Irritable Bowel Syndrome
The chances are good a few people out of every ten Americans have complained about nausea, gas, or diarrhea at some point in their lives. If physical exams and tests pointed to no particular disease or internal complication, most physicians will probably diagnose the patient as presenting symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).
The doctor might call the problem by the terms spastic colitis, nervous stomach, or irritable colon. Each of those phrases refers to a condition with symptoms collectively falling under the umbrella of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which has become a catchall term for any digestive problem for which physicians don’t know the real cause.
Diagnosing Irritable Bowel Syndrome
The average doctor suspecting IBS (due to symptoms like nausea or diarrhea) first examines three things: pictures taken with an endoscope, blood tests, and x-rays taken after a barium enema. Following those examinations, the doctor determines whether or not a patient complaining about nausea, gas, or diarrhea has an identifiable problem.
If the above procedures fail to reveal any recognizable digestive disorder or a newly discovered growth in the patient’s GI tract, the doctor frequently reaches a diagnosis of “Irritable Bowel Syndrome” which doesn’t describe a specific disorder at all.
What Causes IBS?
A patient with IBS might have intestinal muscles predisposed to move at bad times or nerves in their intestines that are unusually sensitive to pressure from gas. A patient with IBS might have a healthy GI tract, but their brain fails to send the correct signals to it. Any one of these possibilities can cause an IBS patient to complain about abdominal cramping. In such instances, a person can greatly benefit from improvements in diet and lifestyle.
The IBS Diet
A person with Irritable Bowel Syndrome should avoid any foods known to trigger the attacks, which can include severe cramping, excess gas, and other discomforts. The symptoms associated with IBS show up especially after consuming milk, chocolate, or alcohol. Drinking a caffeinated beverage in the morning can often cause your bowel to remain irritated for an entire day. Consumption of carbonated drinks or fatty foods during the day might keep you awake at night suffering with IBS symptoms as well.
Beyond eliminating the above foods from the menu, diets for people suffering from IBS seem to display almost no conformity. Some individuals find a bland diet can help them avoid abdominal cramps, bloating, and diarrhea. Other IBS sufferers feel only a high fiber diet can successfully mitigate their Irritable Bowel Syndrome symptoms.
The best diet for a person with IBS is simply one that encourages elimination of accumulated, hardened waste from the person’s digestive tract. If a high fiber diet satisfies that goal, it’s a good technique to maintain. The key to integrating more fiber into your diet is to make the switch gradually.
You should not consume large amounts of fiber during the course of one or two meals. That approach could aggravate bloating and cramps because your body isn’t used to such a drastic change.
Dangerous Treatments for IBS
Prior to March of 2007, women with symptoms of either Irritable Bowel Syndrome or constipation were talked into trying a new “wonder drug” known as Zelnorn that was supposed to give them relief. Researchers at Novartis had developed that particular IBS treatment, but its effects were soon to be found somewhat less than desirable.
Although Zelnorn had received FDA approval, a wider application of the drug revealed a previously unforeseen complication. A number of the women using Zelnorn reported the onset of cardiovascular trouble. The resulting statistics demonstrated Zelnorn lead to a significant increase in a patient’s chances of developing dangerous heart problems.
This inherent danger forced Novartis to remove Zelnorn from the market on March 30th of 2007. IBS patients should research a safer, all natural approach to managing their IBS symptoms since, at this time, it is not known whether the condition can be cured. Start by improving your diet, engaging in regular exercise, drinking more purified water daily (instead of coffee, colas, etc.), and get plenty of rest at night. After all, half the battle involves “training” your body to perform its best when under fire.
