Its important also that the "act of eating" can be a trigger and not the food. Doesn't mean foods and diet aren't important they are important, but
"Dr. Drossman: Shawn - eating causes stretching of the stomach when the stomach strecthes it releases hormones or peptides that stimulate the lower bowel. Because people with IBS overrespond to stimuli (like peptide release) you get an exaggerated motility response and pain, so smaller meals reduce this"
Have you ever heard of the gastro colonic reflex?
It is altered in IBS, so just the act of eating can bring on symptoms in 15 minutes. This is not from a specific food in general, but like I said the act of eating.
In the middle of this page are two graphs of a normal person sigmoid colon 15 minutes after they eat and an IBSers sigmoid colon. You will see the IBSers is off the chart.
http://www.webpotential.com/falcon/uploadpic/
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"Postprandial abdominal discomfort may be attributed to an exaggerated gastro-colonic reflex (the colonic contractile response to a meal), the presence of colonic high amplitude-propagated contractions, increased intestinal sensitivity (visceral hyperalgesia), or a combination of these. Fat ingestion may exaggerate hypersensitivity."
http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec02/ch021666/ch021666a.html
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Basically what this means is the act of eating itself can cause a problem. The stomach sends a signal to the large intestines food is on the way and the lower intestines can overreact, casuing d. Part of this reaction, a big part actually is the amount of calories in the meal and fat. Fat is a big trigger to the reflex.
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This is one reason why a lot of IBS sufferers sometimes think that a particular food is the culprit to symptoms when it may or may not be.
"gastrocolic reflex
This is the reflex system that tells the colon to empty when food hits the stomach, or even in anticipation of a meal. This is why baby poops every time he nurses. It is also why kids with constipation complain of their belly aches right around mealtime. "
"Medical Dictionary
Definition: increase of muscle movement in the gastrointestinal tract when food enters an empty stomach; may cause the urge to have a bowel movement right after eating. "
In IBS this reflex is exaggerated.
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"Why Symptoms Occur During normal digestion, foods are broken down in the stomach and small intestine so that their nutrients can be absorbed into the body. Undigested or partially digested portions -- mostly in liquid form -- then enter the large intestine colon where most of the water is reabsorbed. Movement through the intestines results from peristalsis, a wavelike contraction of muscles in the intestinal walls that propel their contents forward. When all is well, the end result is stool that is solid but soft enough to be excreted easily.
Diet, eating habits, stress, and various environmental factors can disrupt the normal function of the intestines. If the intestines squeeze too hard or not enough, the partially digested food can travel too rapidly or too slowly through the digestive system. Movement that is too fast will result in diarrhea, because not enough water is reabsorbed. Movement that is too slow can result in constipation, because too much water is absorbed. Overly hard squeezing (spasm) can result in cramps. However, the diarrhea of IBS can also occur without pain.
IBS symptoms occur after eating because of the gastrocolic reflex -- increased movement of the intestinal contents in response to food entering the stomach. The strength of this reflex can be influenced by the volume and temperature of the food and the number of calories. Large meals particularly high-fat meals and large amounts of cold beverages can trigger IBS attacks."
This is in Heathers book, under altered gastro-colonic responce and is well known in IBSers.
I personally think its important not to chase down every food molecule that could be a trigger. As well as possible ignore othertriggers like stress, emotions, fear, anxiety antispatory anxiety as they can be very important as well. Some of these emotions trigger the same cells in the gut the foods trigger.
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My website on IBS is www.ibshealth.com
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Re: IBS Rant - triggers and alternatives...never ending
