IBS - recs for supplements and anything else??

[happy2bamama]

Hello - I'm sure there are lots of IBS threads on here, so add this one to the bunch!

I was diagnosed with IBS about 10 years ago. I have the diarrhea-prone kind, lovely, huh? Well, when I got pregnant about 4.5 years ago, it all went away - hurrah!!! And it stayed away for this entire time (my DS is 3.5) until now. Ugh, I am dealing with it once again and am trying to take care of myself in ways that perhaps I didn't before. First thing is supplements or digestive herbs - does anyone have any recommendations for this? I found this online and wondered if anyone had tried it...

http://www.nativeremedies.com/produc...e-health.shtml

I take Good Belly (probiotics) and I steer clear of caffeine, stimulants and most really fatty foods. What makes IBS so terrible is not only the actual diarrhea, but the worrying about having diarrhea. I can't tell you how many times I've been in the car and started freaking out and my husband has had to pull over to a gas station so I could run out and explode in their bathroom. That stress totally adds another layer to this pre-existing condition.

My husband and I are considering having another baby and I am looking forward to it for many reasons, but one is to be able to go back to life without IBS which was glorious!

Lastly, my husband and I bought a juicer last week and I had a terrible IBS bout after three days of delicious, fresh juice. Should I not be juicing?? It sounds crazy to not allow my body to have these great raw fruits and veggies, but if I'm gonna lose my sh*t (literally) every few days, I don't want to do that either!

Thoughts? TIA

[sbgrace]

Many (most in my experience) juices can indeed be stool loosening. Carrot isn't. Greens are.

A common cause of IBS are chronic parastic infections--particularly b. hominus.

I'd do a metametrix stool sample. It will look at parasites and also other "could be" causes and if found will tell you what to do to treat. You sample every part of the stool and make sure you get the end for b. hominus. Most labs don't culture for most parasites and very few look for hominus even though "he" is a common finding in IBS patients. It is treatable. Genova looks for it but they don't use DNA so you'd need two clear three day collections of the last part of stool to know you don't have it. Metametrix is DNA so one should be more accurate generally and for loose stool where "back end" is going to mighty difficult to figure out. Basically, Genova has to catch the parasite and Metametrix only has to find it's "fingerprint" remnants. So I'd do metametrix comprehensive stool in your place without hesitation.

[happy2bamama]

Originally Posted by sbgrace

Many (most in my experience) juices can indeed be stool loosening. Carrot isn't. Greens are.

A common cause of IBS are chronic parastic infections--particularly b. hominus.

I'd do a metametrix stool sample. It will look at parasites and also other "could be" causes and if found will tell you what to do to treat. You sample every part of the stool and make sure you get the end for b. hominus. Most labs don't culture for most parasites and very few look for hominus even though "he" is a common finding in IBS patients. It is treatable. Genova looks for it but they don't use DNA so you'd need two clear three day collections of the last part of stool to know you don't have it. Metametrix is DNA so one should be more accurate generally and for loose stool where "back end" is going to mighty difficult to figure out. Basically, Genova has to catch the parasite and Metametrix only has to find it's "fingerprint" remnants. So I'd do metametrix comprehensive stool in your place without hesitation.

Whoa - it's like you're speaking another language here! Okay, so how do I go about getting these tests done? Do I go to the doctor or is there an at-home kit? Thanks for the info

And as an aside, I feel like IBS has to do with hormones somehow as well. When I was pregnant, I had zero IBS symptoms and I know other people who say the same. Is there a way I can trick my body into thinking it's pregnant??!

[sbgrace]

Originally Posted by happy2bamama

Whoa - it's like you're speaking another language here! Okay, so how do I go about getting these tests done? Do I go to the doctor or is there an at-home kit? Thanks for the info

And as an aside, I feel like IBS has to do with hormones somehow as well. When I was pregnant, I had zero IBS symptoms and I know other people who say the same. Is there a way I can trick my body into thinking it's pregnant??!

Sorry. Charting (ala Taking Charge of your Fertility) might help you see if your hormones are out of wack.
You wouldn't want to make your hormones artificially trick your body into thinking it is pregnant! But you would want to fix if things are out of balance somehow.

I'll get you more information about metametrix testing. A doctor would have to order it. If your doctor won't metametrix can usually give you names of doctors in your area who use their lab. You do pay for the test up front. Our insurance (blue cross blue shield/Anthem) reimbursed us out of network. The Genova does often have insurance agreements with insurance. But by the time you run it twice it seems the difference is the same or worse if you've got deductibles and such.

[sbgrace]

Metametrix:
http://www.metametrix.com/test-menu/...sis-gi-effects

Information on the link between IBS and parasites like b. hominus and his friend d. fragilis. My son had both.
http://www.badbugs.org/

This test looks at all kinds of things outside of parasites (like bacterial overgrowth--which also messed up my son prior to his parasitic stuff, food issues, etc.) that might be responsible.

[KimPM]

Originally Posted by happy2bamama

Whoa - it's like you're speaking another language here! Okay, so how do I go about getting these tests done? Do I go to the doctor or is there an at-home kit? Thanks for the info

And as an aside, I feel like IBS has to do with hormones somehow as well. When I was pregnant, I had zero IBS symptoms and I know other people who say the same. Is there a way I can trick my body into thinking it's pregnant??!

I wonder if you are progesterone deficient/estrogen dominant? You could try looking at bioidentical progesterone cream, but I wouldn't try to make your body think it's pregnant. I'd use it only during the second half of the cycle, when progesterone levels should normally be up anyway.

If you want to read about natural hormone balancing, you can read Dr. John Lee's books...here is one...
http://www.amazon.com/John-Lees-Horm...0332378&sr=8-1

The Metametrix test sounds like a good thing to do as well!

[earthmama369]

You're definitely on the right track by eliminating or reducing caffeine and fatty foods. Another one that's a major trigger, but somehow doesn't get mentioned as often, is insoluble fiber. So I can totally see how juicing led to an IBS attack. It took me over a decade to figure that one out -- I tried a raw foods diet and it nearly hospitalized me. I hate to say it, because I love the idea of raw fruits and veggies, but for IBS, cooked fruits and veggies and steering away from ones that have a lot of insoluble fiber (like corn kernels), is a better way to go. Fresh juices with a lot of the pulp and such in them can be a major trigger. Sucks, huh?

[mellowjello]

Have you kept a food journal to figure out which foods bother you?

Common culprits are lactose, gluten, and fructose/fructans. For the last one, need to look at the ratio of fructose to glucose in fruits and sometimes in veggies if you are senstive. High fructan foods include onions, leeks, artichoke, green beans, and gluten.

I would strongly recommend the GAPS diet to heal your GI tract and stop IBS from recurring. Are you already taking probiotics? I am a broken record today, LOL, I think I've said that on 5 different posts but it is just amazing to me how many health problems have their origin in the gut. Well, IBS obviously.

That is really interesting about feeling better pregnant. If you do better with more estrogen. Usually estrogen will cause yeast to grow. Maybe you had more yeast which crowded out some of the bad bacteria in your gut (that are causing the IBS?) Yeast is not good though either.

I strongly second the idea of stool testing. It is such helpful info to have. The stool tests at your regular doctor are not even in the same universe in regards to picking up what's really in your system. My daughter's stool testing repeatedly came back negative but Metametrix showed all kinds of stuff.

[californiajenn]

I second the GAPS and probiotics recommendation.