Learning to Eat with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)

I spent my Sophomore year in college getting sick to my stomach almost constantly, with many more embarrassing runs to bathrooms than I care to admit. When I finally went to the doctor, all I was told was that I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and they sent me on my way. I had to work my own way through what I can and can't eat. If you're in the same boat, then this is for you.

Everyone's trigger foods are different, so this is based on my own experience. Yours may vary. I first really figured out I had IBS when I did a typical college student thing, and ate at McDonalds once a day for a couple weeks. That's when it got really bad. Burgers, fries, both very bad IBS trigger foods for me. Once it got really bad, I found that even simple things like tomato sauce, a little bit of milk, or anything with eggs in it at all (including cake!) also made me sick. Nothing so badly as fast food, though, or anything else that happened to be fried.

If you're in that boat now, then your first step is this: stop. Stop drinking anything but water. Stop eating anything fried, anything greasy, anything that's junk food. Avoid dairy and red meat. Avoid seasoning and spices. If you're going to have vegetables, have them raw. I pretty much limited myself to plain skinless chicken breast and salad with only lettuce and carrot. Don't eat dressing! They all have oil or dairy in them. I had to avoid anything acidic as well, like tomatoes or citrus fruit.

Think you're feeling better? Add something very simple, like wheat bread. Peanut butter should be okay, too. Keep avoiding any trigger foods at all for IBS. Slowly add things that are gently, and after a few months, try a single thing on your trigger list. For me, I got silly and ate seafood alfredo, and had to start all over again.

As your stomach and intestines reset themselves, you should be able to add some of the trigger foods back in. Now that you're not getting violently ill on a daily basis (I hope you never even got to that point), look at your diet. What can you change to get more fiber? Instead of lettuce, use spinach in your salads. Apples have riber in their peels, and pears are good for it as well. Beans, broccoli, and whole-grain products are all good, too. Fiber counteracts some of the symptoms of IBS. Another things you can do to help yourself not have reactions to foods it to eat yogurt with probiotics, or take an acidophilus supplement. The active cultures aid in digestion and will help you not get sick. I know I said to avoid dairy, but a good, natural yogurt is the exception to that.

That's that for the food portion of what I have to say. Another thing you should know about IBS is that it is also triggered by stress. So just because you're being good about your diet doesn't mean it won't happen at all, and if you combine a bad diet and stress, then you're going to be sick. Try to keep your stress levels low.

See your doctor if you have signs of IBS, which include diarrhea, constipation, stomach cramps, bloatedness, or gassiness, but don't be surprised if you don't get much from them. Try to follow the diet ideas, and see what works for you - everyone is different. Good luck!