IBS, what's it all about?

[crossy67]

Following on from a thread else where.

I suffer from an undetermined condition.  If I eat even the slightest amount of wheat I feel bilious, sick and on many occasions I have vomited, this gives some relief for a short time.  My GP had prescribed me Lansoprasole which if given the correct brand (Zoton) completely cured the symptoms.  Lansoprasole is used it the treatment of stomach ulcers, I have been tested for them and am clear, I have had cameras down my throat, nothing found and I have been tested for Celiacs disease, also clear.

I have stopped eating any wheat and am symptom free.  Giving up wheat has caused me to loose some 2 stones in a 6 month period, I have always struggled with my weight despite having a very healthy diet with almost no fried or fatty food and having an active physical job.

So what are we, the undiagnosed to do, live life labelled with IBS?  What is IBS, is it an umbrella that all undetermined gastric conditions are put rather than proper diagnosis?

Any one else out there want to share their experiences and findings?

[woolybanana]

Gluten allergy?

[crossy67]

That's the definition of Celiacs disease though.

[Gluestick]

When is IBS not IBS?

Tricky one this.

Gluten Intolerance can usually readily be diagnosed.

See Here:

Since true Gluten Intolerance is a reaction of the immune system, various tests can reasonably establish sufferers.

Allergy to Wheat, per se, is a different matter.

People too often confuse Allergy and Intolerance.

In order to truly diagnose gut problem cause, a series of tests is essential.

These include a Gastroscopy (Fibre Optic Tube and Light Source passed orally into the stomach). Additionally, both stomach/digestive fluid will normally be sampled and biopsy samples taken for analysis in the Path Lab.

Gastric Juice samples are taken to test for HelicoBacter Pylori: a Bacterium which has now been proven as the major cause of both gastric Ulcers and Duodenal Ulcers.

(Note: Proven thanks to the pioneering work of Barry Marshall, a young Australian Gastroenterologist, together with J Robin Warren The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for

2005 jointly: See Here:)

The next routine test is a Colonoscopy: Fibre Optic Tube and Light Source inserted into the rectum. Again, biopsies may well be taken.

A routine procedure next was a Fluoroscopy: this entailed the patient ingesting Barium Meal (A Heavy Metal fluid; barium is impervious to X Rays), in order that a picture of the small intestine might be represented.

One serious cause of gut problems is Crohns Disease: See here:

In its early stages this can be misdiagnosed as IBS.

The core problem with all the tests detailed above is simply, whilst the Gastroscopy provides good views of the stomach and the beginning of the duodenum and the Colonoscopy provides good views of the Colon, the bit in between relies on X Rays and guess; until now!

I was recently fortunate enough to undergo Capsule Endoscopy: this involves the normal bowel cleansing (However not as unpleasant as for a Colonoscopy) and swallowing what is called a "PillCam".

Totally amazing technology!

[IMG]http://i461.photobucket.com/albums/qq332/PercyPee/PillCam3.jpg[/IMG]

The patient swallows the PillCam and has a radio receiver belt fastened around the middle. Eight hours later, they report back to the clinic and hand in the receiver.

The PillCam is a marvel of micro-miniaturisation: on-board it has a camera, light source (Flashing LED Strobe), digitial processing circuits and RF transmitter, plus a short-life power source: power endurance circa 9 hours.

The camera takes pictures right the way through!

The next iteration will also take biopsy samples: and the iteration after that carry out micro-surgery en route.

In my case, it was able to quickly prove I was suffering from the beginnings of Gastric Ulcers (Stomach Lining) and a severe Duodenal (Peptic) Ulcer: the cause was NSAID use (Non-Steroidal Anti Inflamatary  Drugs): in my case, Dispersable Aspirin, taken on prescription, daily, for twenty years.

Treatment is simply taking a large dosage of PPIs (Proton Pump Inhibitor - Omeprozole) for two months, and thereafter, a "Maintenance" does thereafter, to combat the excess stomach acid caused by aspirin.

Original diagnosis: IBS: later diagnosis, from a Professor in Harley Street, Upper Gut Dismotility: A "Distant Cousin" of IBS.

Actual cause: ulceration, caused by aspirin.

Most of these problems manifest themselves as severe gut bloat after eating, urgent uncontrollable Diarrhea: and etc.

First port of call should be the isolation of food intolerance and allergy: the two are different.

Allergy perhaps is best explained by such as Nut Allergies: resulting, in worst cases in anaphylactic shock.

See here:

Intolerance however, is far less severe and usually results in a reaction to the food or substance therein, causing discomfort, fatigue and other varied symptoms.

The tricky bit is finding what food is the causal factor.

Exclusion Diets are really the only, painful and long drawn out solution.

To a person intolerant to a food or substance contained therein (e.g. gluten in wheat et al) the substance acts very much as a poison: the body is complaining!

As a matter of course, we in the West "Poison" ourselves, almost from birth.

After a number of years, during which we have tolerated certain foods with no problem, the body suddenly cries "Enough!"

Various drugs are regularly prescribed in the treatment of IBS: amongst them anti-spasmodics and such as slow release oil of peppermint.

These, unfortunately, tend to treat the symptom, rather than the cause.

Thus critical examination of one's diet is essential.

Hope this is of assistance.

[debbie]

I have suffered from IBS most of my life. I am told the cure is a diet very high in fiber and one of the best sources of fiber is beans. I also know that stresses causes my IBS to flare up. So recommendation: less stress, more beans.

[Clarkkent]

Any one else out there want to share their experiences and findings?

Yes, just one experience.

Beware of a diagnosis of IBS. It is a diagnosis of last resort. Had a lazy GP decided to think, and not just "identify" IBS, my nearest and dearest would not have died from colorectal cancer.

[Gluestick]

[quote user="Clarkkent"]

Any one else out there want to share their experiences and findings?

Yes, just one experience.

Beware of a diagnosis of IBS. It is a diagnosis of last resort. Had a lazy GP decided to think, and not just "identify" IBS, my nearest and dearest would not have died from colorectal cancer.

[/quote]

Absolutely bang on, CK.

I held my usual cynicism back.

All too often diagnosing "IBS" is a catch-all option from disinterested, inexperienced or ill-qualified medical practitioners.

As I know to my cost for circa 18 years..........

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[Iceni]

crossy, why do you need to know more? You have solved your problem - you are allergic to wheat - and effected a cure. Be grateful and burn the medical dictionary.

John

[crossy67]

I am lucky, or maybe not, try giving up wheat, it is everywhere.  At least not eating wheat prevents the symptoms but we still do not know what causes them.  I had been going back and forth to the doctor over 16 years trying to find the cause of why I feel sick all the time and after about 13 years I was given tablets that stopped the ill feeling. 

I am wondering what other peoples symptoms of IBS are because to me it seems to be a get out of jail card if the cause of a gastric complaint is not immediately apparent.  I suffered for years, have had to fight for the correct tablets after a generic substitute was given to me because they are cheaper (literally arguing in the chemist that told me they were not available any more, lies, I get them now), taking the generic ones made me bring up blood.  I have had a camera and blood tests, nothing found.  I now avoid wheat like the plague unless I take my tablets and life in general is good.

[Gluestick]

Main symptoms of IBS:

Excessive Bloating:

Diarrhea:

Fatigue:

Weight Loss or Gain:

Rapid Food Transit: (i.e. the food eaten rather than following the usual slow process of digestion through Peristalsis, passes through the intestinal tract too quickly): this can cause various problems including what is called Malabsorbtion: i.e. the body fails to take up its necessary balance of vitamins, proteins, carbs and essential trace elements. Vitamin B12 deficiency is a particular concern, since of all the B Complex Vits, B12 is vital for healthy nerves and etc.

Weight Gain can occur by the digestive system failing to absorb a balance: yet absorbing an excess of fats later on in the process.

What few realise is our body absorbs nutrients right through into the Colon. This is why anal suppositories are so effective at rapidly dispersing drugs into the system: faster in many case than intravenous injection.

Yes indeed, excluding Wheat from one's diet is very difficult.

There is a growing body of opinion that it is not wheat per se, which is the core problem, but the type of wheat which is the problem!

See here:

I was on a Gluten Free diet for six months: made no difference. All standard tests also proved negative.

However, each and every time I ate baker's bread ("proper" bread; not supermarket sliced cardboard!), I bloated within minutes and felt unwell.

So I investigated......

Most bread flour supplied to UK bakers is "Enriched" with various nasty chemical additives. For some few years now, I make all our bread: from stone ground organic flour, Atlantic seasalt, virgin olive oil, water and live yeast: and mainly, from sourdough culture which I have grown myself.

Modern milling methods use steel rollers: which raises the temperature of the grain and causes changes in various elements in the product.

Stone grinding is slower and does not heat the grain.

Perhaps worse, the types of wheat strains grown today are hybrids, bred for yield above all else and resistance to various common fungal attack, pests etc : and naturally, drenched in various agri-chemicals.

I also found by experiment. I am intolerant to a number of chemicals commonly used in mass-produced foods: baking powder as an example.

The growing movement of artisan bakers using traditional methods and quality organic flours and sourdough is a welcome reaction to factory foods.

See here:

And Here:

At the end of the day, we are what we eat.

[minnie]

Gluestick - you've got it in one. When I was given the IBS diagnosis many years ago I went and did a food intolerance test. This indicated that I had a wheat intolerance. I cut wheat right out of my diet for some weeks and immediately felt better. I then re-introduced foods and found that bread was the biggest culprit. I can eat moderate amounts of ordinary food containing some wheat though I tend to eat oat based cereals. Whenever I revert to eating even one small bit of bread my symptoms return -yet I love bread...with some people it's dairy products. You just have to experiment.

[Gluestick]

[quote user="minnie"] -yet I love bread...with some people it's dairy products. You just have to experiment.[/quote]

And so do I love bread, minnie!

That's precisely why I was not prepared to simply give up wheat: there had to be another explanation, since I'd always eaten bread since I was young.

Why, after nearly 50 years of eating anything and everything would I suddenly become intolerant of wheat or bread?

For thousands of years, man has eaten bread and it was rightly called the Staff of Life: mainly since up until mid-Victorian times, Mr and Mrs Average used bread as the basic staple part of their diet. And that was fine until a Victorian miller happened on the bright wheeze of removing the husk, to produce white flour by roller milling; which Victorian ladies used for twee sandwiches for entertaining at teatime. It was a novelty.

Then, of course, everyone wanted some; and the result was since the proper vitamins and trace elements had been removed, masses of common people (Kids in particular) fell ill.

Vitamin deficiency. Mainly B12.

Do please try making your own using sourdough and organic stone-ground pure flour: and see if this has the same effect.

Good starting point: See here:

[Gluestick]

Just to add to this subject, a most interesting item on BBC's website concerning Vitamin B12.

Here: