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Irritable bowel syndrome is a disorder of the large intestine that causes abdominal pain, excess wind, diarrhoea, mucus in stool, constipation and irregular bowel habits to the individual. Well, the cause is really not know, but once you see these symptoms, then you might just have IBS. It could aslo be called ‘spastic colitis, mucuous colitis or nervous colon. IBS is chronic and long term, so you might just have to live with it and manage it for a long period of time😢😟.
FACTS ABOUT IBS
🍅 it wont lead to cancer.
🍆 Though it causes discomfort, it doesnt really lead to severe or serious complications.
🌽 reduced alcohol intake can help in managing IBS
🍍excluding foods that can cause gas e.g onions, cucumber e.t.c can help reduce symptoms
🍞 dietary and emotional factors play major roles in IBS😁.
🍒 No cure yet, but it can be managed effieciently.
Most times, signs and symptoms vary among individuals and they tend to resemble signs in other disease conditions. Examples are :
1. Polyuria (frequent urination)
2. Halitosis or bad breathe
3. Joint pains
4. Pain with sex for females or sexual dysfunction
5. Irregular menses.
CAUSES? 🤔🤔🤔
Eerrmm, it is not really know what could lead to this gastrointestinal discomfort, but some factors that could be implicared are:
🌽Diet.
🍆Environmental factors, such as stress.
🌷Genetic factors.
🍋Hormones.
🍅Digestive organs being excessively sensitive to pain.
🍌A malfunction in the muscles used to move food through the body.
🍞An inability of the central nervous system (CNS) to control the digestive system properly.
🍓Hormonal changes can make symptoms worse especially for women during their menstrual cycle.
🌰Infections, such as gastroenteritis, can trigger post-infectious IBS also, just to mention but a few.

MEDICATION:
The following medications are basically used for IBS symptoms:
🍉Antispasmodic medications reduce abdominal cramping and pain by relaxing the muscles in the gut.
🍋Antimotility medications for diarrhea include loperamide, which slows down the contractions of the intestinal muscles.
🥕Tricyclic antidepressant (TCAs) often help to reduce abdominal pain and cramping.
🍒Alosetron (Lotronex) for severe diarrhea-predominant IBS in women also works well.

DIET AND TREATMENT:
Following a low FODMAP diet would be a good dietary approach to managing IBS. FODMAP is an acronym that connotes : Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, And polyols.
They include short chain oligo-saccharide polymers of fructose (fructans) and galactooligosaccharides (stachyose, raffinose), disaccharides (lactose), monosaccharides (fructose), and sugar alcohols (polyols), such as sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol and maltitol. Examples of foods to avoid and foods to add to your diet are:

DIAGNOSIS:
Majorly, symptoms are used to diagnose the type of IBS present in an individual.
1.IBS-C : IBS with just constipation.
2.IBS- D: IBS with diarrhoea
3. IBS-A : IBS with alternating stool pattern.

RISK FACTORS:
The major factors to be considered are
1. Gender: it affects majorly women
2. Younger adults; people below ages 40, mostly from 20-30.
3. Environment
4. Family history: if a relative had IBS, you might be likely to have it too.
Be really mindful of your diet and stress levels to reduce episodes😁😊.

Tags : DietDiet TherapyDiet Therapy of IBSGastrointestinal DisordersIBSIrritable Bowel SyndromeNutritionTreatment for IBSTypes of IBS
Prince

The author Prince

Hi, I’m Prince.. a registered Dietitian, an avid reader and a passionate writer. I hope you enjoy my articles as much as I enjoy writing them

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