What is irritable bowel syndrome and how to get rid of it
Educational Program Health / / December 30, 2020
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic disease that is not fully understood by medicine.Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Symptoms and Causes, which leads to malfunctions of the colon. And, as a result, some digestive disorders.
Irritable bowel syndrome is considered one of the most common gastroenterological diseases in the world:About IBS. Statistics 10-15% of adults.
The challenge is that IBS symptoms are often blurry and irregular. Because of this, the person does not even assume that he is living with some kind of chronic disorder. As a result, she does not receive the necessary treatment.
How to recognize irritable bowel syndrome
The disease can manifest itself in different ways. The most common symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome areIrritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Symptoms:
- Cramps and pain in the abdomen. As a rule, they occur after eating and decrease after going to the toilet.
- Bloating.
- Excess gas formation (flatulence).
- Diarrhea or constipation. Sometimes they can alternate.
- Mucus in the stool.
- Periodic and seemingly unreasonable nausea.
- Problems with urination and bowel movements. It seems that you cannot completely empty yourself.
For most people with IBS, these symptoms flare up and down. If you notice similar symptoms in yourself and remember that stomach troubles have happened more than once, consult your doctor (therapist or gastroenterologist right away). Perhaps you have it, SRK.
Where does irritable bowel syndrome come from?
Try to track which lifestyle changes your symptoms are associated with. The fact is that medicine has not yet figured out what exactly causes IBS. Several factors are assumed to play a role.Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Symptoms and Causes.
- Neurological disorders. They can impair the connection between the brain and the intestine. And this, in turn, leads to the fact that your body begins to overreact to normal digestive processes.
- Intestinal motility disorders. The walls of the intestine are covered with layers of muscles that contract and relax, thereby moving the contents of the intestine. This process is called motor skills. If it fails, muscle contractions can last longer than usual. It feels like cramping and leads to gas and diarrhea. If the muscles, on the other hand, relax too much, food passes through the intestines more slowly. The result is hard, dry stools.
- Autoimmune processes. Some people have too many immune cells in their gut. To find a job, they attack healthy cells. Such an overly active response of the immune system, as a rule, makes itself felt with painful sensations and diarrhea.
- Congenital specificity of intestinal microflora. Microflora refers to the "good" bacteria that live in the intestines and play a key role in digestion. Studies show that the bacterial composition of the gut in people with IBS may differ from that of a healthy person.
But the manifestations of irritable bowel syndrome can be seriously aggravated for the following reasons:
- Abuse of foods to which there is an implicit intolerancePerceived food intolerance in subjects with irritable bowel syndromeβ etiology, prevalence and consequences.. These include, for example, caffeinated drinks, soda, fatty or fried foods, foods that cause increased gas production (legumes, cabbage, carrots, whole grain bread and porridge), food containing lactose or gluten.
- Stress, anxiety, depression. The symptoms of IBS and nervous disorders often come in pairs. But scientists have not yet decided whether stress is a provocateur of irritable bowel syndrome or, conversely, the disease itself makes the nervous system be on edge.
- Hormonal changes. It has been noticed that in women, IBS symptoms intensify during critical days or shortly before them and almost disappear during menopause.
Depending on what exactly your body is reacting to, treatment will be prescribed.
How to treat irritable bowel syndrome
Unfortunately, there are no medications that will permanently cure IBS. In most cases, treatment is symptomatic, that is, aimed at reducing symptoms. There are three main approaches.
1. Diet and lifestyle control
Your gastroenterologist may recommend the following:
- Keep a food diary in which you write down in detail what you ate during the day. This is to keep track of foods that you might have a negative reaction to.
- Avoid foods that exacerbate symptoms.
- Try eliminating soda, gluten, dairy, fried, and fatty foods from your diet, and watch yourself.
- Drink enough liquids.
- Get enough sleep.
- Exercise regularly.
2. Stress control and psychotherapy
Because worrying aggravates IBS symptoms, it is important to learn how to control emotions and respond less to life's troubles and stimuli.
You can try to curb stress yourself (how to do this, we wrote, for example, here and here). Or you can turn to a psychotherapist: a specialist will help you understand yourself and teach you a healthy attitude towards the world.
3. Drug therapy
Medication can also help relieve some of the symptoms of IBS. Here are the medications your doctor can prescribe for you:
- Antispasmodics - They help reduce abdominal pain and cramps and normalize bowel movements.
- Fiber Supplements - They help relieve constipation.
- Laxatives.
- Remedies for diarrhea.
- Adsorbents - help with excess gas and bloating.
- Sedatives and antidepressants - reduce stress levels.
- Prescription pain relievers - prescribed if the pain in the intestines is strong.
- Specific medications that decrease or increase the production of fluid in the intestines and may thus slow down or facilitate the passage of stools.
When you urgently need to see a doctor
Do not even think and do not listen to yourself, but immediately go to an appointment with a gastroenterologist if the symptoms of possible IBS (they are listed above) are accompanied by the following disorders:
- You are losing weight quickly. This sign should be especially alarming if you have not been on a diet or increased physical activity.
- You have attacks of the night diarrhea.
- You see blood in the stool.
- You have been diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia.
- Sometimes unexplained vomiting occurs.
- Have trouble swallowing.
- Constant cramps and cramps in the abdomen that do not go away with gas or bowel movements.
All this can signal the presence of a much more serious and even dangerous disease (up to colon cancer).
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