Ive had gut problems for years. Diarrhoea mostly. My stomach has been swollen for a few months now with difficulty having a normal BM. Its usually sludge like...sorry about the description.
A colonoscopy 2 years ago showed dilated colon and the gastro Dr said I have IBS _C .
He said to stop eating gluten, as you age its harder to digest and to go on the FODMAP diet.
Ive been trying to move things along wit the Drs help two weeks ago. She said take peppermint oil capsules and Macrogol. Taking macrogol causes loose stools but I guess if ive been constipated for months it will take a while to clear.
Ive also added Colyxol with Senna which results in very runny BMs but cant stay on them as I cant leave the house. Ive stopped the Colyxol today as I have to go out for Christmas.
Some things ive wondered might help include
Flax seed meal added to yoghurt
Metamucel
Prunes . High Fodmap though'
Colyxol stool softeners with no Senna
I am a bit desperate to get my gut cleared but clutching at straws right now.
Any advice please on what works for you.
Written by
granny34
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
I started to use Flaxseed and Physilium Husk 5 or 6 weeks now and my symptoms have improved a lot resulting in almost normal BMs. Nothing's perfect and I never expect it to be, this is life and I have to live with it. But there has been a good improvement. I started by using Flaxseed raw on porridge but it was too harsh and made things worse. I now use a Teaspoon or so when I make my bread along with a Teaspoon of Physilium Husk. I tried taking the latter mixed in water but couldn't get it down. I bake my own bread in a machine so it's easy to add and you don't know it's in there. I think sometimes we can take too much stuff in the hope that we're doing good and this can make things worse. I find for me, small adjustments have more of an effect and I can monitor things better.
Your suggestions and results are encouraging and I will try to be patient.
IBS is so painful and frustrating when things dont work well. I will keep adding flax seed meal to my yoghurt and try small doses of Metamucil. Dont want to add too much at the same time. A lot of advice says increase fibre but I tried that and it has made things worse.
The Peppermint oil capsules hopefully will help a bit as well.
I am 70 and dont want my gut to rule my life but it sure messes things up and cause depression.
Ive had gut problems since I was in my teens. An answer and medical remedy for IBS is the Holy Grail. Lets hope more research goes on to find some good answers.
Increasing fibre is important, but Soluble Fibre is best. I find the likes of wholemeal bread, pasta, whole wheat cereals and stuff like that are a no no for me. Oats however are soluble Fibre and are fine and I eat porridge every morning topped with seeds, sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, chia. Fresh fruit every day, and fortunately I can eat a varied amount of fruits apart from Citrus. I tend to keep away from as much processed foods as possible. Don't drink or smoke, I try to make my own meals from natural ingredients so I know what goes into them. I keep fats to a minimum as I have no gallbladder. I'm 66 and mine started when I was 50. Anxiety is a big problem for me, since a child. It plays havoc with the digestive system so it's vital to control it as much as possible. Good Luck and Merry Christmas 🎄 🎁
Great advice... I will try some oats maybe with flax seed meal stirred through. My brother has lots of problems with his gut and after being away he needed to get back on Psyllium husks. He took a while to have it resolved. I am hoping that after 5 or 6 weeks my gut will be okay with time The Dr said it will take a while to clear. Its frustrating and takes over your life at times.
milk of magnesia is a good one to clear things out I just use a cap full at bedtime and that used to work really well as had lots of surgeries and they clog me up so I use that and then it’s sorted the next morning.
Fresh figs are another good one and weetabix. Good luck xx
Thanks...I might try some just for some quick relief. Hope it works for me. The Macrogol just one sachet causes diarrhoea but it has to clear somehow and I guess it takes a bit of time to adjust to the dosage.
Really need to get my diet sorted so constipation doesnt take over.
I am seeing my GP early January for a review of my gut to check theres nothing else amiss but Im sure its just backup.
It sounds like you need to see a gastro really as the gp can’t really diagnose things they will just assume ibs and if your symptoms have changed then it could warrant more investigations via a gastro they can also refer you to a dietitian who would be best placed to help you with your diet because it’s always good to ask on her but everyone is different and diet wise what works for one might really upset another. I see lots of people have said about adding loads of fibre but be careful you must drink lots of fluids if you do this or you will end up more blocked up especially with flaxseed and chai seeds etc they absorb water in your bowel creating bulk so without drinking extra fluids it has a negative effect.
Milk of magnesia is harmless and works much better for me than any of the other things but again we are all different so you need to find what is right for you and it’s always worse during this festive period with lots of different food but try to stick to safe things and keep up the fluids not coffee and alcohol though try things like herbal teas, smoothies water etc. I hope you can get through this time and things resolve for you till you can speak to the doctor xx
Following low FODMAP when you have IBS-C isn't necessarily the best idea since it reduces fibre which is the worst thing for constipation.
Here is my general advice about constipation (some of this you are doing already) - personally I prefer the natural approach as far as possible rather than laxatives etc:
What is your fibre intake like? To improve constipation in the short term you can try ground flaxseed on your breakfast, starting at 1 teaspoon and increasing at 1 teaspoon every 2-3 days - you'll need to consume extra water with it.
These foods are also high fibre:
8-9 Prunes
2 tablespoon chia seeds (soaked for 10-15 mins in milk or non dairy milk with cereal or water)
Shredded wheat (or if GF: Nutribrex)
60g Quinoa
Wholewheat bread
75g Whole grain pastas (if GF: Buckwheat)
2 Hard pears
5 Dried apricots
90g Raspberries
1 orange (contain a natural laxative)
2 kiwi.
I find that I need to have 1 orange or 2 kiwi a day and then another high fibre fruit later in the day to help with BMs. Introduce new foods and any fibre increases slowly, starting with one new thing at a time, waiting for 2-3 days for a response and keep a food diary. You may not need to consume as much fibre as I do.
For breakfast I make a porridge of 4 tablespoon of oat bran and 4 tablespoon all bran (wheat bran), 2.5 small cups of water and microwave for 10 mins. I then mix in 2 tablespoon of chia seeds and 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed and leave to stand for 15-20 mins since the chia seeds need to form a gel. On top of that I place 8 prunes and eat. The best thing to do is to start with normal oats in similar quantities and, if needed, replace one of the tablespoons of oats with oat bran for a couple of days, carrying on doing this every couple of days until you get to 4 tablespoon of oat bran and 4 tablespoon of oats. Then start replacing with wheat bran in the same manner. You can then add the other ingredients one at a time. You might find you do not need the complete 'recipe' to have a BM. All these individual components are down to tolerance e.g. you may not tolerate wheat (see later about Alflorex), so it is best to keep a food diary (I do this on a spreadsheet) recording symptoms for up to 2-3 days after each change.
I also take 30 drops of ginger extract before bedtime to aid motility. You may need to work up the dose to say 7 drop increments each night.
Exercise can help with BMs. The government recommends 150 mins of moderate exercise (e.g. walking as if you are late for an appointment) or 75 of intense exercise (e.g. jogging) per week. I also have a bit of a walk around straight after breakfast to get things moving.
You need to ensure that you are drinking enough fluids (2 litres of fluid per day).
There is some good advice about constipation here:
There are also medications that help IBS-C (constipation dominant IBS). I suffer from IBS-C and have been prescribed Linaclotide for it. I also take Alflorex probiotic which has made me more tolerant to taking in the extra fibre I need for a BM.
Failing dietary measures, you can try Optifibre, which needs to be worked up to a dose according to instructions. You may not need the full dose - watch out for gas and increment to a level that is acceptable for you.
Some people are more prone to constipation due to their intestinal anatomy. Through colonoscopies I have been told that I have a long loopy (redundant) colon. This means that food takes longer to pass through and in the mean time the intestines have more time to suck out water from the stool, drying them out and causing constipation. I have found that I need to consume much more fibre than other people to have regular BMs.
I have also found useful having most of my food at meal times, leaving 4-5 hours of not eating between meals, eating my fruit snack before a meal. This means that your digestive system has time to process each meal. It also allows something called the MMC (migrating motor complex) to run which sweeps food waste from your small intestine into your large intestine. This only happens when you have an empty stomach. When people snack regularly, it prevents the MMC from working properly. I also find the larger meals help to push things along better than drip feeding through snacking.
If you really get stuck you can try 800mg+ of Magnesium Oxide. I used to take these for a regular bowel movement when having to be low fibre:
I used to start around 800mg at bed time on an empty stomach, then increment by 100mg (1 pill) each night until I got a response the next morning or the morning after. Most of it goes straight to your bowels where it draws in water to bulk out stools.
This worked well when I was low fibre, but when I started to introduce fibre it became more unpredictable (either not working well enough or too well), so I had to give it up. Having said that it isn't recommended to use this method long term.
Wow...some great information there. Thanks so much. Really appreciate that there are some strategies I can try with regard to fibre.
My Dr said I don't have to eat gluten free as I'm not celiac but the Gastro surgeon who did the colonoscopy 3 years ago said as you get older there might be some sensitivity to gluten.
So many differences in play for individuals. There's no one size fits all which is tough.
Trial and error and I do appreciate your knowledge and will try some different things out to see what my gut is happy with.
For IBS sufferers it is normally the FODMAPs in wheat that cause issues rather than the gluten. Some people go gluten free and get some relief but this can often be down to the fact that the FODMAPs in wheat are being avoided, so people think they have gluten sensitivity when actually it is the FODMAP in wheat. I thought I was intolerant to wheat until I tried Alflorex. Since the strain of probiotic in Alflorex helps digests complex carbohydrates, I am very tolerant to wheat now including wholemeal bread.
There is also research that suggests that gluten free diets can have an adverse affect on the microbiome. A healthy microbiome is a good start for helping with IBS issues, so gluten free diets may be counterproductive for IBS sufferers. If a person can tolerate wheat it is more healthy to incorporate it into the diet (particularly the wholegrain version) than to avoid it, rather than thinking that avoiding gluten is 'healthy'.
Yes, as soon as I found out that eating wheat caused me no problems (after eliminating it for weeks as a trial) I decided what the heck, let's get my toast in the morning back!
And that is one of my safe foods and never causes me any problems. And neither does wheat in any form, so long as it isn't too high-fibre (but I have IBS D not C so have to be a bit careful with high fibre foods generally, though not always.)
I have I Bs C, the foodmap diet is way too limited. I have issues with low blood sugar because my pancreas over secretes insulin If I have carbohydrates, I really struggle what to eat; just recently found Metamucil contains high levels of lead. Psyllium does help the bowel I found. A product called NOW, psyllium husk, ; it tested a lower level of lead so I’m using that but a lot of water has to be drunk.
Well so far there have been a few very small changes to my constipation which is encouraging. I know it will take a few weeks to clear but my BMs are improved a bit.
I have started with small steps so far.
Lactose free yoghurt with flax seed meal and blueberries in the morning.
Lots and lots of water through the day
Two kiwi fruit
One slice grain bread with chicken and beetroot
Eggs, tomatoes etc and a few vegies .
One dose of Movicol each day
Half a dose of Metamucil each day
Six peppermint oil capsules
Every two or three days I also take a Colyxol Stool softener/stimulant to help move things along.
Crossed fingers and toes that I am on the right track.
Everyone advice has been so good and Ive been able to use the advice with my IBS.
IBS in any form is so challenging as everyone gets. It can take over your life with the pain and Constipation/diarrhoea episodes.
How great if more research could happen to find some answers.
Thanks for all the advice and I wish you a Happy New Year with happiness and health.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
Agonising stomach pain
New to fodmap any help / advice very welcome 
Feeling very low...low fodmap diet has not helped :(
IBS and Anxiety
Anyone else following low fodmap diet and having to go on a low fat\high fibre diet for high cholesterol
