IBS : Health Aspect
Dt Ruma
What is IBS?
As a chronic gastrointestinal and functional disorder, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the name given to a longstanding illness consisting of frequent abdominal discomfort and bowel symptoms that cannot be explained by any other disease. It’s considered a functional disorder because the colon shows no evidence of disease.
IBS causes a great deal of discomfort and distress, but it doesn’t permanently harm the intestines and does not lead to a serious disease, such as cancer. Fortunately, most people can control their symptoms with diet, stress management, and prescribed medications, although for some people, it can be disabling. Those with IBS frequently suffer from depression and anxiety, which can worsen symptoms. Similarly, the symptoms associated with IBS can cause a person to feel depressed and anxious.
What Causes IBS?
Unfortunately, IBS doesn’t have a specific cause, and therefore, there isn’t one specific treatment. However, physiological studies have shown those with IBS tend to have guts that are more sensitive and reactive (irritable). Causes of this may include a traumatic or upsetting event or situation or an attack of gastroenteritis. Although, it’s also thought that IBS may be a result from a combination of abnormal gastrointestinal (GI) tract movements, increased awareness of bodily functions, and a disruption in the communication between the brain and the GI tract.
Even though there is an uncertainty of what causes IBS, a few triggers have been identified:
· Stress
· Abnormal levels of serotonin in the digestive system
· A bacterial or viral infection in the digestive system
· Mild celiac disease
· Strong response to certain foods
· Ineffective colon muscles
IBS V/S IBD — What’s the Difference?
Sometimes IBS is thought to be the same as IBD, which is inflammatory bowel disease, but please know that IBS and IBD are two completely different conditions. IBD is a more serious condition than IBS, and it causes inflammation in the digestive tract and can result in severe complications, such as ulcers, Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis.
What are the Signs of IBS?
IBS symptoms vary from person to person, but abdominal pain, bloating, and discomfort are the main symptoms. Let’s take a look at these symptoms, plus a few others, in further details.
ABDOMINAL PAIN
This includes aches and cramps ranging from mild to intense pain
BLOATING & GAS
If you’re bloated, you’re likely to feel a full and tight abdomen, and your stomach might be swollen, hard, and painful.
CONSTIPATION
Infrequent bowel movements or difficult bowel movements are signs of costipation. Straining and cramping can occur when trying to have a bowel movement but cannot eliminate any stool.
DIARRHEA
This is frequent, loose, watery stools where you might find yourself feeling an urgent and uncontrollable need to have a bowel movement.
UNUSUAL STOOL
If the texture and color of your stool are not consistent and changes frequently, this could be a sign of IBS. It’s been reported of cases of IBS that the stool may be coated in mucus.
NAUSEA
In people who have IBS, nausea is often related to other common symptoms like fullness, abdominal pain, and bloating after eating. While not always the case, IBS nausea can occur most often after certain foods trigger your symptoms.
STRESS
It’s unclear whether IBS symptoms are an expression of mental stress or whether the stress of living with IBS makes people more prone to psychological difficulties. Whichever comes first, anxiety and digestive IBS symptoms reinforce one another in a vicious cycle.
IBS Diagnosis: Is there an IBS Test?
Unfortunately, there is no test to diagnose IBS. Instead, IBS is diagnosed by exclusion, which means a doctor considers other alternatives first, performing tests to rule out other medical problems. According to Temple University Hospital Digestive Disease Center, doctors may diagnose IBS based on your symptoms, including how often you have had abdominal pain or discomfort during the past year, when the pain starts and stops in relation to bowel function, and how your bowel frequency and stool consistency have changed
Many doctors refer to a list of specific symptoms that must be present to make a diagnosis of IBS. These symptoms include:
· Abdominal pain or discomfort for at least 12 weeks out of the previous 12 months. These 12 weeks do not have to be consecutive.
· The abdominal pain or discomfort has two of the following three features:
· It is relieved by having a bowel movement. When it starts, there is a change in how often you have a bowel movement.
· When it starts, there is a change in the form of the stool or the way it looks.
If your digestive discomfort or pain is noticeably frequent, talk with your doctor to see if you could have IBS.
Although there isn’t a cure for IBS, there are both natural and medicinal treatments for symptom relief of IBS. Medicinal treatments can cause unwanted side effects, so going the natural treatment route is usually suggested first. Take a look at these three natural remedies:
1. EXERCISE
You’ve heard over and over again the countless ways that exercise benefits you, and helping to relieve IBS is yet another way. Overall, exercise can help with digestive health; furthermore, a study done in 2011 found that increased physical activity improves GI symptoms in IBS. In addition, it was found that physically active patients with IBS will face less symptom deterioration compared with physically inactive patients, and it was concluded that physical activity should be used as a primary modality treatment in IBS.
2. REDUCE STRESS
Stress is hard on our bodies, so it’s not really a surprise that it can also affect our digestion, especially because it can stimulate colon spasms in people with IBS. Stress can also cause inflammation and impact hormone levels, which can play havoc on our digestion. According to WebMD, stress, anxiety, do not cause irritable bowel syndrome, but can aggravate the symptoms of IBS. When a doctor talks to people with this digestive disorder, “what you find is that about 60% of IBS patients will meet the criteria for one or more psychiatric disorders.” Reduce your stress, and your digestion could reap the benefits.
3. CHANGE YOUR DIET
Certain foods can trigger or worsen diarrhea, bloating and gas such as cruciferous vegetables (e.g. cauliflower, wasabi, kale, and broccoli), and legumes (e.g. black beans, soy nuts, and fava beans). Some people find that dairy, alcohol, spicy foods, and gluten-filled foods flare up IBS symptoms too. Consider keeping a food journal to jot down foods that seem to cause your distress. This is a good way to recognize eating patterns that could be causing IBS flare-ups. Another change in your diet has to do with the amount of food at each meal. Large meals can cause cramping and diarrhea, so eating smaller meals more often, or eating smaller portions, may help IBS symptoms.
