Bentyl and other anti-spasmodics can help both d and c
04/14/04 10:27 AM
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Heather
Reged: 12/09/02
Posts: 7799
Loc: Seattle, WA
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They relax the muscles of the gut. Often, in IBS, constipation results from spasms of the gut that can be too fast and too hard. The colon clenches up, motility grinds to a halt, and constipation results. Bentyl relaxes the muscles, stops the spasms, and lets normal motility resume. This is along the same lines of why insoluble fiber, which in a normal gut resolves constipation because it increases the strength and frequency of colon contractions, can actually cause pain and worsen constipation if you have IBS.
But - some folks with IBS-c actually have low motility, so the constipation is coming from the lack of gut contractions, not from contractions that are too hard and fast. In that case, Bentyl will probably just make things worse.
- H
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Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
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