easy-irritable-bowel-syndrome-diet

Right now there's no known, certain cause of IBS. Some research indicates that stress may play a part, and other research points to the immune system somehow being involved.

All those of us who suffer with it know, is that it causes severe cramps and major discomfort.

IBS was more widely known as Spastic Colon at one time, and that's where most of the trouble occurs. In the colon, which in IBS sufferers doesn't work properly. Spasmodic contractions in the colon prevent food moving through the digestive system as it should, which either means too much fluid, resulting in diarrhea, or not enough resulting in constipation and cramps.

While the symptoms of IBS are similar for most sufferers, the causes can often be very different. Just because I can eat a food and not get an attack doesn't mean it's ok for you to eat it.

The only way to solve your own IBS problem is to discover your own personal danger foods.

If you're anything like me, it was practically impossible to identify danger foods. Everything seemed to trigger IBS, but by paying close attention I did manage to figure out what affected me the most. Chocolate and cheese were my personal demons, and that was bad news because they also happen to be among my favorite foods.

Keeping a dairy of what you're eating and how it affects you may seem like a bore, but it needn't be, and it's not as if you need to do it forever.

Just keep an ordinary cheap notebook with you, make three columns running down the page with heading of time, food, and effect. Every time something passes your lips, jot down what it is and what time you ate or drank it. As soon as any symptoms appear, or the way your stomach feels changes, note down the change and time. Over a few days you start to see a pattern emerging, and you can alter your diet accordingly.

A relatively easy irritable bowel syndrome diet is to increase the amount of fiber you eat.

Increasing your fiber intake can help reduce constipation, but you should do it gradually. Suddenly filling your body with extra fiber can cause cramping and gas, bloating, or even tip you over the other way and cause diarrhea.

High fiber foods include fruits such as apples and pears, bananas and oranges. Eat more fresh vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, spinach and sweet potatoes. Whole grain breads are high in fiber, and cereals such as All-bran, oat bran, and oatmeal.

Be sure to increase your fluid intake at the same time. If eating more fiber isn't possible for you, it might be possible to get a fiber supplement. Ask your doctor's advice.

Eat smaller meals. Research indicates that people with IBS have colons that respond better to smaller portions.

Avoid Alcohol. IBS sufferers may find that drinking alcohol makes the symptoms worse, as does caffiene or fizzy drinks. Also, some alcohols may affect you worse than others, for instance beer being worse for you that wine. The only way to know for sure is to keep the food diary.