Irritable Bowel Syndrome
IBS is a very common condition mostly afflicting the 20 - 40 age group, however others are affected as well. IBS afflicts as much as 20% of the population.
The general symptoms are:
- Disordered bowel motility
- Increased gut sensitivity
- Food intolerance
- Abdominal pain associated with defecation
- Irregular Pattern of defecation for at least 2 days to 1 week.
Plus 3 or more of the following:
- Bloating and abdominal distension
- Mucus in stool or rectum
- Altered stool form (hard, loose)
- Altered stool passage (straining, incomplete evacuation)
The bowels can be highly reactive to emotional stress, anger and anxiety. Food sensitivities or intolerance can cause IBS symptoms. Abnormal fermentation in the colon due to excess antibiotic use or candidal colonization of the bowel can also be responsible for IBS symptoms.
IBS may be classified according to the frequency of the patient's symptoms. There are 3 main categories of symptom variations:
Functional Diarrhea:
Attacks of diarrhea mostly in the morning. These could be explosive and most people suffering with this are often toilet bound for long periods of time. This can also manifest as a fully-formed bowel movement followed by a rush of watery motions.
Spastic Colon:
Characterized by abdominal pain and constipation. The pain is usually left sided and relieved by the bowel movement. This variation of symptoms may also be accompanied by diarrhea.
Foregut Dismotility:
Frequently starts after eating and is characterized by abdominal bloating. The bloating may be quite severe and extremely uncomfortable and may also be accompanied by abdominal pains on the right side.
IBS sufferers may also be affected by other manifestations such as: lethargy, pelvic pain, migraine, backache and urinary urgency.
Conventional management has not been very successful at addressing IBS. Treatment is focussed on symptomatic relief. Intestinal pain is relieved by smooth muscle relaxants. Constipation and/or diarrhea are managed with bulking agents or laxatives. Dietary management can be very effective with a trial of exclusion diet to detect intolerance.
It is unfortunate that all these measures of conventional management do not address the sufferer as a whole. In many cases the treatment is based on addressing one symptom at a time.
IBS may affect people who find it difficult to share their feelings and emotions with others, thus they often express mental distress through physical symptoms. The bowel reacts to emotional stress, such as anger or anxiety, with so-called "Gut Reactions”.
The important point I wish to raise is that when treating IBS or any other chronic condition it is of the outmost importance to direct treatment based on the totality of symptoms rather than just on the local abdominal symptoms. It is not unusual to hear from people that their GP does not have time to listen. It does not take much time at all to get the whole story. The time invested will prove to be of vital importance in treating the full extent of the ailment. Treating the root cause of IBS can lead to very good results.
