What is Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)?
It is a group of symptoms which includes abdominal pain and changes in your bowel habits. It is a diagnosis by exclusion as there are no structural or pathological abnormalities with your digestive tract but yet you are still experiencing pain. Typically it affects more women than men (2:1) and affects people between the ages of 20 and 30 years. Prevalence in the general population is estimated to be between 10% and 20%. Recent trends indicate that there is also a significant prevalence of irritable bowl in older people (NICE 2017). There are 3 main types of IBS; constipation dominant, diarrhoea dominant and mixed (both diarrhoea and constipation).
Ideally you need to speak with a Nutritional therapist.
What Does IBS Pain Feels Like?
Typically you will experience bloating, abdominal pain and/or irregular bowel movements either constipation or diarrhoea or a mixture of both. Moreover you may also experience flatulence, vomiting and nausea. Dehydration, weight loss and mucus in your stools are more severe side effects. Also poor sleep patterns, stress, menstrual difficulties, headaches and low back pain.
Advice : What Foods Trigger It?
The foods that most commonly trigger irritable bowel are dairy, onions, wheat and chocolate. Our advice is to think more about your health and the food you eat. Also caffeine (tea or coffee), eggs, nuts and citrus fruits can be difficult. Furthermore rye, potatoes, barley, oats and corn are not advised.
How do you Relieve Irritable Bowel Syndrome?
Our advice is that diets which are high in processed foods that contain too much sugar, salt and trans-fats are not advised. Foods are high in refined sugar make your blood sugar levels rise rapidly which can slows down your digestion. Moreover reduce your stress levels especially when eating. As stress slows down gastric secretions and motility in the gut which is not beneficial for people with IBS.
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