How strict must you adhere to the diet?
#112943 - 10/14/04 09:01 AM
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Bilbo
Reged: 07/27/04
Posts: 31
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Rather simple question, seemingly: how strict must you adhere to the IBS diet in order to become "regular" again? Is it a matter of completely doing away with all dairy and such, or is a bit of cheese here and there OK?
Why I ask this is because certain things are tolerated and even encouraged in moderation, such as whole wheat's insoluble fiber, but discouraged in excess. Is everything like this? Maybe not encouraged, but OK if done in small portions?
Are there any absolute no-no's, no matter what the amount?
And does anything change for those that are IBS-C, not IBS-D? Is insoluble fiber even more welcome then?
Thank you for ANY help, don't feel a need to answer every question AT ALL, thank you thank you thank you
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Just from my own personal experience, I would recommend 100% adherence to the diet at first. Once you stabilize, you can experiment with the "no-no" items to see what you can tolerate, because everyone IS different... but at first, it just makes life easier to stick to the safe stuff and be done with it.
Whole wheat, the example you used, is encouraged in moderate amounts because it is an insoluble fiber food. Insolubles are just as necessary to the diet as solubles, they just have to be eaten carefully. Insolubles and "no-no" trigger foods are NOT necessarily the same thing.
The absolute trigger foods are dairy, including cheese, red meat, caffeine, and excessive amounts of fats (oil, animal fat, shortening, butter, margarine). Fried foods, for example, which are really high in overall fat content, will trigger just about anyone with IBS.
There are people who can eat moderate amounts of certain trigger foods, and be fine for it, but it's never recommended, especially if you're just starting out with the diet and aren't stable yet.
Hopefully that helps clear things up a little bit. 
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I agree 100% with what Casey said. Although I would like to add a welcome to the boards!! I LOVE your username by the way!!
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~ Rachel (IBS-C)
If life hands you lemons, make lemonade!!
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Welcome to the boards! Casey summarized everything, so I have nothing to add at this time.
Again, Welcome.
Lene 
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God never promised life would be easy, but he did promise to provide a way out!
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Hi there,
I'd say, like Casey, that you should adhere 100% at first. Once you're feeling better & you have some normalcy, you can start trying things in moderation & seeing how your body reacts. Everyone's different, so there's no steadfast answer. Speaking for myself, after years of feeling crappy everyday, I rarely step outside the 'safe' territory. I did try some caffeine free soda a couple of weeks ago & I felt OK, but I'd rather have that as the 'treat' every now and then and not try to make it a habit. It's all up to you. I'm willing to do whatever I have to to feel 'normal' again.  Good luck with however you choose to proceed with your diet!
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-shelley
take it one day at a time.
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S.
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I think that everyone is different. I have a lot of problems following the diet whole heartedly. Part of my problem is that I am intolerant to soy. I am better off drinking skim milk then touching soy. Soy is pretty much all that is available in this area, being that I am in a small farm town about an hour and a half from the closest city. None of this surprised my mom because in infancy I was allergic to every commercial formula formula out there. Soy, rice...whatever. I ended up spending my infancy drinking Carnation evaporated milk, water, and karo. A mix that sounds so disgusting now. I am also intolerant to any type of SFS. I have tried them all... trust me. With water and in small amounts. I started them because it was the first type of treatment my GI started me with. After spending a month in agony he told me that approximately 14% of his IBS patients are intolerant to SFS. I just need to get it from my foods So while the diet in it's natural form may help some people, some alterations may have to be made.
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Hello again, Bilbo!
There definitely are absolute no-no's. Alcohol, coffee, red meat, high fat foods, dairy. NO ONE with IBS should EVER consume ANY of these. The fact that some do and get away with it means that their IBS is not as severe yet, but if they keep cheating it WILL get worse.
The things that we are encouraged to eat in small portions are primarily the insoluble fiber foods, including whole grains, fruits and vegetables. These are necessary for good overall health in both people with IBS and people without.
And yes, as you guessed, insoluble fiber is even more important for IBS-C, along with lots of water and plenty of exercise to keep things moving. But it must be consumed ALONG WITH soluble fiber or it will trigger spasms in the intestines that actually make the C worse not better.
You are very, very welcome, and just keep asking any and ALL questions!! Nice to have you here.
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Laura
Keep it simple!
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Is IBS progressive??? I did not realize that. Anne
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