This video is part two in our Irritable Bowel Syndrome series.
Please watch our IBS Overview first.
To treat IBS, it is important to understand, if possible, the nature of your unique symptoms
and their triggers.
How, what, and when we eat can have a huge effect on the bowel.
It is important to eat regular, well-balanced, moderately sized meals rather than erratic, variable meals.
By keeping a food intake diary and noting any adverse reactions, you may quickly identify
and remove problematic food from your diet and determine an approach that works best for you.
Fibre intake is especially important, which benefits both constipation and diarrhea,
depending on the type of fibre.
Insoluble fibres, such as cellulose or psyllium, can help ease constipation.
Soluble fibres, such as pectin, can help reduce diarrhea.
Learn more about how to get enough fibre at badgut.org.
Avoiding foods that you know worsen your disease state can greatly decrease symptoms.
Some common triggers are dietary fats, MSG (monosodium glutamate), or consuming large
quantities of liquids with meals.
Gastrointestinal stimulants, such as caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol, often increase diarrhea.
Some individuals find cooked vegetables and fruits cause fewer symptoms than raw ones.
Your intestines might be extra sensitive to gas.
Reducing ingestion of swallowed air, which is one of the major source of intestinal gas, and
avoiding large quantities of gas-producing foods, can help decrease gas.
To decrease swallowed air, avoid gum chewing, gulping food, washing food down with liquids,
and sipping on hot drinks.
One proposed dietary therapy for IBS, called the low FODMAP diet, is increasing in popularity.
FODMAP is an abbreviation for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides,
and Polyols.
If you can’t digest these carbohydrates properly, they travel into the large intestine
where bacteria ferment them and produce gas.
For most individuals, these foods do not cause any problems, but some who have IBS find that
these foods worsen their symptoms.
Emotions can also have a large impact on symptoms.
IBS is not a psychological disorder, but stress, depression, panic, or anxiety, might aggravate
bowel symptoms.
Proper exercise and rest can help reduce stress and positively influence IBS symptoms.
Psychological treatments, including relaxation training, time management, lifestyle changes,
and cognitive restructuring can augment medical treatment.
Attention to good quality sleep is also very important.
Physiotherapy can also be beneficial if there is pelvic floor dysfunction or imbalances,
and has the goal of developing the ability to relax the pelvic floor completely while
simultaneously allowing gentle propulsive forces from deep abdominal muscles to evacuate
the bowel fully.
The gut microbiome is the friendly, living microorganisms (bacteria and yeasts) in the human gut
that are essential for maintaining normal gastrointestinal function.
Probiotics might be a very effective treatment for gut dysfunction.
However, some products don’t contain the quantity of probiotic needed, or the right type that
is required, or they are destroyed by stomach acid before reaching the colon, where they need to be alive to
do their job.
This is why many foods claiming to contain probiotics are ineffective.
Unfortunately, there is not enough research to know the correct and effective probiotic
for each individual at this time.
However, a few products have proven useful in reducing some symptoms in IBS,
but a process of trial is required.
There are medications that help restore the normal contraction process of
the bowel, thereby reducing constipation and diarrhea.
A few types of anti-diarrheal medications include those that work by altering the muscle
activity of the intestine, thereby slowing transit time; narcotic agents; and anti-spasmodic
agents that block the transmission of nerve impulses.
There are many medications available to treat occasional constipation, such as over-the-counter
laxatives, as well as more effective ones available by prescription
There are many other pharmaceutical and herbal medicines available to help reduce
each IBS symptom.
With the variety available, you can have a treatment regimen tailored to your specific
experience, but it does require patience and time.
The effectiveness of each treatment varies between patients, so it is important that you
communicate well with your physician or practitioner and together you can find your ideal treatment.
I’m Dr. James Gray.
On behalf of the Medical Advisory Council of the Gastrointestinal Society,
thanks for watching.
For more information on treating IBS,
please search for these topics on www.badgut.org.