Dietary Changes
★★★★★
Dietary Changes
★★★★★
What has really helped me is a gluten-free diet. It takes 4 to 6 weeks to know whether it will help, so be patient. The other thing that has helped is powdered l-glutamine, about a heaping teaspoon mixed in water every day. It's well known as a bowel healer. Powdered vitamin-C can help too but start out slowly because too much can cause diarrhea.
I have learned to avoid what I know bothers me. At the top of this list are pain relievers (both prescription and OTC), alcohol, milk, horseradish, garlic and raw onion. I have also learned that adding fiber to the diet can make me worse, particularly commercial fiber preparations. I stick with half an apple, a little brown rice, or a very small serving of beans when I need fiber, and I don't eat them every day.
Dietary Changes
★★★★★
I am now 9 months pregnant and have never been so healthy in my life.I have put on the appropriate amount of weight needed for a health pregnancy. I have experienced no discomfort and had a totally normal exceptionally healthy pregnancy on this diet.
Follow your body's intuition and you will never go wrong. health is in your hands and diet!
best of luck Jessica xo
Dietary Changes
★★★★★
(Sydney, Australia)
06/03/2010
★★★★☆
a vegan diet definitely helps manage condition. for me this is 100% crucial in management of condition. it won't cure it, but it'll give you some breathing space and energy. a lot of animal products cause IBs and bloating/Diarrhea.
Dietary Suggestions, Aloe Vera, Multi Vitamins
★★★★★
It felt as if i had dead bowels / colon' with no food passing to excretion - no movement in colon.
Even if it is not IBS my success may help.
1) NO spices in diet eg curry
2) NO fatty or greesy foods like fries
3) 5 TBL Aloevera conc 3 times a day
4) Multivitimin supplement + minerals daily
5) stress related issues effect colon so I took a smoke of 3 spliffs a day for just over a week. yes i mean cannabis.
6) alternative to spliff is chinese herbs for headaches - they work by removing stress (Zheng Tian Wan) - 2 weeks supply.
7) eat greens, lentils, fruit especially apples and eggs.
hope this will help someone as it helped me, no matter how drastic the solution.
Fennel
(Tennessee)
05/07/2014
Dear Amy,
There are a couple of things that I would try.
One would be charcoal. If you know you are going to eat something that will aggravate you, take a couple of charcoal tablets (not capsules) or a teaspoon of charcoal in 6 ounces of water. This will often help with gas/bloating.
Alternately, there are some herbal things to try. (Don't use charcoal within two hours of medication or herbal treatments.)
Peppermint - Have a cup of peppermint tea when you have something that may disagree with you. Or even easier, keep a bottle of peppermint essential oil with you and put a couple of drops into some water and drink it when you have something that might bother you.
Or
Comfrey - You can make a comfrey tea to take with or after eating potentially offending foods.
You could also try just drinking comfrey and peppermint tea regularly. This may give some healing in the long term. You could drink 3-4 cups a day.
Let us know what you try and if it helps you.
~Mama to Many~
Fennel
★★★★★
(Trenton, Michigan)
02/13/2011
I too have had great results with fennel. I have been suffering from IBS on and off for several years now. Usually it only last for about two weeks. But this time it lasted about 8 MONTHS!
My IBS is strictly pain. I don't get diareha or constipation just pain on my left and right side below my ribs.
Heres what I did:
After a colonoscopy my doctor diagnosed me with spastic colon (aka IBS)and prescribed me an anti-spasmodic drug called Bentyl or something like that. Of course I refused to take it and searched for a natural alternative.
Fennel is a natural anti-spasmodic and so is Chamomile. Fennel tea does help but I found chewing fennel seeds and sucking the juice out and swallowing then spitting the seeds out helps a lot too. But so far I think it is better to actually eat the seeds. I add about 1/2 teaspoon to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. (I acutally use sunflower seed butter)
I buy my fennel seeds at a local health food store for 50 cents per ounce. Two ounces last me a 1 week or two. You can also order them online. I like Frontier Herbs since they have great prices and a HUGE selection of raw and organic herbs.
The other thing that is GREAT is to eat a fennel bulb that you can buy at a grocery store. I buy mine at Meijer or Kroger. But some krogers don't carry them. It's a white bulb with a long green stem. The best way I've found to prepare it is by cutting it like an onion into half in strips then STEAMING it. It makes it very soft and easy to chew. Sometimes I also sautee it with butter.
Eating the fennel bulb is probably one of the best in my opinion.
I also like to combine the steamed bulb with rice as it makes a nice substantial meal. And rice helps a lot for me.
The other thing that I recently purchased that HELPS A LOT is Organic Acacia sennegal fiber. There is a seller online with a great price for a round tin that contains a good amount. The brand I bought is specifically made for IBS sufferers. I think it was like $16. You can find it online by doing a google search for "Acacia Fiber IBS".
The final thing that has helped me is STRESS reduction and watching comedy! START LAUGHING! IT HELPS I SWEAR. Go on youtube and look up Louis CK he is hilarious! Or just type in comedian and watch some of those videos.
GOOD LUCK I HOPE THIS HELPS.
-darenM
(North York, On, Canada)
02/13/2011
Hi,
I'm happy that Fennel has saponins that could explain why it relieves your IBS. Saponins have some activity against protozoa and bacteria. Your testimonials are another prouve that IBS is an infection.
Gelatin
★★★★★
I have a remedy I haven't seen listed that has given me my life back.
I got C.difficil after a double round of antibiotics. I took the special antibiotic to get rid of the C.diff, which it did. But 6 months later I was hit with IBS-D, chronic diarrhea making it difficult to leave the house.
I tried every remedy on this site and others. I saw a gastro doctor who offered little help. Nothing worked.
I read antedotally that plain gelatin helped with diarrhea, and that it helped increase the mucosal lining of the intestines.
I began with 2 packets per day (morning & evening) mixed into my hot coffee or tea. I had relief within the first few days. Soft, but formed stools.
After a couple months I began using just one packet in my morning coffee, and continued with no problem.
After 6 months I did an experiment and got off it completely. I had one or 2 loose movements over a week, a vast improvement over previously. I have gone back to my morning packet ever since, and have not had diarrhea in a year and a half.
I mentioned this remedy to my regular doctor's nurse. She mentioned it to another patient who tried it and told the nurse to tell me "Thank you, I got my life back!"
Buy plain gelatin packets in the baking supply aisle of the grocery store. About $6 for 30 packets. It mixes and dissolves best in very hot liquid. Mixed with cold (even a drop of water in your mug) makes a gelatinous mess that dissolves eventually, but not easily.
Try it and let others know it works!!
(United States)
06/07/2020
★★★★★
This helped me out so much. Thank you.
General Feedback
(New York, Ny)
07/04/2012
Dear I Have Had It All, You could investigate Dr. Schulze's Intestinal Formula #2. I've been having sporadic IBS-type problems for 6 months post-food poisoning, and every time I take this it relieves the problem and I function normally for the rest of the day. I am considering doing their full 5-Day Bowel Detox, with multiple doses a day -- or maybe two 5-day detoxes back-to-back, to wipe out what I suspect is small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and attempt to restore normal motility.
(Palmdale, Ca)
04/22/2013
Have you tried cutting all forms of Gluten out of your diet. I used to be like you and I am much better. You probably have undiagnosed Celiac Disease. It is very hard to diagnose even when you take all their tests. The only way to know for sure is to study gluten and all the names for it in food and remove it totally from your diet. If you have Celiac Disease and you don't remove Gluten from your diet you will get intestinal cancer. Celiac is an autoimmune disease that manifests with intestinal damage when you eat gluten products. If you have any problems eating dairy products that is also a big tip off that you have Celiac. I got lactose intolerant from intestinal damage due to Celiac. I have been gluten free for 9 months and I can eat some dairy now. Get the book "Wheat Belly", it will save your life.
General Feedback
(Ballarat, Victoria, Australia)
01/29/2012
Hi, I have tried the FODMAP diet, roughly :) I have cut out some fruits such as apples, as they send me straight to the loo! Also I try not to eat fruits containing polyols or excess fructose. It seems to have worked but I am know suspecting it could be the tap water. Am definatly going to supermarket to get 20L of spring water. Am also trying the apple cider vinegar with water X
(Florence, Ky)
09/24/2013
What is the "Mother" they are referring to when mixing these remedies with apple cider vinegar or whatever? I have seen with the Mother and seen another with the X... I am skimming thru the articles but don't know what they are talking about. It is under Irritable Bowel Syndrome/ Treatment for IBS.
Any answers would be great :). Thanks
(Alabama)
09/24/2013
When you see "the mother" in reference to Apple Cider Vinegar (apple cider vinegar) this is referring to a natural raw pure vinegar. It should have a "muddiness" appearance to it, not perfectly clear. There will be sediment in the bottom and this is the good stuff. :) It has all kinds of beneficial healing properties in it. Organic is also best.
Ginger
★★★★★
Guinness Beer
★★★★★
To start 440 ml a day for a week. After that 440 ml every second day.
You should notice the improvement in two weeks time. It took me 2 months to clear of this IBS problem. I wasn`t going to write this article because of the alcohol content, but if it helps even one one person would be a help.
It contains BARLEY.
Cheers
Hydrogen Peroxide
★★★★★
IBS and Candida
★★★★★
Earth Clinic has helped immensely as well as Jini Patel Thompson's site to heal my inflamed large intestines. Looking back, my occasional symptoms have included bad menstrual cycles, sinus problems, tinninus, brain fog, heart palpitations and muscular issues. ICV symptoms can be many and is known as The Great Mimicker. The recommendation is to resolve inflamed intestines to alleviate it turning into IBD or Crohn's. There is a massage technique to address the ICV online; peppermint tea (enteric coated peppermint is excellent to help the peristaltic movement of the intestive), marshmellow and slippery elm to coat the intestines. I'm eating bone broth (made from organic grass fed beef bones and chicken, carrots, celery, onion, zucchini and garlic. I eat all except the celery and easy to digest foods such as avocado, banana, pear; juicing green vegetables with apples, parsley, cilantro and fresh ginger; avoiding dense foods, chips, sugars, wheats, dairy, fermented foods, legumes that cause gas (a little hummus is good), spicy hot, carbonation, scratchy veggies, grains and processed foods. I've also been doing allergy elimination via acupuncture which seems to help. I'm also taking wild oil of oregano and Grapefruit Seed Extract to kill bad bacterial and repopulating with a super good probiotic (Lactobacillus acidophilus, NAS super strain, 5 billion cfu (colony forming units), Bifidobacterium bifidum, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, LB-51 super strain, 5 billion cfu), Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D. Also incorporating oil pulling and castor oil packs (3-4 x per week) and activated charcoal 2-3x per week to help flush out the bad. Will start an Elemental Diet this week for 10-14 days, then plan to begin eliminating the candida through continued diet, rife and acupuncture (the candida diet is basically what I'm doing now to keep the pain away).
Moral? If you're suffering from any type of intestinal problems, please consider having olonoscopies and GI tests carefully. Even though my physicians were talking with one another, not one thought of telling me about the potential yeast problem nor did they caution me not to have the colonoscopy while my intestines were in a very fragile state. This ordeal has diminished my health considerably and is costing me financially, physically and emotionally just to get my life back to normal. Blessings and healing to those of you with any form of IBS.
IBS and Herpes Virus Connection
★★★★★
If it's a recurring issue of cold sores, its usually a virus which tends to hide in the nervous system and bone marrow. Nervous system is common, while in bone marrow tends to cause anemia now and then. The IBS might be helped with 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt in a cup of water, single dose. The herpes, is mostly lysine 1000 mg with glutamine 1000 mg taken hourly for 4 hours for roughly three days. If they come back it's taken again. Someone claimed that it resists every supplement I mentioned here, but I have found they work in all cases from direct experience. Zinc maybe supportive. As for candida, baking soda, potassium citrate, perhaps potassium iodide are the common supplements I might consider, along with 25 mg of sodium molybdate for a week or two, as the most promising so far. People also tend to be low in copper, which is supplemented with chlorophyll.
Ted
(Houston, Tx)
09/25/2011
★★★★★
Hi I know this thread was started last year. I just wanted to share quickly my experiences with vaginal herpes and IBS-C. I have had herpes since I was 18 and IBS-C symptoms that have increasingly gotten worse. I have followed a gluten and lactose free diet for over two years now which helped greatly. Then recently my food intolerances have become so bad that I started a low FODMAP diet which has also helped to mitigate a lot of the bowl discomfort I have suffered. But I was still having a lot of problems going to the bathroom. All of this is going on while I have been having almost one herpes out break after another for the past 6 months. I have been tested for SIBO, and it was inconclusive. My bathroom habits have been difficulty accessing the muscles needed to properly eliminate (a lot of twisting, turning, pushing on my abdomen) what ends up being pretty soft, sometimes not formed at all stool. So its not classic constipation. My lower left back has also been causing me pain problems chronically. I was beginning to wonder If I had a pinched nerve that wasn't signaling properly, but I don't seem to have a pinched nerve either. I also don't have any sensation in the rectal area to have a bowel movement. It is more of a bloating and discomfort in the abdomen, so I go and try and pray something happens.
So a few days ago I got a prescription for Valtrex for suppresive therapy, after just two days of taking 1 gram a day I have noticed a huge difference in my ability to eliminate! I don't know if there is a causal relationship, but it is definitely correlated. I will continue to stay on suppressive therapy for a LONG TIME as well as continue the low FODMAP diet for at least a year to let things heal. I will probably get some stool samples tested for parasites and yeast just to make sure too. But I think I am on to something. Hope this helps someone!
(Fl)
11/26/2022
★★★★★
I have to agree with Megyn and all of the above comments. I have HSV2 and got this after already having IBS symptoms. However, I also wonder if the herpes virus isn't making it worse as well. :( This sucks! I take a monolaurin supplement which is shown to help herpes. If I 'ever' run out of it, I am entirely constipated and impacted. I found it also treats h pylori and I have symptoms which indicate, to me, that I have this as well. So, I began 2 T 3 x per day of 10 ppm silver hydrosol and this has helped when out of the monolaurin, so has oregano oil. However, the monolaurin, is a night and day difference. I know that going with the protocol of low FODMAP, allicin, neem oil, berberine, and oreganol helped me in the past but I ran out and 'cheated' before finishing the treatment effects. So, I'm on the fence as to what is the root cause. At the same time, it's freaky to me how using monolaurin alone will regulate my bathroom habits (petrified to run out). I only take pellet form. I will look into lysine again but found little effect on my hsv2. Found out about monolaurin through Dr. Neil. Also, I believe if I cut out so many nuts (I tend to eat a lot of these) that this would really help my hsv2 symptoms, thereby decreasing the need for monolaurin. I wish I had a fm doctor to wade through all of this. I will look at Ted's protocol above for hsv.
(Los Angeles, Ca, Usa)
10/02/2011
★★★★★
Megyn, I had the chicken pox 2 years ago which is when my ibs symptoms started. Chicken pox is a form of herpes and I am convinced there is some correlation with this virus and bowel dysfunction. Now all we have to do is convince our doctors and maybe they will do a study!