Foods
That Might Help or Hinder
(Information reproduced from "The Sufferers' Guide to
Coping with IBS" published by the IBS Research Appeal (Out of Print))
Note: The following are valuable since they are sufferers' perceptions and
not part of a clinically controlled test
In a survey we conducted four years ago amongst sufferers of IBS, 98% of whom
had been diagnosed as having IBS by a medical practitioner and 1.5% by a practitioner
in alternative medicine, we asked for a non prompted list of foods and drinks
they avoided and foods and drinks they found helpful.
322 women and 78 men took part in this particular survey and we produce a results
summary here. In terms of age, female respondents ranged from 18 - 91 and males
from 25 to 82. 74% of these respondents answered a question on how long they
had suffered from IBS and the average was 13.5 years. They reported IBS symptoms
as occurring as frequently as daily and as infrequently as once a year.
What is particularly interesting in their lists of helpful and non helpful foods
and drinks is the fact that some items appear in both lists - citrus fruits,
cereals, milk and alcohol are examples. This endorses our clinical experience
that IBS is a very individual, functional condition with few patients being
alike in their symptoms or in the cause(s) that triggers their symptoms.
Top Twenty Helpful Foods
| 1. Fish | 11. Bran |
| 2. Green vegetables | 12. Bananas |
| 3. Other vegetables | 13. Chicken |
| 4. Non-citrus fruit | 14. Bland foods |
| 5. Rice | 15. Salad |
| 6. Citrus fruit | 16. Potatoes |
| 7. Brown bread | 17. White bread |
| 8. Yoghurt | 18. Porridge |
| 9. Cereals | 19. Apricots, dates, figs & prunes |
| 10. Pasta | 20. Biscuits |
Note:
Other noteworthy entries in the top 50 were eggs (No. 24), anything with ginger
(No. 29) olive/soya/sunflower oil (No. 30) and linseed (No. 37)
Top Twenty Most Avoided Foods
| 1. Spicy foods | 11. Pulses (beans, lentils etc) |
| 2. Fried and fatty foods | 12. Vegetables (non green) |
| 3. Greens | 13. Brown bread |
| 4. Citrus fruit | 14. Salad |
| 5. Cheese | 15. Nuts |
| 6. Onions and leeks | 16. Sweets & desserts |
| 7. Cereals | 17. Beef |
| 8. Non citrus fruit | 18. White bread |
| 9. Chocolate | 19. Eggs |
| 10. Bran | 20. Dairy products |
Again,
what are sufferers seeking guidance to make of the fact, not shown here, that
while dairy figures No. 20 in the foods to be avoided, it logs in at No. 25
on the 'helpful' list? Other rogue foods include tomato skins (No. 21), all
meat at No. 27 - although beef is listed individually at No. 17 and sweetcorn
which comes in at No. 31 on the foods to be avoided list.
DIY Hint:
Sufferers can keep a Food Diary and record everything they eat and drink. They
should also keep a note of recipe elements - such as spicy sauce or 'marinaded
in wine' and comment on the effects/impact of main and ingredient elements of
their diet over a period of 14 days.
In that time, a pattern might well be seen. More focused tests can then be conducted
by withdrawing offending items from the normal diet over the next 14 day cycle
- and so on. While this is very much DIY, it is quite quick and can serve to
highlight troublesome foods and drinks.
IBS
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Foods
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