Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

Hi Karin - You're a bit of an anomaly, actually (unless you've had IBS for decades and just got a diagnosis). They do have some stats on average age of diagnosis, and it's late teens to early twenties. However, the average length of time it takes to get a diagnosis is three years. So that would logically push the age of onset back. And, lots of folks wait longer than three years to get an answer. But, it does seem like most (definitely not all) people start having problems as teens or in their very early twenties. There are exceptions galore - plenty of people develop IBS as children, and others don't have problems till they're past forty.

In general, if you're over 35 or so and suddenly develop IBS symptoms, it's crucial that you have a pretty thorough run of tests. You need to rule out colon cancer, ovarian cancer, inflammatory bowel diseases, diverticulitis, celiac, and some other problems too. This will probably require a colonoscopy - if I was 51 and just had an onset of symptoms, I'd insist on this test instead of just going with bloodwork.

Best,
Heater

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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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