Living with bowel urgency or bowel leakage does not have to mean missing out on music festivals. From access passes and emergency kits to pads, toilet planning and telling your friends, here are practical tips to help you enjoy the weekend with more confidence.

I’ve put together the best simple questions to ask your doctor to look for vitamin B12, folate and iron deficiencies. These questions focus on spotting trends in routine blood tests that can highlight developing deficiencies early, often before symptoms or anaemia appear. The aim is to help you feel more confident discussing your results and ensure common, treatable deficiencies aren’t missed.

In the middle of my worst IBD flare, I couldn’t find a discreet pad — so I decided to create one. That’s how IB3 was born.

6 successful people with IBD. IBD doesnt define us, and it doesnt need to hold us back either. Sometimes, i like to remind myself, there are people who who have come out of the other side. Found what works for them, and still built a successful, fulfilling life. If they did it, and you are ambitious, you can do it to!

Chris shares his journey with IBD, from early diagnosis to severe flares and bowel incontinence, and how those experiences led him to create IB3 to reduce stigma and support others facing mild to moderate symptoms.

Iron, vitamin B12, and folate deficiencies are common in people with IBD — but they’re often missed until anaemia and symptoms appear. The good news is that these deficiencies usually leave early clues in routine blood tests long before you feel unwell. In this article, I explain how laboratories use trends in common results like haemoglobin, MCV, and MCHC to spot iron, B12, and folate deficiency early. My aim isn’t to diagnose, but to help you understand what your blood results are signallin...

Bowel urgency is more than suddenly needing the toilet. It is the planning, panic and loss of confidence that can slowly make your world smaller. As someone with ulcerative colitis, here are the practical strategies I use to keep living—even when my bowel is unpredictable. -->

A year ago, IB3 started as an idea during an ulcerative colitis flare at Download Festival. Today, our bowel leakage pads are finally manufactured and ready to help people living with bowel urgency and mild incontinence regain confidence.

Mild to moderate faecal incontinence exists outside hospital wards, yet products haven’t kept up. IB3 was created to fill the gap with pads designed for real life, not hospital beds or urine leakage.

I analyse your stool for a living — and as someone with ulcerative colitis, I know firsthand how much a tiny biomarker can change your life. Let’s talk faecal calprotectin: the test that’s saved countless people from unnecessary colonoscopies and transformed how we diagnose and monitor IBD. It’s simple, powerful, and (despite the smell…) one of my favourite things we run in the lab. Here’s what it is, how it works, and why it matters more than you think.

IB3 was born from a moment of unexpected shame—one glance at a packet of bulky diapers left on my living room floor. That experience made one thing clear: no one should feel embarrassed about the products they rely on. That’s why IB3’s packaging is intentionally discreet, anonymous, and stigma-free.

Ever wondered what really happens to your blood or stool sample once it leaves the clinic?I’m Chris — a Senior Biomedical Scientist who’s spent over a decade working behind the scenes in a busy NHS lab. In this post, I take you inside the world of IBD testing — from the machines that run your calprotectin, CRP, and full blood counts, to the high-speed track system that moves thousands of samples a day. You’ll learn what each test actually shows, how we process them, and even how to collect th...

Research shows poor sleep quality can significantly impact inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Sleep deprivation raises inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and CRP, which drive gut inflammation. One study found IBD patients with poor sleep (PSQI >5) had relapse rates of 47% at 3 months and 67% at 6 months, compared with 0% in patients with healthy sleep. With up to 50% of IBD patients reporting sleep issues during flares, improving sleep—especially slow-wave sleep (SWS)—may be...

Microscopic colitis can look “normal” on colonoscopy and blood tests — yet symptoms can be severe. In this post, I explain what your biopsies actually show, how diagnosis is made under the microscope, why CRP and ESR are often normal, and what blood tests still matter for your long-term health.

This post shares a behind-the-scenes look at how IB3 packaging is being designed. It explains the thinking behind the designs and invites the community to vote for their favourite as we move towards a final decision.

Bowel incontinence is far more common than most people realise — affecting around 1 in 12 adults, and up to 74% of those with IBD at some point. It’s not just an issue for the elderly; childbirth, inflammation, nerve conditions, and even chronic diarrhea can all contribute. For many, the emotional impact — fear, isolation, anxiety — can be just as tough as the physical symptoms. But there are solutions, from medical treatments to simple lifestyle adjustments. Talking about it is the first ste...

Ever wondered what happens to your IBD samples after you hand them over?Join NHS Biomedical Scientist Chris as he takes you behind the scenes of the lab — from high-tech analysers to the tests that drive 70% of medical diagnoses.

Living with IBD means navigating a world of unpredictable guts, questionable diets, and hospital gowns that refuse to close properly. From “Satan’s Sprite” colonoscopy prep to watching your insides on a 4K screen, it’s a journey that demands equal parts patience and humour. “The Ballad of My Rebellious Bowels” is my love-hate poem to life with IBD — the pills, the scopes, the flare-ups, and the brave laughter in between. Because if we don’t laugh about it, well… we’ll probably just cry (and l...

Ultra-processed foods double IBD risk. Study of 116k adults links processed meats, soft drinks, fried foods & additives to higher inflammation.