Foods to avoid with IBS

Foods to avoid with IBS...

Excluding certain foods from your diet will usually lessen your symptoms.

Below is a list of IBS foods we reccomend you avoid to reduce IBS symptoms. They are commonly known as "trigger foods".

Individual
Bear in mind that IBS is a very individual condition.

Cutting out one or some of the items on our list of foods to avoid with IBS may help you, but contrary to popular belief, eating the wrong foods is not always the sole cause of IBS. For many it's just not that simple.

With IBS there can be several different factors interacting on many levels, including stress and psychological issues that affect the brain-gut balance, as well as medications and even genetic predisposition towards IBS.

However after saying that, for most people with IBS, altering your diet and avoiding certain IBS foods can, and often does make a considerable difference to your symptoms.

Removing some of these IBS foods from your diet will unlikely "cure" your IBS, but your symptoms could reduce dramatically.

So, here is our list of foods to avoid with IBS....

Fat
Fatty foods are bad news, especially for IBS sufferers and are at the top of our foods to avoid with IBS list.

All types of fat are triggers for your GI tract, regardless of whether they are considered "good" fats.

The outer bran shell of the wheat is an insoluble fiber and should be avoided at all costs.

Insoluble fiber is a trigger food for IBS.

However, the inner white part of the wheat grain is made of soluble fiber – which can be an IBS sufferer's best friend.

Some pure white breads, like French bread, or breads baked without any preservatives can be a safe staple for IBS sufferers, but be sure to avoid "whole wheat" products.

Gluten
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley, and oats.

People with Coeliac disease can not eat it without causing physical damage to the lining of the small intestine.

Gluten is known to cause irritation in the lining of the bowel of some IBS sufferers, although it does not cause the same physical damage that Coeliac disease patients suffer.

Gluten is known to cause irritation in the lining of the bowel of some IBS sufferers, although it does not cause the same physical damage that Coeliac disease patients suffer.

Dairy products contain the proteins whey and casein which the body finds difficult to digest and could be likely to cause symptoms of IBS.

Dairy products also tend to be high in fat, and diets that are high in fat also bring on IBS symptoms.

Some IBS sufferers like to eat yoghurt for thier probiotic qualities.

If you want probiotics, you can get soy yoghurt and probiotic supplements that don't contain the whey and casein proteins.

Caffeine
Caffeine is a stimulant and can cause contractions in the gastro intestinal tract. Tea and especially coffee, can trigger severe IBS attacks in some people.

Try drinking peppermint tea as an alternative.

Even decaffeinated coffee has an enzyme which has a strong irritating influence on the gut.

Red meats take a long time to travel through the body and can literally start to go off while still inside us, causing the release of toxins. These can bring on an IBS attack.

Insoluble fiber
It was once believed that any type of fiber was good for IBS sufferers if they were prone to constipation.

However, studies have now shown that insoluble fiber can be extremely irritant to the bowel and should be avoided if at all possible.

Soluble fiber on the other hand is very good for IBS sufferers regardless whether they are IBS-C (constipation dominant) or IBS-D (diarrhea dominant) and can help with both by soothing the GI tract.

Insoluble fibe includes foods such as:

Oats
Barley
Apples
Oranges
Carrots
Dried Beans
Pectin
Psyllium

Carbonated drinks
These can cause gassiness and bloating. Not reccomended for IBS sufferers.

Artificial sweeteners
These can trigger diarrhea and act as an irritant to the GI tract. They are present in many foods and are difficult to avoid.

Alcohol
Alcohol can be an irritant to the GI tract (some types more than others).

It also causes dehydration and can trigger severe IBS attacks, especially in IBS-C sufferers

This is not an exhaustive list of foods to avoid with IBS, but does cover the basics.

If you feel we have missed something, and would like to add to this list, please use the contact us page.

Do You Have A Great Story
or Comment About This Topic?

Share it!

Click below to see contributions from
other visitors to this page...

Return from Foods to avoid with IBS to Diet for IBS

Return from Foods to avoid with IBS to Home Page