IBS??

maura5880

Anyone else have IBS (irritable bowel syndrome)? If so, have you found any certain foods trigger or lessen the symptoms? I completely overhauled my diet about 4 weeks ago, and I still feel that my symptoms are the same as before. It's soo frustrating, but if I could find more foods that might suppress/relieve symptoms, I'd be thrilled!

tuneses

I discovered my IBS was actually a gluten intolerance. Only took 31 years!! lol Im so much better now

cessnaholly

It gets better after like a month of eating better - or at least it did for me. I still have issues but not nearly what they were. Avoid stress. Avoid greasy foods or highly processed food. I've found that those Fiber granola bars (the ones with the warning about starting to eat them slowly...) help with the symptoms. Good luck.

mcb816

I have ulcerative colitis. for a while I stuck to a low residue diet. very bland food, boiled chicken, crackers. It's so hard to keep my weight stable with this but those are the top 3 things that help me during a flare up

kerriemrak

I cut out dairy completely a little over a year ago, and in the last 6 months have cut out all caffeine, chocolate, and high fat foods. Daily excercise helps. The other thing my Doctor recommended that has made a huge difference is psyllium fibre. I drink Metamucil every morning and that has made the biggest difference.

Hope that helps... good luck!

goddesshanna

There are a lot of good food lists on the web for IBS. Seriously, just google IBS food list. I know with my case (IBS-D), the two major triggers were high fat and high insoluble fiber... (salad with full fat ranch dressing was super bad!) Sometimes just eating too big of a meal or eating something spicy would do it. I ended up going to the GI specialist for an unrelated pain (gallbladder) and they recommended citrucel as a non crampy fiber as well as probiotics like align or the digestive advantage stuff. I was also prescribed an antispasmodic and later a low dose antidepressant which ended up working the best.

macantrell

Fatty foods will get me every time! Through time and eating right it was improve. When you don't have frequent bouts then have one it is easy to figure out what triggered it. I had quite a bit of bloating when I first got started from adding so much raw food and fiber. But your body get use to it. Brown instead of white is a plus too. It is interesting how you forget you have it when the bouts are so far apart.

stang_girl88

For me, nothing seems to work except potato, bread and not eating for a day-this is probably part of the reason why I am fat lol. I can have really good weeks/days, then some really bad ones. There is no rhyme or reason to my problem. I am used to it now, I have had it for about 20 years now (wow just realized 20 years!), since I was 14. My doctor tried different things for me and I got sick of going to the Dr and have just accepted it. It has become better over time though. I hope you find some relief, I know it is annoying.

macantrell

There are a lot of good food lists on the web for IBS. Seriously, just google IBS food list. I know with my case (IBS-D), the two major triggers were high fat and high insoluble fiber... (salad with full fat ranch dressing was super bad!) Sometimes just eating too big of a meal or eating something spicy would do it. I ended up going to the GI specialist for an unrelated pain (gallbladder) and they recommended citrucel as a non crampy fiber as well as probiotics like align or the digestive advantage stuff. I was also prescribed an antispasmodic and later a low dose antidepressant which ended up working the best.

This reminded me, Probiotic daily was huge for me too! Also, eat lots of small meals and don't skip meals then eat a huge meal.

pbl1966

Try taking acidophilus supplements. I have found taking 1 14 mg tablet daily has greatly reduced my syptoms.

jackiemonx

i cant eat onions, leeks, garlic, processed foods.....fun times with ibs! exercise helps,

SueInAz

Here's a little of my history.

1994 - diagnosed with arthritis, started taking NSAIDS
1996 - started having digestive issues, diagnosed with IBS, a variety of medications were prescribed, none helped except one which was pulled off the market a short time later :grumble: At doctor's advice, started taking Immodium on a daily basis.
2005 - Gastroenterologist seen for another diagnosis & colonoscopy. This time Lymphocitic Colitis is the diagnosis, again no prescription meds help, Immodium continued. Gastroenterologist retires a short time later.
2010 - A different gastroenterologist, another colonoscopy and endoscopy. No sign of Celiac Disease or any other diagnosis, including the lymphocitic colitis. ::flails:: Doctor diagnosis as "spastic colon" and prescribes amitriptyline which WORKS.
Dec 2010 - Gallbladder removed (1 inch stone), symptoms return worse than before, amitriptyline no longer helps. Back to Immodium which isn't working very well.

It should be noted that my condition has been chronic diarrhea from the first, I don't swing back and forth. I guess my point is, what might be diagnosed as IBS may not actually be IBS. I sure as hell don't know what mine is but I'm starting to suspect it might be an intolerance to wheat/gluten, even if Celiac's was already ruled out. I'm heading to an allergist next to get tested for that as well as a host of seasonal allergy issues.

maura5880

I also tested negative for Celiac, and also had my gallbladder removed. It's been such a struggle with IBS I really wish there were some prescription meds that would help out with this!

Shausil82

I have IBS as well. And for some reason, it's gotten worse since I started losing weight. I still can't figure it out. I thought I was lactose intolerant, so I cut out dairy for a few days, didn't help. I'm thinking about seeing my doctor because it's been like this for a month.

SueInAz

I also tested negative for Celiac, and also had my gallbladder removed. It's been such a struggle with IBS I really wish there were some prescription meds that would help out with this!

Agreed!

I keep switching things up. I think I'm finding that I need to eat a low fiber diet. That seems to help a bit. It was a bit better and then I ate too much Monday for lunch and ended up having a bad episode yesterday. I'm going to keep trying that for awhile and see if it helps. It's just difficult because I'm still trained to think that lots of fiber is good so have to revise my food choices.

thistleandfi

Diagnosed back in 2001 but have discovered on my own through various food elimination that I am likely sensitive to gluten. It was through researching lactose intolerance (s/t else that I figured out was an issue this last year) that I even discovered that might be an explanation for my digestive problems. Why no physician I went to about my problems ever once suggested dairy or gluten as possible problems still bothers me. So I would strongly suggest looking into lactose & gluten sensitivity/intolerance as a possible cause - a number of people I've come to know have found themselves in a similar situation.

FWIW, I used to take a natural supplement called Ibsacol that I found very effective in helping to mitigate the symptoms and would recommend it but like anything else, look into it and see if its something you think might make help you and your particular situation.

Cathy92

IBS is a terrible disease and can really interefere with your life. One of my daughters has it, but it wasn't discovered until University. She was so sick, she wanted to quit school. I've been to the emergency room with her many times over the years and she now has a very strict diet and hasn't been in pain for a couple of years. I think it may be up to the individual to find out what they can and can't eat. My daughter is a vegetarian and doesn't eat wheat or gluten among many other things...she has a very restrictive diet.. I'd go to see a doctor who specializes in it and can guide you. Naturopathic doctors know a lot about this disease too, and have helped my daughter a lot.

Ebbsies

My IBS-C is due to breads/pasta and gluten as well. I have tried many different diets, going gluten free has helped me the most, but silly me I always slip back into eating it and swearing at myself later, now I just started a weaning process, I'm gluten free 36 hours now.

teachfl2

IBS is such an awful thing to have. I was diagnosed with IBS around 2003, but my symptoms go back much farther. I have major bloating, nausea, and have to really watch everything I put in my mouth and how much of everything too. Some foods bother me on some days, and then on other days I eat the same foods and I am fine. I try to stay away from wheat, soy, dairy, gassy vegtables and fruits and fried and processed foods. It has actually gotten so bad that I am going to see a nutritionist because I don't know what to eat anymore.

Feel free to friend request me and maybe we can struggle together....

maura5880

It really is an awful thing to have! I have another appt with my gastroenterologist tomorrow--I will let you all know if I get any good advice!

debs6

I have IBD - as in Crohn's disease and know the difficulties of finding what irritates you as an individual. The best thing is to keep a food diary - with space for body and physical reactions. I am on a committee for an onlne support group for people with IBD and without doubt we all have separate triggers to cause us discomfort. As mentioned before - things like onion are a common trigger- as are wines and coffee- although everyone is so very different. You can be tested for lactose or fructose intolerance - so it might be worth doing this - or perhaps trying it by elimination trials and recording it your food diary. As others have said also - if things are bad - a low residue diet can be a good way to get you through the difficult patch - but ultimately the aim is to get to as normal a diet as possible - whilst of course leaving out those foods that you know are your triggers.


I am currently in remission so am able to eat almost anything - which is great - but I am on meds for crohn's full time - and in addition always take probiotics and fish oil daily as directed by my GI.

Good luck
Debbie