Under the microscope: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
Did you know irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) affects around 10 - 20% of the population in the UK. Symptoms can range from a regularly gurgling stomach and constipation to severe abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, constipation and bloating.
Doctors don't know why some people have IBS but most believe that it's caused by a modern, stressful lifestyle, food intolerance, nervous disorders and possibly hormones.
What is IBS?
Irritable bowel syndrome is when your intestines don't function propperly and have trouble passing food from the stomach through the intestines to the bowel.
The intestines are a big muscle that contracts and relaxes to move food from your stomach through your intestines to your bowel. Normally, the intestines contract and relax in a coordinated rhythm. But if you have IBS these contractions don't work as well and food can be forced through your intestines more quickly, causing wind, bloating and diarrhoea. Or in some cases the opposite happens and food passes through very slowly and you get cramps and constipation.
How do I know if I've got IBS?
IBS has lots of different symptoms, the most common are:
- Bloating
- Constipation
- Diarrhoea
- Feeling sick after eating
- Passing wind
- Feeling the urge to go the loo or passing stools very often
- Stomach and abdominal cramps
What are the causes of IBS?
No-one knows what causes irritable bowel syndrome but there's lots of evidence to suggest that stress, certain foods and hormones can play a part.
Should I see my doctor if I think I have IBS?
If you ever have any bowel or stomach problems go and see your doctor, especially if you get symptoms on a regular basis. Just a few years ago there wasn't much that could be done about IBS but now there's lots of help and medication.
How is IBS treated?
Doctors have many ways to treat IBS depending on the symptoms and the medical history of the individual. Treatment ranges from prescription medication for the most severe problems to over-the-counter remedies. Sometimes your GP might refer you to a gut specialist or recommend a course of stress management; sometimes anti-depressants are prescribed too. In all cases doctors will urge you to adjust your diet and lifestyle to help address the symptoms.
For more advice about medication and support visit www.theguttrust.org
Can my diet and lifestyle help prevent IBS?
Keeping a food diary can help you to find out if there are any foods or drinks that are causing the symptom, for example caffeine is a common trigger. Whatever seems to create problems for you, cut them out and see if that makes a difference.
Stress is a cause for many sufferers. Try to set aside a few minutes each to day to relax and never eat when you're stressed, this could make your symptoms worse.
Take a probiotic and a prebiotic supplement - you can get them from health food shops and chemists. These are the good bacteria that your digestive system needs and the enzymes your gut bacteria needs to thrive.
Read last week's Under the microscope: Dementia
Get more help and advice
- Read how a goodtoknow user coped with IBS
- Get the facts on IBS
- Could you have diverticula?
- Find out about ulcerative colitis
- Chat to other goodtoknow users
By Louise O'Connell
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Les Rowley, about 1 year
I am always interested to read articles on IBS and to help the 6 million people in the UK who suffer the symtpoms of food intolerance, I would suggest looking into a food intolerance test like the one done by YorkTest.com. The YorkTest Foodscan 113 has been the only food intolerance test used in hospital trials and in 2005 a trial for IBS was done by a hospital in Manchester. The important thing in trials is knowing how many patients were needed to treat before someone benefits. The results were that for 1 patients to get better it needed to treat 2.5 patients yet with prescribed drugs it was 17 patients treated to get one better. IBS is the most treatable of conditions yet 70% of people live with it for three or more (70% for ten years or more) and yet we do not know what knock-on effects IBS has when not dealt with in a reasonable period of time. Becky Irvin, a former IBS talks about her cure for IBS on yorktest.com. I'm not saying shout from the roofs about the test but know something about it so you can make up your own mind.
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