Heather, question re: Fiber Choice
#15242 - 07/28/03 02:44 PM
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BL
Reged: 06/01/03
Posts: 3522
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Are you sure this stuff is not a laxative per se, but a fiber supplement? Is it ok to use it everyday, long term? It's working so well that I am panicking that I might not be able to use it every day without becoming dependent on it. I don't want my bowels to become lazy (like the rest of my body. Ha!) I guess I am questioning it because it's new and I don't hear much about it. The only info I've seen on it is on the Fiber Choice website and hey, what are they going to do but recommend its use? Please reassure me that it's ok to use everyday, for the rest of my life. I'm really good at advising others to take their life one day at a time, but I can't do that myself. I'm a big worrier.
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Hi - Relax, it's just inulin, a soluble fiber. Most soluble fiber supplements market themselves as laxatives, but they're not. You can't become dependent on inulin any more than you could rice or pasta. It's just fiber, so there are no long term risks of bowel dependency or drug side effects.
I'm actually thrilled to hear that it's working so well for you!
- H
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Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
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Thanks for the reassurance. That's funny---the thought of someone becoming dependent on rice or pasta!!! Only at my favorite restaurant in Baton Rouge, Semolina's.
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When I signed on this morning, my intent was to ask this question exactly! Glad I read the new posts first! I have been using Benefiber and it has helped me so much. Even though Heather says it is not possible to become physically dependent on it, if I don't use it everyday (the same amount), I notice a change in bowel habits. I feel that I NEED to take it. I guess it is OK as long as it doesn't hurt me in any way. What if I am stranded on an island someday and cannot get my Benefiber?  (just kidding LOL) artist
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Ya know, in the broadest possible sense your bowel is "dependent" on the fiber, in that that's what's making it function normally. But it's working naturally, with your body. This is akin to being "dependent" on oranges for vitamin C. If they were your only source, and you stopped eating them, you'd get scurvy. So you can't ever stop eating those oranges, or eating your fiber, because this is what your body needs to function. But it's in a good way, not a chemical/drug artificial stimulant way. EVERYONE is dependent on fiber if they want to have any kind of normal digestion at all. Just like everyone is dependent on foods for nutrition and calories for health (and life) itself.
Best,
Heather
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Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
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Heather, Thank you for the excellent analogy. I appreciate your reassurance. I guess I should consider the fact that things stop functioning properly when I don't use the Benefiber as evidence that I am doing something right. I will take my fiber with confidence.  artist
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Artist, ....
#15397 - 07/29/03 12:24 PM
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BL
Reged: 06/01/03
Posts: 3522
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you and I are too much alike. I've wondered that same thing myself. If I'm ever stranded (not on an island, but say in a small podunk town) and am out of my fiber supplement, what would I do???? I have to keep telling myself that I wouldn't die, just be really miserable for a day or two. Ha!
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Could anyone tell me roughly how much the Fiber Choice tablets are? I am coming over to the US at the weekend and am going to take the opportunity to stock up on some fiber - our choice over here is pitiful lol! Is it just Target you can get them from, do WalMart do them?
Many thanks
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Sarah
Looking for inspiration...
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A bottle of 90 tablets was between $9 and $10 at Target. I haven't had a chance to check Wal-Mart yet. They (and Super Wal-Mart) are usually cheaper than Target. The bottle says to chew 2 tablets per day with the maximum dosage being 6 tablets. I don't know about you, but with the Citrucel and other powders, I was having to use so much that I was going through the container rather quickly. I'm hoping this will last longer. Two tablets has 4 grams of soluble fiber in it, if that helps you to figure out how many you would need.
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You are not kidding, we ARE too much alike! We certainly do have a lot in common. I am 41, a stay at home wife and mother (and struggling artist, after 8 years of teaching kindergarten). I also have two teenagers: a 14 yr old daughter and a 17 yr old son. Oh, and joy of joys, I have IBS-C with really obnoxious bloating that showed up about a year ago. We really must visit some time in the "living room" to discuss the joys of being 40 something! artist
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Gosh, this is scary. I'm 44, a stay-at-home wife and mother of 2 teens. A struggling writer, after years of teaching everything from preschool to high school. Have IBS-C with lots of bloating.
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Wow! I have always been interested in writing as well! I would love to find a way to combine my watercolor paintings with short stories or perhaps do a children's book. I certainly have plenty of experience with what interests small children. There are a lot of really boring, uninspiring children's books out there. Each time I read one to my students, I would think... I could do so much better than this! Well... I appear to be way off the IBS topic. Maybe I will catch you in the living room. artist P.S. Do you think us creative types are prime candidates for IBS? My personality type tends to be: perfectionist, high anxiety, high adreneline, very sensitive, a thinker, cannot shut off my brain to relax.
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Re: Artist, ....
#15516 - 07/30/03 06:51 AM
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RLU
Reged: 02/04/03
Posts: 117
Loc: Jackson, Mississippi
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Sarah-
They are the same price at the super Wal-Mart, I just paid 9.94 plus tax for a bottle on Sunday.
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Screen Name: Nan275
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Artist,
I am going to move this discussion to the living room. Look for it there!
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Same personality type here, except I have had very high and low extremes (depression and mania), which has been diagnosed as bipolar disorder, more commonly known as manic depression. My pychiatrist told me at my last visit that it is very common for IBS to co-exist with anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorders. About the creativity issue, there have been studies that show that most of the highly creative people, from the most famous artists to the best writers, were manic depressive. That's why you see so much suicide in this group.
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Alright, you two...take it to the Living Room, would ya? 
You guys are adorable!
*hugs*
Ruchie
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Formerly known as Ruchie
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