Anyone with IBS?

richellechouinard

I've recently been diagnosed with IBS, and I was wondering what triggers other people? I'm also lactose intolerant, so I'm already off all dairy products, except I'm trying to work in some probiotic yogurt. I don't eat any deep fried foods either. What have you had to take out of your diet?

girlviernes

I've never fully sorted out my triggers. Spicy foods and overly fatty meals seem to be problematic when my IBS is sensitive. Getting more fiber helps me a lot.

PinkyPan1

I have had IBS with constipation most of my life. My triggers are soda ( I have not had one in 10 years), bell peppers of any color, cauliflower, alcohol, orange juice, apples, pineapple and grapes to name a few. Oh the biggest and the hardest for me to control is nuts of any kind. I know if I have any I will be miserable for days. Sometimes I still break down and enjoy them even though I am aware of the consequences.

ngholland

I find fatty, carb rich food affects me most... (Pizza, bagels, muffins, etc..) so have spent the last fortnight restricting these, and drank at least 2 litres of water a day. I feel so much better! Only diagnosed recently so still learning all about ibs. Feel free to add me x

theawill519

I have a mild case of IBS and I've never been able to nail down specific triggers. The only ones I know for sure are Conecuh sausage (southern thing) and pizza. In general, fatty foods tend to make it flare more than others.

richellechouinard

Thank you all for replying! It's such a pain to restrict things, but knowing that there are still lots of delicious foods I can eat helps!

LauraRae2

oil/grease, sugar, and anxiety (so that's a fun one - give the person with general anxiety and social anxiety IBS-D that is triggered by anxiety!). Oh, and pork - I think it's the grease? I don't eat pork at all, I keep my refined sugar to a minimum, I avoid fried foods, I don't eat the skin of any animal (grease), and I limit the amount of butter I use.

AnnPT77

I used to have IBS with constipation, but it seems to have largely resolved with more water, more exercise, more veggies, and less stress. I have an *occasional* flare-up, but haven't figured out what triggers it.

smurdock1991

I have found that pork is a huge trigger for me. That and stress!

bkerr30

Gluten is a big trigger for me and also causes flare ups with arthritis like symptoms. Fatty foods are also terrible but the biggest one is stress. On consulting with my gastro doc I'm debating a FODMAPS elimination diet to determine other triggers because it's so hard to define! Good luck to you, feel free to add me also.

DLS05

I've been diagnosed 8 years and I still haven't been able to 100% say what my causes are. I think more artificial ingredients, fatty foods, pasta and bread! but mainly stress, but once in a flare up, stress just cannot be helped.

MsChucktowski

I've had IBS-D since I started high school (I'm 20 now), and I have yet to discover any food triggers. However, anxiety is a major trigger for me, which made my final two years of school (HSC exams, etc) completely awful. Alcohol is another (I don't drink at all) and it seems to flare up during my TOM.

As for treatment, my gastroenterologist suggested a shot of Aloe Vera inner leaf juice mixed with a teaspoon of psyllium husk every morning. It's really gross, but I found the aloe helped somewhat.

derekspiewak

I have. I had major problems with heavy carbohydrates, so eating better has pretty much made my problems go away.

EDIT: the big trigger for me seemed to be corn and corn products. A little corn on the cob is not so bad, but corn chips, corn bread, corn meal...

bkerr30

derekspiewak wrote: »

I have. I had major problems with heavy carbohydrates, so eating better has pretty much made my problems go away.

EDIT: the big trigger for me seemed to be corn and corn products. A little corn on the cob is not so bad, but corn chips, corn bread, corn meal...

Oh yes, popcorn is the absolute worst for me! I forgot about it because I never ever eat it!

ds6099

I'm on the fodmap elimination diet. Otherwise it's hell

firephoenix8

For me it's greasy poor quality food - like McDonald's breakfast sandwiches type of thing. My doctor put me on Amytriptyline, and I've been eating better and I don't have much trouble any more.

sakurablush

I came to be diagnosed with IBS in the middle of my A-levels. From then and up until my time in university I tried various drugs, but nothing really helped. If anything I felt more bloated, cramped and miserable than I did before so I stopped taking them. When I moved in with my boyfriend I began to relax more, and my eating became more or less "normal." Well, OK perhaps not as since my mid-twenties I piled on a few stone >.<. As soon as my body *could* eat, it did.

My trigger foods are largely things like hot bread (even now smelling toast makes me gag - and I love toast) and Weetabix. I suffer a bit from social anxiety (it's gotten a lot better since losing some weight and I'm more comfortable with my appearance again), so that along with heat set me off still. It's not as bad as it was. I think fasting has helped me a lot, as this summer wasn't nearly as bad for me as previous ones were. Usually summer is a slow, long slog for me.

I don't take any medication. As a student I found all medication did was make me feel ten times worse, and cost money I didn't have. I know it works for and helps a lot of people, and I'm happy for them. I found usually something like a long walk, meditating, minty green tea works for me.

JdoubleJ

I have it, and I've just finished the FODMAP restriction diet. It has really helped and I have identified new triggers as well as well as learning what amounts I can tolerate. It's a challenge but so is having horrible IBS

MsChucktowski

sakurablush wrote: »

I found usually something like a long walk, meditating, minty green tea works for me.

Peppermint works great for me too. I've never had prescription medication for IBS, but I found Mintec tablets worked really well for calming a rumbly tummy, and Imodium for when you've got the runs

ki4eld

Post-bariatric-surgery, my "occasionally rumbly" tummy has gone insane. I was told it would, but wow. My problem is constipation and I've discovered one of my biggest triggers is bread and pasta. If I stay away from those, I'm ok. As someone who loves bread and pasta, that really sucks. However, less pain is better than pasta!

jenmckane86

I don't have IBS, at least I've never been diagnosed with it...but I cannot eat spinach unless it is ground up in a shake or something like that. My stomach literally doesn't digest it and won't pass it. The only way it will come out is the same way it came in, which sucks because I actually really like spinach.

SLWright2345

Alcohol isn't too bad but it's something I'm conscious of when consuming it. I don't have fried foods too often but I think that's a big trigger.

My number one trigger is stress though. Count to 10...

jackoswacko

Follow the fodmap diet. There is a list of things to cut out and a list you can replace them with.

For example. I know cows milk sets me off. I have coconut milk instead. Regular wheat sets me off so I have 100% spelt homemade bread instead.

Get in touch if you want any help.