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IBS Books > Eating for IBS >
Chapters > A New Way to Eat
A New Way to Eat for IBS ~ Insoluble Fiber
Insoluble fiber, although crucial for good health, can be a powerful Irritable Bowel Syndrome trigger. It needs to be incorporated into your diet in the largest quantities possible, but with great care. Insoluble fiber should NEVER be eaten alone or on an empty stomach.
Remember that it is much better to have a wide variety of insoluble fiber foods in small amounts than to not eat any at all. You are also likely to find that your tolerance for insoluble fiber will increase if you are consistently eating it, even in tiny portions. However, it's important to note that individual tolerances vary. The following list is comprehensive and should include all potential insoluble fiber sources of trouble for a hyperactive colon; you may have a degree of tolerance for some of these foods and absolutely none for others. Irritable Bowel Syndrome can be a highly personalized problem, so you will need to learn your own food tolerances and work around them.
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Eating for IBS
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Raw fruits, raw vegetables, raw greens, raw sprouts, and seeds (including those from fresh fruits or vegetables), are all very high in insoluble fiber. Be particularly careful with fruits and vegetables that have tough skins or hulls such as blueberries, cherries, apples, grapes, peas, corn, bell peppers, celery, etc. It helps tremendously to peel and cook these fruits and vegetables until tender, as this makes their fiber content dramatically less likely to trigger attacks. It is also a healthy habit to routinely incorporate fruits and veggies as secondary ingredients in recipes with soluble fiber foods as the main ingredients. If possible, buy organic produce only, as the chemical pesticides and herbicides used on fruits and vegetables can have adverse health effects.
Two categories of fruits and vegetables, those that are acidic and sulfur-containing, require extra precautions. Citrus juice and cooked tomatoes have very high acidity levels, which can cause GI distress, so they must be eaten with care. Incorporate them into meals (or drinks served with meals) with a high soluble fiber content, and don't eat them on an empty stomach. They must not be eliminated from your diet altogether, however, as they contain crucial vitamins and anti-oxidants. Tomatoes are also very high in lycopene, which prevents some forms of cancer.
Garlic, onions, leeks, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts, though among the most nutrient-packed of all vegetables, can also pose problems. In addition to their high amounts of insoluble fiber, all contain sulfur compounds, which produces gas in the GI tract and can thus trigger attacks. As with other vegetables, cook these until tender, combine them with soluble fiber, and don't eat them when your stomach is completely empty - but do make sure and eat them.
To incorporate raw fruits and veggies into your diet, peel and eat them in small quantities (just two or three bites) finely chopped, as additions to high soluble fiber foods such as French breads, pastas, rice, etc. It should also help to eat them towards the end of a meal. This is especially important when it comes to green salads. Eating them as is customary in America, on an empty stomach at the beginning of lunch or dinner, is likely to trigger an attack. Eating them at the end of a high soluble fiber meal is typically quite safe. For fruit salads follow the same guidelines. At breakfast have a bowl of oatmeal or toasted French bread first, then the fruit, and at lunch or dinner have the fruit for dessert.
Whole wheat and bran are extremely high in insoluble fiber, and foods such as whole wheat breads and cereals need to be eaten with great care. For a daily safe staple, white breads great, but whole wheat breads are not. Whole wheat breads are more nutritious, because the outer coating of bran on the grain has not been removed as is the case in white breads. However, this bran is also very high in insoluble fiber, and can thus trigger attacks. For this same reason bran cereals are not a safe choice, though rice, corn, or oat varieties are. Does this mean you should never eat whole wheat bread or bran cereal? It most emphatically does not. As with fruits and vegetables, the more whole grains you can eat the better. It cannot be stressed enough that overall good health is dependent on insoluble fiber. However, whole wheat and bran need to be eaten just as carefully as green salads. Do not eat them on an empty stomach, in large quantities, or without soluble fiber foods.
Whole nuts are not only high in insoluble fiber, they are also high in fat. Although this fat is monounsaturated and lowers your risk of heart disease, it is still an IBS trigger. Like other high insoluble foods, nuts are crucial for good health, but must be eaten carefully. Finely grinding nuts and incorporating them into recipes with soluble fiber is a very safe way to eat them. Small amounts of nut butters on toasted white bread are usually very tolerable as well.
Popcorn is full of hard kernels that are pure insoluble fiber. There is no great nutritional value to popcorn so it can simply be eliminated from your diet. I realize this may make movies a lot less fun, but having to bolt from a theater for the bathroom halfway through a film is a worse alternative. Sneak some pretzels or baked potato chips into the theater instead, and console yourself with the thought that you'll actually get to see the end of that movie.
Fresh fruit juices, especially apple, prune, and grape, can trigger cramps and diarrhea. Fruit juices in general should be avoided on an empty stomach. Cranberry juice is often (though not always) a safe choice.
Rhubarb, prunes, figs, licorice are all natural laxatives. As with fresh fruits in general, you may be able to safely incorporate these foods into recipes with soluble fiber. Just beware that they pose additional risks.
Fringe Benefits!
The IBS diet follows the FDA Food Pyramids. Eating safely for IBS will lower your risk of heart disease, cancer, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.
Additional Sections of "A New Way to Eat"
Spice Up Your Life!
On A Sweet Note
What If I'm A Vegetarian?
Click here to continue reading Eating for IBS ~ A New Way to Live
All content is copyrighted by Heather Van Vorous and MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED without permission.
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