Pollen a trigger for IBS?

[Catsandsunsets]

Do you notice more IBS symptoms during Spring?

Notice any changes to your bowel movements like diarrhea during seasonal changes?

I feel the pollen may be affecting my bowels

[BabblingBrooks]

I think IBS has caused my allergies or Covid has. I never used to have hayfever pre IBS/Covid.

I’m actually worse at this time of year because it’s tree pollen season.

[Zantecat]

Definitely have seasonal IBS ‘flares’, that are much worse than the symptoms that are always there.Not sure if it’s due to pollen, but I do get seasonal hay fever and sometimes asthma as well.

[Bracondale]

If the your IBS is due to gut mast cell activation/histamine release (which it often is) then anything that triggers mast cell activation anywhere in the body eg pollen, stress, gut infection, foods etc could make IBS worse.

[Luisa22]

I used to be worse in Spring and then again usually around early September through to usually November. In full summer and full winter I always felt better.

I was waiting, this Spring, to be hit by that again, but it didn't happen this year. I have no idea why/ However, just recently as this low pressure has moved in after a long period of steady fine dry weather, my gut is more sensitive again. I had got to the stage where I could eat far more foods, but the last few days I have had to be boring and stick more to my old "safe foods" list.

So I'm getting hit a bit by sudden weather changes again. I don't know about pollen. I was never allergic or noticed pollen all my life. But I don't know. Maybe it could be certain pollen at certain times of year, even though they never affected me in the 40 years I lived in my home here?

[Bracondale in reply to Luisa22]

The weather definitely affects the pollen count and it's been odd weather this spring. And people are affected by different types of pollen (ie grass, tree etc) which have their own seasons, which will to an extent be influenced by temperature, light, rain etc.

I never had hayfever then became sensitive to rape seed quite suddenly aged 30

This was interesting bbc.co.uk/weather/articles/...