IBS-C Food question

[301246]

IBS-C. Can anyone suggest one food type (not a carb) to live on? I suffer with abominable trapped gas which gives me gageous headaches and terrible tummy pains. Getting desperate as NHS doesn't seem able to help.

[b1b1b1]

I don't think anyone can be healthy eating only one food all the time. I think you would get very sick doing that. Have you seen a gastroenterologist, or looked at the FODMAP diet? On a worst case basis an elemental diet is recommended, but these do not taste good and are very hard to stay on. Although I am not a doctor, I don't think you are sick enough to need that type of treatment.

[Boxroad]

Hi the best you can do is look into fibre there are two types soluble and insoluble one soaked up the liquids in your stomach and can cause constipation the other don’t soak up liquid so can cause the dreaded diarrhoea . I follow wish.nhs.uk page on fibre and found a balance that works well for me. And for constipation make sure you drink at least two litres of water a day, when I get really constipated I use lactulose. I hope this helps

[xjrs]

Your excess gas may be caused by a gut bacterial imbalance. This means that you may have some dominant bad bugs; when you feed them certain foods, they give you symptoms. It might be worth trying a probiotic that can help shift this balance towards more good bugs and help fight the bad ones. The probiotic that has helped me the most is Alflorex which has been scientifically studied for IBS. Since taking Alflorex I can tolerate more foods. I think Precision Biotics the supplier currently has a good offer on for their 3 month trial pack.

When you eat a variety of foods - different fruit, vegetable and cereal fibres, these encourage a wider range of good bacteria to grow in your gut. This is called bacterial diversity. Having greater bacterial diversity not only looks after your gut health (things like maintaining the intestinal wall), but also the overall health of your body. There is much scientific evidence now that having a microbiome (gut bugs) that are in a poor state are linked to many diseases. In studies, people with IBS tend to have lower bacterial diversity.

The problem with eating a highly restricted diet is that is reduces this bacterial diversity, which can be counterproductive in the long term. FODMAP elimination and reintroduction diets can be helpful, but it's best to try a probiotic such as Alflorex first, so that you are not eliminating foods unnecessarily. Even when trying FODMAP elimination and reintroduction it's best to try to eat as many FODMAPs you can, since it is FODMAPs that feed your gut bacteria. I was low FODMAP for years. Although it helped my IBS-D, over time my IBS pain increased, potentially and maybe in part since I was comprising my gut health my consuming hardly any FODMAPs.

Another thing about IBS-C is that foods may hang around in your system for longer, giving a greater time for your gut bacteria to feed off of them and creating gases. It is best to try to ensure that you are clearing out regularly, preferably with diet. I now have IBS-C myself (due to a redundant/long/loopy colon). If you want some tips on the IBS-C front, I can pm you.

[301246 in reply to xjrs]

Thank you for this. I have already tried Alflorex. In fact I have tried almost everything on the market. My nutritionist thinks symptoms may have resulted from food poisoning that I had almost a year later. The Lowfodmap diet didn't help but my nutrsitionist has started muscle testing the foods I eat (Kinesiology), The awful "free from" bread I have been eating which tastes yuk, still tested it wasn't good for me. It did show I could tolerate a good brand of sourdough bread *M&S) which is such a comfort to me as I have not enjoyed a slice of bread for 3 years now. Today I have ordered some gummies - Natures Way Fortify probiotic gummies. The Daily Mail gives them 9/10. It's worth a try. Thanks ford the info.

[xjrs in reply to 301246]

There are no means of testing for food intolerances except for food elimination and reintroduction. Unfortunately Kinesiology isn't scientifically proven:pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/246...

Kinesiology has not demonstrated that it is a useful or reliable diagnostic tool upon which health decisions can be based.

Up to you, but didn't want you to waste your money.

If you are backed up and not clearing regularly, this can give you gas as mentioned.

[301246 in reply to xjrs]

Trapped gas seems to be the biggest problem. I also have gasdtric headaches when I wake up in the morning. My nutritionist is now trying Bioresonance for healing and food testing. I am having my first pain managment course on the phone today. I think this service has been sent out to a private company by the NHS, Connect Pain.

[xjrs in reply to 301246]

Personally I would step away from this nutritionist, she is using practices that aren't scientifically proven. Great that you are getting some pain management through the NHS. To be honest I used these nutritional therapists myself, wasted loads of money on them. They are not doctors and they made my condition worse. I got much further forward on the NHS. Good luck with it all.

[301246 in reply to xjrs]

When you are desperate you will try anything and everything. She has managed to ease my pain on occasions. This is the only hope that i have. She believes she can help and even came out to my home last Saturday at 8pm.

[Pte82]

301246, these links contain information to understand a possible cause of your problem and how to approach it. As you'll find it will not be focusing on one food but deficiencies that are causing a wandering nerve connecting the brain to the gut to malfunction. Magnesium is needed to activate the vitamin B1 needed by the vagus nerve so a deficiency of both results in many problems possibly including yours. In addition to a balanced diet, your health care team will evaluate deficiencies vitamin/mineral supplements you may need.

eonutrition.co.uk/post/when...

eonutrition.co.uk/post/thia....

sarakahnnutrition.com/tips/....