IBS is probably the most common gastro-intestinal disorder. Roughly 15% of the population suffer from IBS complaints, with women twice as likely to be affected than men. IBS is characterised by some combination of abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, colonic mucus, dyspeptic symptoms such as flatulence or nausea, and varying degrees of anxiety and depression.

April is IBS awareness month, so we thought it would be good to talk about a few natural approaches to the treatment of IBS. The three major things to consider are (1) increasing dietary fibre, (2) eliminating allergic/intolerant foods and (3) controlling any psychological components to the problem. Today we will talk about (1) and (2), and tomorrow we will talk about (3).

As far as increasing dietary fibre goes, this is more important for people who are suffering with constipation rather than loose stools. Fibre from fruit and vegetables is usually the best kind - other traditional sources of fibre such as wheat bran could be contra-indicated because food allergy can often play a significant role in IBS, and many people have some kind of intolerance to wheat.

Food intolerances can be tricky to uncover and eliminate, but there are a few ‘old chestnuts’ that should be eliminated first to see if there is any improvement. Wheat, dairy, caffeine, sugar and alcohol are the first things to stop in order to see if symptoms improve. In fact, if the thought of giving up one or more of these fills you with horror, then that could well be the main culprit - the body often perversely develops an addiction to the food that it is intolerant to.

Other symptoms  such as palpitation, hyperventilation, fatigue or excess sweating could also indicate a possible food allergy or intolerance.

Try eliminating all of the ‘bad foods’ and wait until the symptoms subside. Then you can start slowly bringing each food back into the diet in small quantities one at a time. If the symptoms start up again then you will have a good idea which food could be causing the problem.

Foods containing refined sugar are particularly pernicious because they can lead to small intestinal bacterial overgrowth by decreasing the intestinal motility. A rapid rise in blood sugar slows GI tract peristalsis (the natural rhythmic movement of the intestines).

If you are suffering from abdominal cramping, you may want to try peppermint oil, as this can be good to relieve intestinal spasm and is often used to treat IBS. If possible, find capsules that are enteric-coated to prevent release of the oils too early in the digestive tract to avoid possible heartburn or acid reflux.

Tags: fibre, food allergy, IBS, peppermint oil