Now that I 've had my colonoscopy and the doctor can find "nothing wrong," I realize how much on my own I am with a pretty bad case of IBS-C & D (with major bloating as one predominant symptom). I sort of think that my last hope for any significant relief might be diet--that is the one frontier I've yet to attempt to cross. So, I've discovered two very contradictory diets that claim to help: The Specific Carbohydrate Diet developed by Elaine Gottschall and the Eating For IBS Diet by Heather I Can't Remember Her Last Name. I've seen posts by people who swear by Heather's diet but none by anybody who's tried the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. I know that this diet was originally devised for people with IBD, but when you read the book, it does mention that people with "spastic colon" (that's us, right?) have been "cured" by following it. It's very confusing because the two diets seem very opposite from one another: one encourages lots of carbohydrates (in the form of soluable fiber) and the other forbids most of them. Could anyone shed more light on the subject of these two opposing points of view? I realize this may be a tired subject, but I'm new here and would be very grateful if you all would "chew" it over again for me. Thanks.
IS ONE DIET BETTER THAN ANOTHER?
1 - 13 of 13 Posts
Joined
·
69 Posts
Yes, I believe there is. I completely believe and follow Heather VanVorous's Eating for IBS Diet. It truly works! There is a TON of information on the Web site, but you will LEARN A TON from reading it ALL.I've been doing this diet for three weeks and it's improved my symptoms tremendously! Check out: www.eatingforibs.com
As I have said before, I do not believe in "IBS cookbooks". IBS is different in most people and I dont understand how 1 cookbook can say what different people can eat(some can eat gluten some cant for instance), with IBS some people can eat some things that are poison for others. In my honest opinion the best thing is to get some notes and see what you can tolerate and what is taboo, thats the most accurate diet that you can go on.
Joined
·
33,934 Posts
I think that some of the people who have IBS that did well on the SCD even though it is not really designed for IBS may be the same IBSers that do well on Atkins...some people feel better with IBS when they limit refined starches.There is no one diet that is the ONE that IBSers should follow. There is enough variation in IBSers that one IBSers "meat" is another IBSers "poison".That being said. Many people find certain dietary plans work really well for them, and may find that other plans do not work.What will be YOUR particular best diet will look different from someone elses (and diet IS NOT the only issue in IBSers and some will have problems on any or all of the diets for IBS).The SCD can be kinda hard to follow because of the restrictions in it, but taking a published diet and using it as a starting point, esp if you have no idea what to do diet-wise on your own, can be a useful thing to try. Follow it for a couple of weeks and see if it makes a difference (no matter which one you use) and if it does make a difference then you can try adding in things that you like that you stopped eating sort of thing to see if you need to follow ALL of the restrictions, or if there seems to be something that diet allows that bothers you, try eliminating that. You may need to personalize any diet you use as a basis, and if none of them make you better than non-dietary factors may be more important for you.K
There are certain things to know about foods as triggers to the colon, one of the biggest is fats, but there are many others likely to set most people off.The diets are guides for people.Foods also do not cause IBS!!! There are underlying problem/problems. Here is some food info for you and some specific info from Heather.She also has here onw bb and that is listed there. http://www.ibshealth.com/ibsfoodsinfo.htm
i have known for a while that bread is a killer for me and so is gluten. so, i got a low starch diet book and started it a few days ago. too soon to tell. i need a book with guidelines to follow. i dont have dairy though and they do give non-dairy foods etc in the book for those who cant handle dairy foods
American Family Physician.Management of irritable bowel syndrome."DIETARY RECOMMENDATIONSWhile no specific dietary advice has been shown in trials to be efficacious, many authors advocate having patients limit alcohol, caffeine, sorbitol, and fat intake. 6 Lactose should be eliminated only in those with proven lactase deficiency. If a patient believes a particular dietary substance is exacerbating the symptoms, then a trial of eliminating that substance is warranted. However, in general, there is no association between IBS and food intolerance." http://www.findarticles.com/cf_0/m3225/10_...+bowel+syndrome
I can add to your confusion by suggesting the book that helped the most with my dietary decisions...http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0471347418/qid=1057070193/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_1/103-8852504-7551852?v=glance&s=books&n=507846
This isn't to disagree with what anyone has said previously, but in my case it took me a while to get my diet figured out because there are multiple things I can't tolerate and it seems like there is no rule to figure them out. However I avoid coffee, soda pop (diet or regular but i can tolerate club soda), high fat anything, raw apples, raw onions. heather van vorous books helped me a lot, try it and see. If it is right for you, you will feel better, if not you could try the low carb. You just have to figure out what you can and can't tolerate. Also, I do take metamucil every morning now but it will make you feel bloated at first but should help within a week or two if it is going to help at all. Following this regime, I am about 995 normal.SG
sciencegirl--agreed. No matter what book or theory you follow, you must take your time and listen to what your body tells you about the things you eat. What I liked about the book I recommended is that their recommendations got my gut calmed to the point that subtle changes/variations from their recommendations could be evaluated as to whether or not they bother me -- kind-of in the same way some people plan out elimination diets.
It's true that everyone's dietary triggers are different. You might want to start by doing a modified elimination diet where you eat just a few very safe foods (rice, bananas, toast, applesauce, broiled white meat chicken)for a few days and then add a new food every couple of days, noting in your diary if you have any reactions to the new food.Personally, I swear by Heather's diet. I won't eat a thing on an empty stomach without putting some soluble fiber (either Metamucil caps or just plain white bread) in there first. Low fat, no dairy, limited insoluble fiber... It works for me and whenever I stray too far from this diet, I start experiencing symptoms again.
1 - 13 of 13 Posts
