IBS Diet

Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS is a group of gastrointestinal disorders that can cause problems such as heartburn, nausea, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, etc.
IBS cause is not yet fully understood, and most researchers attribute it to stress. IBS can occur at any age and are more common in women than men.
The importance of what you eat made us prepare this guide to know the disorder better and control it by a proper IBS diet. As diets may help ease your IBS symptoms learning about the eating habits and having a plan that works best for you is an essential part of managing irritable bowel syndrome, which is targeting specific food triggers. Note that a diet is unique to each person, and there is no generalized dietary advice that will work for everyone.

The symptoms of IBS can be very varied, and these symptoms vary from person to person. In some people, the disease affects one part of the intestine, and in others, it affects different parts of the
intestine. For this reason, the symptoms that occur in each person are different.

The most common symptoms of IBS include:
♦ Abdominal pain or severe cramping in the abdomen: This type of pain occurs mostly in the middle and lower abdomen, is very sharp and may last from a few seconds to several hours.
♦ Abdominal swelling and bloating: This problem usually does not occur in the early morning and increases during the day and over time.
♦ Constipation or diarrhea: Some people with IBS develop constipation, others with diarrhea, and some people have intermittent diarrhea and constipation.

IBS is usually diagnosed when there is no possibility of other diseases and is determined by a bowel biopsy.
However, there is no need to perform a biopsy, and the doctor can diagnose the disease to a large extent by examining the patient's symptoms and history.

IBS is treated according to the part of the gut involved in the disease and the patient's symptoms. Of course, there is no permanent cure for IBS, and the treatments available for IBS are symptomatic.
Controlling stress plays an important role in treating the disease. Still, one of the best treatments for irritable bowel syndrome is to eat a healthy diet. The type of nutrition and diet is directly related to the IBS symptoms.
You should write down the foods you eat during the day and eliminate those that make the disease symptoms more severe from your diet for a while time.

10 Things You Should Do in an IBS Diet to Improve Its Symptoms

♦ Avoid foods that make the symptoms worse in the IBS diet.
♦ Avoid stress and anxiety because it can make IBS symptoms worse.
♦ Using Aloe vera can help improve the symptoms of IBS.
♦ Using probiotic products can help improve the intestinal microbial flora and reduce IBS attacks.
♦ Caffeine and smoking can irritate the gut and make IBS symptoms worse. Therefore, you should avoid consuming them.
♦ If drinking milk worsens the disease's symptoms, cut it off from the IBS diet and use alternatives such as cheese and yogurt.
♦ Avoid eating a huge meal; instead, eat more frequently and smaller meals.
♦ Exercise can reduce your stress, and improve your digestive system, try to have regular daily activities.
♦ Worrying too much about the disease can make things worse. Try to manage IBS calmly.
♦ Avoid spices and cut down foods that cause bloat in the IBS diet.

In the diet of irritable bowel syndrome, you should avoid certain foods because they stimulate the disease's symptoms. Of course, not all of these foods cause IBS symptoms in all people, but the symptoms worsen with these foods' consumption in most people.
The following is a list of these foods:

FODMAP Diet

FODMAP is an acronym for "Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, And Polyols." Foods that contain FODMAPs are not well digested and absorbed in the intestine and cause problems in people with IBS.

Foods rich in FODMAPs include the below:
♦ Garlic
♦ Onion
♦ Flour
♦ Milk
♦ Ice cream
♦ Mushroom
♦ Pear
♦ Apricot
♦ Beans

Of course, the above list was just a few foods containing FODMAPs that can trigger IBS symptoms.
Studies show that eliminating foods containing FODMAPs can significantly impact reducing IBS symptoms.
Because there are so many foods that contain FODMAPs, it is tough to eliminate them from the IBS diet, so there is no need to remove them permanently from the IBS diet.

To limit FOMAPs from your IBS diet, do the following:
♦ Step 1 - Cut all foods containing FODMAP off the IBS diet for 6-8 weeks.
♦ Step 2 - Gradually add these foods to your IBS diet.
♦ Step 3 - Keep a list of the foods you eat and the condition you get after eating to limit the foods that have the most impact on your worsening symptoms.

Be sure to follow the FODMAP diet under the supervision of a nutritionist.

High Fat Food

High-fat foods are another factor that can trigger IBS and make symptoms worse. Scientists believe that people with IBS are more sensitive to fatty foods, and limiting them can improve symptoms.
Common high-fat foods that you should be careful about eating include fried foods, chips, sausages, fast foods, mayonnaise, cream, butter, etc.
Of course, this does not mean that you should remove fat entirely from your IBS diet, but rather reduce its consumption.
Also, the consumption of unsaturated fats, especially olive oil and avocado, is much better than consuming saturated fats and animal fats.

Caffeine

Caffeine consumption is associated with the development of IBS. Caffeine can increase intestinal motility and increase the hormone cortisol's secretion, which is a stress hormone.
The primary source of caffeine is coffee and caffeinated beverages, and it is found in small amounts in tea and cola. Therefore, be careful of IBS symptoms when consuming caffeinated foods, and if your symptoms worsen with the eating of these foods, remove them from your IBS diet.

Spicy Foods

According to many studies on IBS patients, eating spicy foods can cause IBS-like symptoms.
A special compound in the pepper called capsaicin can increase intestinal motility and severe stomach aches in some people.
Consumption of other spices such as garlic and onion also increases the symptoms of IBS.
Reducing these spices from the IBS diet will significantly help reduce the symptoms.

Gluten

Gluten is a protein found in some grains such as wheat, barley and rye, so foods made with these compounds also contain gluten. According to the American National Health Association, gluten consumption can be one of the hidden causes of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). It is estimated that about half of people with IBS are allergic to gluten and have a gluten intolerance. Therefore, eliminating gluten from the IBS diet may help improve your symptoms.

You can read about the gluten-free diet here.

Dairy

Many dairy products are high in fat and can cause abdominal pain and inflammation in people with IBS. Therefore, you should use low-fat dairy in the IBS diet.
On the other hand, these people may also have lactose intolerance, in which case cheese and soy milk should be used instead of milk.
Yogurt is probably better tolerated in the IBS diet; yogurt and especially probiotic yogurt are better than other dairy products due to some beneficial bacteria.
If dairy products make your symptoms worse, it is best to remove them from your diet.

Fatty Meat

High-fat meats such as beef, pork and chicken skin are high in fat, and as mentioned above, high fat is not suitable for IBS patients. It is better to eat low-fat meats like chicken, turkey, fish and other low-fat meat instead of red meat in the IBS diet.

Carbonated Drinks

Soft drinks and other carbonated beverages can worsen IBS symptoms by causing bloating and cramps in the intestines. Therefore, if you have this disease, you should avoid using these drinks in your IBS diet.

Beans

Beans can cause swelling and painful cramps in the abdomen due to bloating. Avoiding beans in the IBS diet helps a lot in reducing the symptoms of these patients.

There is a possibility of dehydration in IBS patients due to decreased intestinal capacity, so providing sufficient fluids in these patients is of great importance. Conditions such as diarrhea and vomiting can contribute to dehydration, so it is crucial to find ways to get the fluids your body needs not to become dehydrated.
A normal person should consume about 2 liters of fluids during the day; the same is true for people with IBS unless they are in special conditions and dehydrated and need more fluids.
If the body is severely dehydrated, it can cause many side effects, including muscle cramps, fatigue, migraines, decreased bowel movements and abdominal cramps.

Use the following strategies in the IBS diet to combat dehydration:
♦ Add electrolytes to your fluids.
♦ Be sure to use sports drinks and water during exercise.
♦ Eat foods that are high in water, such as watermelon, cucumber and tomato in your IBS diet.
♦ Adding a little salt helps maintain fluid in the body; if you do not have HTN add a little salt to your food.
♦ Avoid tea, coffee and alcohol in the IBS diet, which increase urination and decrease body fluids.

1. You can eat all kinds of cooked vegetables, except cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli; however, if they are your favorite foods and these foods don’t cause problems for you, then you can eat them.
2. Eat fruits without the skins. Some people with IBS might have problems with eating melons, apples, and citrus fruits in the IBS diet.
3. Some IBS patients benefit from increasing the fiber content of their diet. When it comes to fiber, increase this slowly and ensure a drink enough water to prevent constipation.
4. Bran fiber may aggravate some symptoms of IBS, so be alert for any adverse reactions to bran fiber.
5. People with IBS can eat bread, pasta, rice, bagels, and crackers, in any variety, including rye, whole wheat, white, gluten-free, etc., in their diet without any problem, unless you also have celiac disease or gluten intolerance.
6. Some IBS patients find that eating seeds is challenging, but experiment to see if they bother you or not.
7. Dairy products only cause problems for lactose intolerant people, so you can enjoy eating these products freely in the IBS diet.
8. Some people with IBS have problems with heavily spiced, sauced, or fried foods, so if they bother you, avoid eating them.
9. You can eat all types of fish, meat, and chicken in your diet.
10. For the foods that trigger IBS symptoms to you, try getting them back into your diet plan by eating a small portion and choosing only one trigger food at a time to find which food is suitable for you.
11. Prepare foods by grilling, broiling, baking, or steaming with little to no oil instead of frying.