December 20, 2022

IBS FAQ Part 3: Can What I Eat Make Me Feel Better?

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This month I’ve been answering the most common questions I get about IBS. Irritable Bowel Syndrome affects up to 20% of the American population. It’s characterized by symptoms like bloating, gas, belly pain, constipation, and diarrhea.

And while everyone experiences these symptoms from time to time, if you have IBS they are impacting the quality of your life on a regular basis.

In IBS FAQs Part 1, I answer these questions:

What is IBS? ✔

What are the symptoms of IBS? ✔

What causes IBS? ✔

How common is IBS? ✔

Is IBS curable? ✔

Do stress and anxiety play a part? ✔

Does what I eat make a difference? ✔

In IBS FAQs Part 2, I answered these questions:

Who’s at risk for IBS? ✔

How do I know if I have IBS? ✔

How do they test for IBS? ✔

Are there different types of IBS? ✔

What are the treatment options for IBS? ✔

This week, we’ve got IBS FAQs Part 4. Let’s dive in!

IBS FAQ #1: What triggers IBS symptoms?

Your IBS symptoms probably don’t look the same day-to-day. You’ll have your good days and bad days. And figuring out what makes the difference can be frustrating. Every IBS patient is unique. What triggers another person may not affect you at all. But there are some common IBS symptom triggers you can control.

Stress

Stress is a common IBS trigger that affects as many as 75% of IBS patients. Most people think of stress as a mental and emotional condition. Our minds race and we feel anxious or worried. But stress profoundly impacts the body as well — including digestion.

And while it’s impossible to totally avoid stress, you can take steps to reduce it and to mitigate its effects:

Reflect on the people and events in your life that cause your stress.

Sometimes these are big things that are hard to change — family relationships, a job, a medical condition. But there are also sources of stress that you can change like leaving earlier for work to avoid worrying about being late.

Practice stress-relieving activities.

There are apps and YouTube videos that can help. Consider trying some guided meditation or EFT (tapping). You can also practice deep breathing and grounding exercises that can reduce your stress overall, or even help you calm down in a rough moment.

Remember to have fun.

As adults we can get so busy “adulting” that we forget to do things that bring us joy. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Listen to some music that makes you happy, go for a long walk, read a good book, or color in an adult coloring book. The idea is to find a calming activity you enjoy and do it regularly.

Anxiety and depression

Our brain and our gut are deeply interconnected. So mental health challenges can certainly impact your IBS. Anxiety and depression are common in our culture. Mental health has lived under the shadow of stigma for a long time. But things are changing.

If you’re struggling with mental health, you deserve to get help just like you would if you had a physical health concern. And improving your mental health may also improve your IBS.

Food Triggers

It probably won’t surprise you that food affects your IBS. It is a digestive disorder after all. And if you’ve spent any time trying to control your symptoms, you’ve probably figured out that some foods work better for you than others. In fact, it’s not uncommon for new clients to tell me that their diet consists of very few foods because they’re afraid to eat anything else.

While there are a variety of foods that can cause digestive upset, most IBS patients are triggered by FODMAPs.

IBS FAQ #2: What are FODMAPs?

FODMAP stands for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols. FODMAPs are a family of short-chain carbohydrates that are found in a variety of foods. FODMAPs are normally digestible. But in people with IBS (for various reasons), FODMAPs ferment in the gut before they are fully digested, resulting in symptoms. FODMAPs are also osmotically active — meaning they bring water into your digestive tract.

For people without digestive issues, FODMAPs can nourish both the body and gut bacteria. But if you have IBS, FODMAPs can cause problems. When the gut bacteria go to work on FODMAPs in your digestive tract, it results in increased gas. And this can trigger common IBS symptoms like bloating, gas, pain, diarrhea, and/or constipation.

And if you’ve got IBS, those symptoms probably sound pretty familiar. If you have questions about the low FODMAP diet and how to use it to improve your IBS symptoms, tune in next week. We’ll wrap up our last IBS FAQ by answering all your questions about the low FODMAP diet.

IBS FAQ #3: Can eating healthy help my IBS?

I’ll answer your question with a question. What do you mean by “eating healthy”? That’s a very subjective term that means different things depending on who you’re listening to or what school of thought you subscribe to.

But if you’re talking about things like eliminating processed foods, eating less sugar, and eating more fruits and vegetables, the answer is NO. Eating healthy will not improve your IBS.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of taking the steps listed above. Eating less crap and adding in more whole foods rich in vitamins and minerals is a really good idea in general. And there are loads of health benefits associated with eating well. But changing your diet in those ways won’t necessarily improve your IBS symptoms.

That’s because many of the foods that trigger IBS are considered “healthy”. Eating foods like dairy, whole grains, and many fruits and vegetables can actually make your IBS symptoms WORSE. It goes back to FODMAPs. These carbohydrates are not “unhealthy”, but they do tend to exacerbate IBS symptoms.

This doesn’t mean that dietary changes won’t help your IBS. They will! In fact, dietary changes are one of the absolute best ways to improve your IBS symptoms. Next week, I’ll tackle questions about my favorite therapeutic diet for IBS: the low FODMAP diet.

IBS can take over your life. Whether you’re dealing with debilitating pain or bloating, or you feel like you’re spending half your life in the bathroom, IBS keeps you from living life on your terms. I get it. And I’m here to help. If you’re ready for an individualized approach to your IBS that addresses not only your symptoms, but gets to the root cause, click the button below.

References

https://www.healthline.com/health/irritable-bowel-syndrome

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/low-fodmap-diet

https://www.healthline.com/health/ibs-c/avoiding-ibs-triggers-social-situations

https://www.webmd.com/balance/what-is-eft-tapping

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This month we’re talking about all things SIBO — small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. Specifically, I want to answer the SIBO FAQs I hear about this underdiagnosed condition that can cause all sorts of unpleasant digestive symptoms from diarrhea to bloating and more. Last week we covered SIBO basics FAQs — what it is, what causes it, and how it’s diagnosed. So if you’re not familiar with SIBO that would be a good place to start. But if you’re struggling with SIBO, what you probably care about most is how to treat SIBO. So those are the FAQs we’re covering today. Let’s dive in… Can SIBO be treated? The short answer is yes. Once you have a SIBO diagnosis — usually from a non-invasive breath test — SIBO can be addressed at its source. However, the treatment depends on the underlying cause and severity of the condition. What are the treatment options for SIBO? Antibiotics are often used to clear out the bacterial overgrowth, but it's important to address any underlying factors that may have led to the overgrowth in the first place. But antibiotics will reduce the amount of bacteria in your small intestine — and also your symptoms. But antibiotics aren’t without a downside. Yes, they kill the excess bacteria that’s causing you problems. But they also kill the good bacteria that lives in your large intestine — where it belongs. Fortunately, there are other options. Some naturally-minded practitioners (like me), use options like herbal antibiotics that have fewer side effects. And don’t let the word “herbal'' fool you into thinking they won’t work. Herbal antibiotics have proven to be at least as effective as the antibiotic rifaximin. Can diet help with SIBO? Yes! Emphatically, yes. In fact, dietary adjustments are one of your most powerful weapons against this bacterial overgrowth. The bacteria that are partying in your small intestine are living things. That means they need food to survive. So a combination of medication and bacteria starvation will help you get rid of SIBO more quickly than medication alone. So your treatment plan should include some dietary adjustments. Some people do really well on the low FODMAP diet. Or your practitioner may recommend a SIBO specific diet like one of these: 💡 SIBO Specific Diet by Dr. Allison Siebecker This diet — also called the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) — involves avoiding certain carbohydrates that feed bacteria in the small intestine, in addition to limiting FODMAPs. Foods are color-coded as green (legal), yellow (limited), or red (avoided) to help navigate the restrictions. 💡 SIBO Bi-Phasic diet by Dr. Nirala Jacobi This diet combines the low FODMAP diet with the SCD, but is divided into two phases. The first phase involves eliminating all fermentable starches for up to 6 weeks — starving the bacteria in the small intestine. In the second phase, a few starchy foods are reintroduced to feed the beneficial bacteria in the large intestine. 💡 The low histamine diet This diet can be helpful for those with SIBO who are showing signs of histamine intolerance. This is when your body has trouble breaking down histamines — chemicals involved in the immune system. You foods with high histamine levels like fermented foods, tomatoes, eggplant, and spinach, while prioritizing fresh, unprocessed foods with low histamine levels. This diet may reduce symptoms like headaches, skin irritation, and diarrhea. 💡 Elemental diet This is the most restrictive SIBO diet and involves two weeks of liquid-only nutrition. Your nutritional drink will contain pre-digested nutrients. The idea is that you can quickly absorb the nutrients before they have a chance to feed the bacteria in your small intestine. The diet has an 80-84% success rate according to clinical trials. While effective, it can be challenging, expensive, and not typically covered by insurance. 💡 Cut out sugar and processed sweets If you want to keep things simple, this can be an effective approach that’s easier to navigate. For many SIBO patients, avoiding processed sugars and alcohol is a great way to go. Processed sugars also include artificial sweeteners like aspartame, saccharin, and sorbitol. You won’t be missing out on any nutrients that your body needs. So this type of diet can be useful even after you’ve resolved your SIBO symptoms. How long does it take to treat SIBO? There’s not a clear one-size-fits-all answer for this one. It depends on what caused your SIBO in the first place and how severe it is. Typically, people on a SIBO treatment feel better within 4 weeks. If you take antibiotics, you’ll probably be on medication for about 2 weeks. But full recovery takes longer and requires both dietary changes and dealing with those underlying issues. What is the success rate of SIBO treatment? The success rate for treating SIBO is high. Some figures put the eradication rate at over 70%. The key is keeping it from coming back. Will SIBO come back? I hate to be the bearer of bad news… But yes, SIBO often comes back. In fact, according to recent studies, about 44% of people with SIBO will have a recurrence of symptoms within 9 months of their initial treatment. But… It doesn’t have to be that way. Medication — herbal or pharmaceutical — can treat the symptoms of SIBO and tame the bacterial overgrowth. But you need to remember that something caused your SIBO in the first place. There was some underlying condition that made your small intestine vulnerable to this overgrowth. And unless you address that issue, your SIBO is likely to return. That’s why it’s so important to work with a practitioner who can address the root cause of your problems, instead of just reducing the symptoms. Remember, symptoms are your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong — out of balance. And if you really want to keep your symptoms from coming back, you need to do something about the imbalance that enabled the bacterial overgrowth to get started. This could include addressing any nutrient deficiencies, food intolerances, or gastrointestinal motility issues (how quickly your food moves through your digestive system). Additionally, a dietary plan designed for SIBO recovery and probiotics may also be used to support the gut during and after treatment. It's important to work with a healthcare professional to develop a treatment plan that's right for you. How do I figure out the right SIBO treatment for me? If you suspect that you have SIBO, the first step is to consult a practitioner who specializes in digestive issues (like me). They will evaluate your symptoms and medical history and may recommend a SIBO test. Once you have a diagnosis, your practitioner will work with you to develop a treatment plan that’s customized for your body’s unique needs. In the meantime, there are steps you can take to alleviate your symptoms. I’ve created a guide with helpful resources for managing IBS and SIBO. Click the link below to get your free copy. And if you’re ready for a customized treatment plan, you can schedule a consultation here. Yes, SIBO is a challenging condition. But it is treatable and you can take control of your health.

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