Some forms of inflammatory bowel disease are a bigger threat to pregnancy than others, suggests a large new U.S. analysis. One of two major types of IBD, ulcerative colitis, was most strongly linked to serious pregnancy complications, researchers found in a study of nearly 400,000 women. But all women with IBD can and should take precautions for a safe pregnancy, experts said. “A sick mother is not good for a growing pregnancy,” said UTMB’s Dr. Shannon Clark. “A diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease does mean that a woman who is pregnant would need to be on medication throughout the course of her pregnancy to control symptoms,” Clark said. “If the symptoms of IBD are uncontrolled, or the disease is in an ‘active’ state, at the time of conception, the woman will likely continue to experience the symptoms of active disease throughout her pregnancy.” The news also appears on Fox News and in the Chicago Tribune.