Constipation, but can't handle SFS
#286974 - 10/18/06 06:29 PM
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Jordy
Reged: 08/12/06
Posts: 2095
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Most people on the board, especially the Cs, seem to be on a SFS of some kind. Is it possible to get stable without one? I don't seem to be able to handle them. They seem to sit inside me and just cause gas and bloat....and I've tried all of them that I can think of.
This website really advocates taking an SFS...but are there any of you out there, especially the IBS-C folks, who feel okay and consider themselves better even though they don't or can't take an SFS?
I'm just afraid I'll never get better because I can't find an SFS that I tolerate. 
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IBS-C with pain and bloat
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Did you try the Acacia? If you did, how long did you try it for?
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as i have mentioned before, thought the acacia did work very well for me i am no longer on it and doing fine. I would continue taking the natural calm and use the ground flax seeds that you were taking, th eother option is, have you tried fibersmart by renew life? it has triphala in it to help you go is made of flax and borage seed, has some l-glutamine to help tone of intestinal walls and even has fennel and a bit of probiotics in it. I would do the powder not the capsules, if this one hurts you too , then i would say forget the SFS and get it from food and keep up with the flax and NC. Also there is another fiber called glucomanan, it is hard to find though.
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I'm still trying to take it. I'm up to about 10 grams fiber.
How's the Acacia going for you, Gracie?
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IBS-C with pain and bloat
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I should stop the Acacia? How much NC do you take? Fibersmart scares me because it has FOS. I think it's the only Fiber supplement I haven't tried, yet...
I really, really appreciate all the help...everyone!
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IBS-C with pain and bloat
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Jordy,
Are you drinking enough water and exercing? People with IBS C need to drink A LOT more water than 8 glasses a day and NEED a hard workout everday. I know it's hard to find the time but it's suppose to help tremendously.
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Instead of a SFS, I take FiberCon, which is an insoluble fiber supplement, which definitely helps me "go". It doesn't seem to give me any more bloating and gas either.
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Tierney
IBS-C
www.StandardProcess.com[/url] = the home of REAL supplements
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This is pretty interesting. FiberCon is polycarbophil (like Equalactin) and contains calcium and magnesium. There seems to be some disagreement on whether polycarbophil is soluble or not. Most sources refer to it as a soluble fiber, but a couple refer to it as swellable in water but not truly soluble. It's a form of methylcellulose which has been altered to be non-fermentable - that should mean it doesn't produce gas.
While I was digging around looking at this stuff, I also found some information that kind of surprised me. Some articles I found suggest that Soluble Fiber slows down transit time in the small intestine but actually speeds up transit time in the large intestine apparently as a result of fermentation. I'm out of my depth here - does anyone know if I've understood this correctly?
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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Here is my take on what you have read.
Polycarbophil is derived from vegetable gums.
Gums are polysaccharides. They similar to sugars but composed of many sugar units making up large indigestible molecules. When placed in water they link too many water molecules increasing the viscosity (thickness) of the solution. They are indigestible in the stomach and small intestine but ferment (digested by bacterial) in the large bowel. I am not familiar with the fermentation processes for SF from different sources. I understand there can be different fermentation processes for different SFs.
SF does not swell in the sense of absorb water like IF may. And soluble in term soluble fibre does not mean "the SF dissolves in the water" like sugar dissolves in water. It means soluble in the sense that the molecules interacts with water to produce something called a colloidal dispersion. A similar thing happens when you use cornstarch to thicken a pudding.
Apparently, American Association of Cereal Chemists defines soluble fibre as "the edible parts of plants or similar carbohydrates resistant to digestion and absorption in the human small intestine with complete or partial fermentation in the large intestine". Therefore by definition a SF is at least partially fermentable in the large bowel. Using a variety of enzymatic and chemical processes companies are modifying SFs to make them less fermentable in the bowel. I doubt there are any SFs that are completely unfermentable.
Transit times is an interesting topic. Short chain fatty acids, one of the byproducts of fermentation in the large bowel of SF. IF and sugars such as fructose, are colonic stimulants.
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STABLE: ♂, IBS-D 50+ years - Science of IBS
The FODMAP Approach to Managing IBS Symptoms
Evidence-based Dietary Management of Functional GI Symptoms: The FODMAP Approach
FODMAP Chart & Cheatsheet
The Role of Food & Dietary Intervention in IBS
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So far so good. I only had a couple of days where I felt really gassy, but that could have also been because of t.o.m.
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