IBS awareness month is held in April every year. Irritable bowel syndrome is common and affects 10 to 15% of the world population.
Many of the IBS patients are unaware or undiagnosed, and less than 50% people seek medical care.
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This IBS Awareness month, Bel Marra Health focuses our attention to spread the vital message on IBS, its life issues, treatment, etc.
IBS diet: Foods to eat and foods to avoid
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients can better manage their symptoms with an IBS-specific diet. IBS symptoms are often triggered by food, so sticking to an IBS diet can reduce severity and flare-ups. Unlike the case of a gluten-free diet and celiac disease, an IBS diet is not a one-size-fits-all. Although there are some general guidelines regarding what to eat and what to avoid, determining which foods you can and cannot tolerate will require some trial and error.
As someone who is living with IBS (and Crohn’s disease), I will tell you that finding the perfect diet can be challenging and frustrating. But once you finally narrow down on what you can and cannot eat, meals are no longer a stressful event, and you can go back to enjoying your daily life. Continue reading…
IBS back pain: How irritable bowel syndrome causes back pain and what to do about it
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and back pain may seem like two unrelated conditions, but there are some cases where they co-exist. IBS back pain is often expressed by patients and is sometimes called referred pain, meaning that pain is felt in a part of the body that isn’t the actual source. This may be the result of IBS that occurs due to gas formation, bloating, and constipation. Continue reading…
IBS with Constipation (IBS C): How Does IBS Cause Constipation and How to Treat IBS Constipation
While most people associate IBS with diarrhea, IBS with constipation (IBS-C) is also a reality for millions of people around the world. Let’s look at what causes IBS constipation as well as some possible remedies.
Most people are familiar with what it’s like to have difficulty producing a bowel movement. The occasional bout of constipation is nothing to panic about, but if you’re having fewer than three bowel movements every week and it goes on for an extended period of time, it might be chronic constipation. When stomach pain is experienced along with chronic constipation, you could be diagnosed with IBS constipation (IBS-C). Continue reading…
Manage irritable bowel syndrome symptoms with relaxation exercises and techniques
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) management can be accomplished with relaxation exercises and techniques. As stress and anxiety are known triggers to IBS flare-ups, controlling the syndrome can then be possible by reducing the stressors.
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When we are stressed, our body reacts with a “fight-or-flight” response, releasing the stress hormone cortisol. Although this response was quite helpful for our ancestors when their life was in danger (like meeting a tiger), nowadays most of our stresses are not “life-or-death” situation. But what hasn’t changed, however, is our body’s response. So, even though we no longer need to run away from tigers, our body still prompts us to. Continue reading…
Celiac disease vs. IBS, differences in symptoms, causes, and treatment
At first, celiac disease and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) may appear similar as they share many common symptoms, but if you take a deeper look you will notice vast differences between the two. The biggest difference is that one is a disease and the other is a syndrome – you may think this is just a difference of name, but it also refers to differences in conditions.
A disease has a known cause and a measureable effect on the body. Syndromes don’t have definitive causes and their effects on the body are not easily measured. Syndromes are associated with the symptoms they cause, while a disease is associated with the long-term physiological changes it causes. To explain this more clearly, IBS symptoms do not cause lasting consequences on the body, whereas the celiac disease symptoms can cause damage and changes to the digestive system. Continue reading…
