curlylaura

I suspect my IBS is triggered by a gluten intolerance. I've thought this for a while but I haven't had any tests to confirm it. I'm considering trying a gluten free diet for a few weeks to see if it makes any difference. If not I can go back to real bread (yay) and other wheat products.

Has anyone else tried an elimination diet and did it help? How long did you give it before deciding if it was working or not? Was it hard but worth it?

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RedCatWaves

Before eliminating things from your diet, I'd first try ADDING some things...like pro-biotics, fermented foods, and a serious fiber source. Adding homemade kefir and a large daily dose of whole psyllium fiber changed my life and cured my lifelong bowel issues.

curlylaura

I've already tried adding stuff like that. Except kefir because I can't find it anywhere here except on the internet. When I ask people look at me like I have 2 heads.

But I will keep looking for it.

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sleepymeko

Yes, but it's because I have post-cholecystectomy syndrome. I'm unable to eat a lot of foods nowadays (they make my tummy hurt or I have to be near a bathroom). I eliminated most things like: fried, greasy and spicy food.

But I noticed I was still having problems so I had to eliminate dairy too. I pretty much figured out what the problem was (I can't do anything that's too oily either). When i eat any of those things, I feel horrible again.

It's so bad I cannot even eat egg rolls or ranch dressing. Which is probably a good thing because most of these foods are bad for you anyway.

I would advise you to see a doctor and nutritionist first. My nutritionist really helped with my problem. She gave me a list of foods that could have possibly been causing me problems (fatty foods, dairy, etc.) and I just stuck to the list. She also told me things I could snack on throughout the day. I also found out I can't drink alcohol anymore either (but I still attempt to) and caffeine.

Going to a nutritionist was the best decision ever. The problem was resolved within a week. Now I just eat a lot of veggies, fruits, fish, grains and legumes. Sometimes chicken, but I'm not a big fan of chicken! When I stick to the meal plan my nutritionist gave me, I feel energized and fine. If I go off it for even an hour, I have horrible stomach cramps.

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goldy

Have you seen helpforibs.com ?
That website outlines triggers for ibs & has a helpful forum for recipes & eliminating foods and such.

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Like.Australia

I haven't, but my old boss's son had a bunch of issues that they were trying to resolve by trying different elimination diets. They did gluten, egg, and dairy. If I remember correctly, they did the "elimination" part for 2-3 weeks and then added the item back in abruptly to see if it triggered the response again. I think they eventually figured out that it was dairy that was causing a lot of his issues, but they were never disciplined with it to maintain any sort of normalcy. I think it's probably hard to do in general, and unless the issue is debilitating, it's even harder to give up foods you love. Gluten, especially, is really hard, since it seems to be in everything. I hope you can figure out what helps you feel better though.

RedCatWaves

Because of the live nature of kefir and other SCOBY culture products, they're usually impossible to find in ordinary stores, so most people buy online. A quick google search turned up a few UK kerif/SCOBY sites:

Milk Kefir Grains, Water Kefir Grains, Kombucha Scoby's and Starter Kits

KefirShop ! Shop !

claudine19

There's also food/medication interactions to consider. I turned out to have one of those, and once I figured it out, I stopped having stomach aches

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curlylaura

Thanks. I thought it had to be refrigerated like yogurt. Hmmm, I'm going to look into it a bit more now.

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Saria

^I think you're talking about different things. Kefir, already prepared, is found (refrigerated) in the dairy section. It's like a yogurt drink. RCW's link is for buying the culture for making your own kefir.

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Libra_Moon

I have celiac disease and I must not eat gluten, please see your Dr and let them know you are eliminating gluten (2weeks) because inorder to do the blood or biopsy test you must be eating gluten to test correctly. My kids are just finishing up their 2 week test tonight I'm worried because I haven't heard my son complain of a stomach ache in about that long.

Sent from my DROID X2 using CurlTalk App with accidental obvious autocorrect errors throughout.

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slinky1

I've read that the wheat we eat nowadays is not the wheat of old, and most people cannot digest it properly.
I'm sure that no matter what, you will probably feel better not eating it. Just be sure that you get your B vitamins and fiber elsewhere.

Rather than just the elimination thing, why don't you keep a diary of everything you eat, and make notes on how you feel right after, two hours after, etc. Also, make note of any skin irritation that you see, because that is linked to digestion. There might be something else bothering you that you don't expect.

curlylaura

I'm not seeing my GP about this, I know I won't get tested for it (NHS) so I thought I'd experiment first. I can always add the gluten back if if there's no difference.

I've kept a food diary, thanks to MyFitnessPal but I'm going to add health feelings to it now. Just to check. I'm just so sick of my guts not knowing what they what they want to do.

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slinky1

The other thing is that if you are any degree of constipated, that might effect your findings (If I'm constipated, there's very little to nothing I can eat without gastic goings-on). It would probably be best to note the old bm's as well. But, you're probably doing that.