New research found that with dietary adjustments, more than 7 out of 10 irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients had significantly reduced symptoms, compared with medications
https://www.gu.se/en/news/dietary-treatment-more-effective-than-medicines-in-ibs#:~:text=Sanna%20Nybacka%2C%20Stine%20St%C3%B6rsrud%20and,at%20the%20University%20of%20Gothenburg.&text=%E2%80%9CWith%20this%20study%2C%20we%20can,effective%2C%E2%80%9D%20says%20Sanna%20Nybacka.
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Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common diagnosis that causes abdominal pain, gas and abdominal bloating, diarrhea, and constipation, in various combinations and with varying degrees of severity.
Treatment often consists of dietary advice such as eating small and frequent meals and avoiding excessive intake of food triggers such as coffee, alcohol and fizzy drinks. Patients may also be given medications to improve specific symptoms, such as gas or constipation, diarrhea, bloating or abdominal pain. Antidepressants are sometimes used to improve symptoms in IBS.
The current study, published in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology, compared three treatments: two dietary and one based on use of medications. The participants were adult patients with severe or moderate IBS symptoms at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg.
More symptom relief after dietary adjustment
The first group was given traditional IBS dietary advice, focusing on eating behavior combined with low intake of fermentable carbohydrates, known as FODMAPs. These include e.g. products with lactose, legumes, onions, and grains, which ferment in the colon and can cause pain in IBS.
The second group received a dietary treatment low in carbohydrates and proportionally high in protein and fat. In the third group, the best possible medication was given based on the patient’s most troublesome IBS symptoms.
Each group included around 100 participants and the treatment periods lasted four weeks. When the researchers then examined how well the participants responded to the treatments, using an established IBS symptom scoring scale, the results were clear.
Of those who received traditional IBS dietary advice and low content of FODMAPs, 76% had significantly reduced symptoms. In the group receiving low carbohydrates and high protein and fat, the proportion was 71%, and in the medication group 58%.
All groups reported significantly better quality of life, less physical symptoms and less symptoms of anxiety and depression.
[https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langas/article/PIIS2468-1253(24)00045-1/abstract](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langas/article/PIIS2468-1253(24)00045-1/abstract)
Alcohol triggers serious issues in my gastrointestinal system. When I don’t drink, and take fiber regularly…. It has seriously improved my health and quality of life, except I can’t get drunk anymore =/
I have it and have managed it successfully for about 1.5 yrs. I still hate it on holidays I feel left out.
I just found out I’m allergic to eggs after 35 years of life. I can have them baked into things but like scrambled, fried, over ease is guaranteed diarrhea a few hours later. I really don’t eat them often enough to put 2 and 2 together but I finally figured it out this past year. Life changing.
This has been common advice for a while now, but it’s good to have more research to confirm it.
I switched to a high-protein “vegan” diet (with a fair amount of cheating here and there; I’m only human and I don’t want to be a wet blanket with friends and family) a few years ago and my symptoms largely disappeared. It’s worthwhile if you can stick to it.
Fodmap diet can be amazing. When I did intermittent fasting with a short eating window, symptoms were reduced as well.
My husband has managed his IBD successfully with the lowest form of medication (Pentasa) and dietary changes alone for the last 5 years. It can be done. We were adamant that he wouldn’t go on immunosuppressant injections.
Yup! Low fodmap helped a lot!
After my pancreatic cancer and surgery, I developed *BRUTAL* ibs issues. Took me a couple of years to even figure it out. I thought I was perpetually broken as a reward for beating cancer.
Now, I am diligent in what I eat, tale supplements and work out daily. My life has become significantly better, my diabetes is even in check now.
It’s almost like GIGO: Garbage In, Garbage Out
What?! you mean eating less of the things that make my ibs go burr, will, in fact make my ibs go burr less??! Get out of here!
Hmm. 🤔always find this curious. IBS isn’t a diagnosis. Isn’t it a symptom?
How we base scientific studies on this is wild to me. It’s like you pool people who aren’t actually diagnosed with any single condition yet and give them different food. Sure, it helps but what is the actual diagnosis?!
Someone smarter than me please explain.
I literally just stopped eating for the first 3hrs on a morning after waking up and my symptoms disappeared overnight.
I’d been raised that you had breakfast as soon as you got up and hadn’t thought it might be the problem.
The fact I wasn’t hungry for the first 3hrs after waking and never enjoyed breakfast should have clued me in but I just assumed everyone struggled through breakfast and it was just what you do.
Going to a high protein, low carb diet has been life changing. I haven’t been constipated since I started the diet change a year and a half ago. And I have regular, daily bowel movements for the first time in my life.Â
I had horrible IBS in my teens. Tried everything, all the diets, fodmap, elimination, carnivore, and tons of medications, nothing worked. Finally I tried going completely plant based as a last resort out of desperation (I really didn’t want to do it). And low and behold, after a couple months for my microbiome to adjust it completely cured me. I went from full on food poisoning level diarrhea every day to the point where I almost had to drop out of high school because I physically couldn’t attend class. To just being a normal guy. I went from underweight with all kinds of fucked up blood and immflamation markers to being a big muscular dude with perfect blood work. It genuinely saved my life. Whats especially nice is within my vegan diet I can pretty much eat whatever I want. I generally do a bit better eating less processed (especially with my mental health which is very dependent on how my gut is doing). But outside of that I can eat basically whatever as long as its vegan. So it doesn’t feel restrictive at all the same way a lot of IBS diets tend to be.
Does this mean eating whole food plant based will cure everyone? Probably not. But it just figured my story was directly relevant to the study.
Best of luck everyone (currently writing this on the pan)