis: environmental and dietary differences of inflammatory bowel disease in Eastern and Western populations. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2022;55(3):266–76. 10.1111/apt.16703 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Agrawal M, Ao Sabino J, Frias‐Gomes C, Hillenbrand CM, Soudant C, Axelrad JE, et al. Early life exposures and the risk of inflammatory bowel disease: systematic review and meta‐analyses. Clin Med. 2021;36(100884):1–13. 10.1016/j.eclinm.2021.100884 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Niewiadomski O, Studd C, Wilson J, Williams J, Hair C, Knight R, et al. Influence of food and lifestyle on the risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease. Intern Med J. 2016;46(6):669–76. 10.1111/imj.13094 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Xu L, Lochhead P, Ko Y, Claggett B, Leong RW, Ananthakrishnan AN. Systematic review with meta‐analysis: breastfeeding and the risk of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2017;46(9):780–9. 10.1111/apt.14291 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Soon IS, Molodecky NA, Rabi DM, Ghali WA, Barkema HW, Kaplan GG. The relationship between urban environment and the inflammatory bowel diseases: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. BMC Gastroenterol. 2012;(1):12. 10.1186/1471-230X-12-51 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

MeSH terms