Feeling bloated, with loose bowels, making urgent trips to the bathroom ? Experiencing reflux, constipation, nausea, or fatigue ? (Note: if any of these symptoms occur, see your doctor to rule out any medical conditions, such as coeliac disease). You could have IBS, which is a term used to describe a large list of symptoms associated gastrointestinal discomfort.
The evidence is growing, and I see the great improvements in the quality of life of those with IBS. At the centre of the issue is gut sensitivity, which results in a large number of cases from the mal-absorption, and therefore fermentation, of certain sugars in your large bowel.
Firstly, some of the sugars or carbohydrates that we eat are broken down and absorbed very well in our small intestines. If this is the case, then they pass through to your large bowel. The vast number of bacteria will eat them and produce waste products that lead to bloating.
There is very good science showing that the low FODMAPs diet (low fermentable sugar diet), as well as increasing soluble fibre and probiotics, can all have positive effects. The FODMAPs diet can achieve great results, though it’s not a life-long diet. First ,we need to determine whether your symptoms reduce or cease when reducing all the FODMAPs. If it becomes clear, then we can in-vestigate which sugars you are actually sensitive to, and those you are not. This means adding back lots of the foods in the initial Low FODMAPs diet, and all the nutrients that come with them.
Once they have reduced their overall FODMAPs load, some people find they can even eat some of the foods within the groups that effect their IBS. The main thing is that you gain control again, if you have a night out and eat trigger foods, you can go back to your low FODMAPs diet, and the symptoms go away. The other good news is that the symptoms are just that – symptoms—and there isn’t any evidence indicating that you are actually doing any harm, other than quality of life issues. So if something isn’t right, things can be done so you can gain control of your IBS.
