• Apples and Applesauce

• Avocados (though they do have some fat)

• Bananas

• Barley

• Beets

• Broccoli

• Cabbage

• Carrots

• Chestnuts

• Corn meal

• Flour tortillas

• Kidney beans

• Lima beans

• Mangoes

• Mushrooms

• Noodles

• Oatmeal

• Papayas (also digestive aids that relieve gas and indigestion)

• Parsnips

• Pasta

• Peaches

• Potatoes

• Quinoa

• Rice

• Rice cereals

• Rutabagas

• Soy

• Spinach

• Squash and pumpkins

• Sweet potatoes

• Turnips

• White breads that are high quality and preservative-free, such as French bread and sourdough. Don’t eat whole wheat or whole grain bread.

• Yams

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• Alcohol is a gastrointestinal irritant and often triggers IBS attacks, especially on an empty stomach. Small amounts of alcohol in cooking are fine

• Artificial fats, such as Olestra, can cause abdominal cramping and diarrhea in people who don’t even have IBS

• Artificial sweeteners, such as sorbitol, can trigger pain, cramps, gas, bloating, and diarrhea

• Battered and deep-fried food

• Biscuits

• Caffeine is a gastrointestinal stimulant and should be avoided, especially in higher doses

• Carbonation in soda pop and mineral water can cause bloating and cramps

• Chocolate

• Coconut milk

• Coffee: regular and decaf coffee contain an enzyme that is a powerful irritant of the gastrointestinal tract

• Cookies

• Corn chips and nachos – unless they are baked

• Crackers

• Croissants, pastries, biscuits, scones, and doughnuts

• Dairy products such as cheese, butter, sour cream, cream cheese, milk, cream, ice cream, whipped cream, yogurt, frozen yogurt

• Doughnuts

• Dried bananas – they are often deep fried in oil

• Egg yolks (whites are fine, do try to buy organic)

• French fries

• French toast

• Fried chicken

• Hot dogs / Corn dogs

• Margarine

• Mashed potatoes which have butter / milk

• Mayonnaise

• MSG used a lot in Chinese food. MSG has been implicated as a cause or trigger of various digestive issues

• Nuts and nut butters

• Oils, fats, spreads, etc

• Olives

• Onion rings

• Pancakes

• Pastries

• Pie crust

• Potato chips – unless they are baked

• Poultry dark meat and skin. Skinless chicken white meat is fine

• Red meat, such as ground beef, hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, roast beef, pastrami, salami, bologna, pepperoni, corned beef, ham, bacon, sausage, pork chops, and any other meat that comes from cows, pigs, sheep, goats, deer, etc

• Salad dressings

• Scones

• Shortening

• Shredded coconut

• Skillet-fried food that is cooked in fat or oil

• Solid carob – but carob powder is OK

• Solid chocolate – but baking cocoa powder is OK

• Tartar sauce

• Waffles

• Wheat, rye, barley or other foods containing gluten

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As its name indicates, Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a syndrome. That is, IBS is a combination of signs and symptoms, but not a disease. IBS is classified as a functional disorder. A functional disorder refers to a condition where the primary abnormality is an altered physiological function (the way the body works), rather than an identifiable inflammatory, infectious, structural, or biochemical cause.
Research also indicates that IBS is a multi-faceted disorder. For example, the symptoms of IBS result from what seems to be a disturbance or imbalance in the interaction between the intestines, the brain, sensory function, and the autonomic nervous system that alters regulation of bowel motility (motor function).

While IBS will probably recur throughout your life, and may also cause you a lot of pain and discomfort, there is some good news. The symptoms of IBS will probably not get much worse after the first year. In fact, as you learn to manage the symptoms, you will hopefully attain a more comfortable life. In addition, IBS does not cause cancer or permanent damage to the bowel. IBS does not cause intestinal bleeding. Finally, IBS does not require surgery, and it won’t shorten your life.

In the western world, Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a very common condition, affecting 15% to 20% of the population, and accounting for approximately 10% of all doctor visits and 50% of all visits to gastroenterologists.

Two thirds of the patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome are women. Irritable Bowel Syndrome is the second biggest cause for people taking “sick days”.

For most people, the signs and symptoms of IBS are mild. Only a small percentage of people have severe signs and symptoms, so there are many people who don’t even realize that they are suffering from this condition. However, the symptoms of IBS range in severity from an occasional mild episode to a debilitating, life altering illness, which prevents the individual from working or from functioning normally. During times when the symptoms are severe, IBS can cause a lot of pain and be quite disabling.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome is also know under various other names, such as:

• colitis
• irritable colon
• mucous colitis
• nervous stomach
• spastic bowel
• spastic colon

Irritable Bowel Syndrome is not as serious as some intestinal diseases such as Ulcerative Colitis, Colorectal Cancers and Crohn’s Disease. For example, Irritable Bowel Syndrome does not permanently damage the intestines, nor does it cause inflammation or changes in bowel tissue or increase your risk of colon or rectal cancer.

In many cases, the symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome can be controlled by managing your diet, lifestyle, and stress.

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There are several inflammatory bowel diseases all of which need to be diagnosed and treated by a doctor. Two of the more common inflammatory bowel diseases are ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.

Ulcerative colitis is where the lining of the large intestine (that is the bowel and the colon) and the rectum become inflamed. The inflammation typically begins in the rectum and the lower intestine (sigmoid) and then spreads upwards to the rest of the colon.

People with ulcerative colitis can experience different symptoms including abdominal pain, bloody diarrhea, anemia which is caused by the rectal bleeding, fatigue, loss of body fluids and nutrients, weight loss, and also loss of appetite. Common symptoms include diarrhea and a frequent need to empty the colon. Ulcers (open sores) form that cause pus, mucus and bleeding.

The disease can run in families and usually affects individuals of either sex between the ages of 15 and 40. Ulcerative colitis requires long-term care and there may be remissions (periods of no symptoms). Remissions can last for months or even years. However as this is a long term disease the symptoms do return . The disease is rarely fatal and in those cases where fatality occurs it is due to complications. The risk for individuals with ulcerative colitis to get colon cancer is no higher than anyone else.

People with ulcerative colitis may also experience anemia, inflammation of the eyes, liver disorders, osteoporosis, joint pain, skin lesions, rashes and kidney stones.

Crohn’s disease

Crohn’s disease is a chronic condition that involves the small intestine. Inflammation may involve the entire digestive tract, including the mouth, esophagus, stomach, appendix, duodenum and also the anus. You may also hear Crohn’s disease referred to as ileitis or enteritis. Crohn’s disease runs in families, and occurs in both males and females.

The symptoms are abdominal pain, usually in the lower right area of the abdomen, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, and fever and weight loss.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

Irritable bowel syndrome is an intestinal disorder that some people have misconceptions about and incorrectly refer to the disease by other names such as colitis, mucous colitis, spastic colon, spastic bowel or functional bowel disease. IBS is a functional disorder.

A person affected with IBS may experience cramps, gas, bloating, and also changes in their normal bowel habits. Stress may worsen IBS but it does not cause it.

IBS does not cause permanent harm to the intestines; it does not lead to intestinal bleeding of the bowel and does not lead to any serious disease such as cancer. There is also no link at all between IBS and Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

Somebody who has IBS has a more sensitive colon than the average person. It does not take much for the colon to spasm when the person has IBS. Women who have IBS tend to have more symptoms during their period, which may mean that the reproductive hormones have something to do with increased IBS symptoms.

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1. Digestive System Diseases and Disorders
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3. What is Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)