[mpacks]

I'm in the process of reading Heather van Vorous book "The First Year" and she recommends FiberCon and indicates that it's a soluble fiber and, therefore, good. She basically says you can take FiberCon whenever, wherever without side effects and that it'll help diarrhea. I was just at the book store skimming another book about IBS and it said that FiberCon is an insoluble fiber, which according to the Van Vorous book is bad. So, which is it ... an insoluble fiber or a soluble fiber? Anybody know?Thanks

 

[passionflower]

I believe it is soluable. Most of the fiber supplements say directly on the bottle and I'm pretty sure I've checked before. I'm currently not taking it though as fiber (including insoluble) seems to aggravate my pain. What is one to do?

 

[mpacks]

Thanks for the reply. I looked all over the bottle and couldn't find anything that referred to soluble or insoluble. I'll have to look again.I'm in the process of radically changing my diet to eliminate a lot of the trigger foods ... or at least reduce the quantity dramatically. It's a difficult process. I realized about a year ago that I was lactose intolerant so dairy has been eliminated for the most part -- that the was the hardest thing to get rid of. No more cheesy pizza, it's been almost a year since I had a cheeseburger or a bowl of ice cream and I used to have ice cream just about every night.Now, based on the reading I'm doing, I'm eliminating alcohol (no more one or two beers a night), most beef, and a lot of other things.I don't have pain, just diarrhea. I don't know what I'd do if it went to pain also. Again, thanks for the reply. Sorry to go on and on, but I'm new to this and it's nice to rattle on to somebody who knows a little about what I'm going through.Mark

 

[passionflower]

Mark, ya' know, I couldn't find it on my bottle either. You could likely call the manufacturer or visit their web site to find out for certain, but, now I'm questioning solubility too. Good for you on the lactose removal from your diet. Can you tolerate soy? If you can, there is a wonderful ice cream made with soy called Soy Delicious. Chocolate Almond is fabulous. Dreyer's Sorbet is also delicious and has no dairy. Rice Dreams is another milk free ice cream, but I don't personally care for it as well as Soy Delicious. To see if you are soy tolerant, you might try tofu, or Silk Soy milk before venturing on to Soy Delicious. Some of the Soy Delicious products are sweetened only by fruit juice and they taste pretty darned good. Amy's frozen foods out of California makes a good soy cheese pizza and macaroni and soy cheese. Most of these can be found in well stocked health food stores, or Whole Foods. Dreyer's Sorbet is available at most grocery store. Also, despite Heather's penchant for wheat products, sorry, but they're a no-no for me personally. From what I've read there's a lot of us who can't tolerate it. I love Heather's book, but there was some dietary advice that wasn't right for me. You might try going off wheat for a week and see if it helps. When I started having to find milk/wheat free products 7 years ago, it was near to impossible. There are far more choices available today. You'll have to go through some trial and error to see what works and what doesn't. Hope to see more posts from you. Best of luck. --Cindy

 

[mpacks]

Cindy,Thanks for the recommendations about ice cream. I'd love to find something that'll work and make me feel like I'm eating ice cream again.I've decided to skip the Fibercon. I started Citrucel today. Will see how it goes. Mark

 

[passionflower]

You're welcome, and best of luck to you. There are times where I can eat almost whatever I want. And, other times, well, you know the drill. When I'm in that mode, I've found I have to have satisfying substitutions or I end up cheating and feeling worse. If you like ice cream so much, you definitely need to find some alternatives. I hope one of these work for you. Best, Cindy.

 

[mpacks]

Well, today, I made some Lemon Sorbet from the Eating for IBS book. It's not quite like a good bowl of Ben 'n' Jerry's Phish Food (Chocolate Ice cream with caramel, marshmallow and chocolate chunks), but I guess I gotta start somewhere.

 

[passionflower]

I've made my own sorbets, including watermelon, but they don't come close to Dreyers Whole Fruit Sorbet. They are creamy, and luscious. You won't believe there is no cream or milk. The peach is my favorite. You must try them. Dreyers also makes all fruit pops that are delish! Also, the Soy Delicious really isn't up to Ben & Jerry's over-the-top creaminess, but it's pretty dern good. It's more like ice milk. You can tell it's lower fat, but it's still creamy, chocolatey, and the roasted almonds are first rate. The chocolate comes from cocoa, not milk chocolate so it's pretty safe. My husband even thinks both choices are good and he can eat Ben & Jerry's, so that's a pretty good testimonial. If you can't tolerate soy or fruit sorbet, then rice dreams is a fair alternative. It is not as good as the other too. I'm proud of your efforts with the lemon sorbet. Maybe another fruit might agree with you more. Best. Ice cream does rule, so I hope you find a good substitute that works for you.

 

[mpacks]

Cindy,I saw your post on another topic regarding chocolate substitutes. It's relevant to a request I had made for ideas about exercise snacks for when I'm cycling --- if Clif bars are wheat and dairy free they're probably a good option for me.I think I'm going to try a gluten free diet for a few days because my efforts at the soluble v. insoluble fiber for the past week really haven't changed things for me. It's time to see if I have an intolerance for wheat. I was tested for the allergy back in September and it was negative. But, I've heard that there's a difference between being allergic and having an intolerance. This is all so much fun!So, I stocked up on some gluten free products today and will see what I can do for the next few days.The next time I'm at the store, I'll have to check out your ice cream recommendations.Thanks again!Mark

 

[passionflower]

That's funny. I just replied to your post re: exercise bars, to let you know about the Cliff Bars. Let me tell you, I have read a lot of food labels in the last seven years, so it is with pleasure that I can pass some of that burdensome task on. You are correct allergies and intolerances are different. Allergies produce histamine, hence antihistamines are helpful. Intolerances have more to do with our bodies ability to digest a particular food. There are a lot of posts about something called LEAP that reportedly can test for intolerances as well as allergies. I have few allergies, but many, many food intolerances. I only know this through elimination diets. Best, Cindy

 

[skinny]

mpacks,For lactose intolerance, you may want to try a probiotic like those marketed for LI. I've used Digestive Advantage http://www.rofay.com DairyCare http://www.dairycare.com or P+ which is a digestive enzymes + some probiotics http://www.lactose.co.uk A good acidophilus product may be just as effective.I am severely lactose intolerant. Butter will give me gas and ice cream with give me lots of gas. I don't seem to get D unless I overdo it.The products above help to some degree, and if you are interested in my experiences with them I've written a bunch of them on the LI message board http://www.lactose.co.uk I was having luck with Digestive Advantage for about a month before it stopped working. I downed a 2 pint flavored milk product on it when it was working and now it stopped working.

Now I have to treat myself with a combo of any of those products before and after along with lactase pills.BTW, the Cliff Bars seem to give me gas. My IBS has been getting better to the point where I have semi-decent stools. I can eat onions, black beans, soy with no gas attacks, but I think the fibers (psyllium??) starts to get me gassy. I'll try it again this weekend by chomping on another bar.skinny

 

[mpacks]

This is my second bout with lactose intolerance. My first lasted for a couple of months and the lactaid pills helped tremendously. This time, it's lasted for a year and the lactaid pills don't work. If there are other products out there, I may give them a try. However, I'm also somewhat pleased that my diet isn't as high-fat as it was when I could eat cheese and ice cream. I just wish I could enjoy a pizza or a bowl of ice cream every once in awhile.

 

[mpacks]

According to the clinical dietician that I met with today, FiberCon is an insoluble fiber.Mark

 

[somuchsunshine]

I wanted to add to this topic - I believe that Fiber Con is an insoluble fiber ... based on this chart:

http://www.nationalfibercouncil.org/supplement_chart.shtml

It shows that Fiber Con has a main ingredient of calcium polycarbophil and that it is 100% insoluble.

For me, the insoluble fiber seems to help, but I tend to have constipation. I have tried Cellulose, which is an insoluble fiber - and I have just purchased some Fiber Con to see if it helps - but I am trying to relieve constipation, not diarrhea.