Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

IBS or Irritable Bowel syndrome is a condition in which the colon (Large intestine) is easily irritated, causing frequent bowel movements. This is a chronic condition and can be quite uncomfortable and inconvenient at times. Your bowels can get irritable due to stress or other psychological issues. There is no pharmaceutical drug that specifically addresses IBS, but there are Over the Counter Medications that help alleviate the symptoms. It is more important, however to make sure that you have been diagnosed correctly, as many a times IBS could be confused with other gastrointestinal conditions such as Colitis, Celiacs disease, or Crohn’s.

Symptoms of IBS in general include diarrhea, constipation and frequent bowel movements. Symptoms vary from person to person. Some people may be affected more severely than others. If these symptoms are prevalent for more than 4-6 weeks, it may be indicative of more than just food poisoning. Other symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome may include

Cramping and abdominal Pain

Bloated, gassy feeling. Often accompanied with flatulence

Mucus in the stool

Rapid weight loss

Rectal Bleeding (In extreme cases)

Although conditions vary from one individual to another, the most common indicative sign is frequent bowel movements, which are often triggered by stress or tension. Also, one may not have the satiety of having an empty bowel, even after going to the bathroom. Movements are chunky or broken, and in many cases could be indicative of poor digestion of food.

Although the exact cause is still unknown, the main cause of IBS is believed to be an increased sensitivity in the gut.

During the digestive process, food moves through the gut, and passes through  to your smaller intestine for expulsion. The walls of your intestine are made up of muscle and are densely rich with nerves. The nerves signal to your brain and communicate with it to co-ordinate peristaltic movements. Sometimes, due to certain reasons such as Stress, trauma, food poisoning or a sensitivity to pain or discomfort in your gut, there might be a change in your body’s ability to move food or fecal matter through the digestive tract. These could lead to making your gut sensitive to certain triggers. These triggers could include:

Stress: being in a stressful situation, such as a job interview or a final exam.  The nerves in your intestines initiate peristaltic motions when they receive signals from the brain. If you happen to be in a stressful situation, the brain releases a chemical pathway that stimulates emptying of bowels. Food induced: Certain foods could trigger sensitivity. Some people are more sensitive to particular foods, while other might not be. Dairy Tea or Coffee, spices, fats, beans, cabbage, broccoli, etc are examples of some such foods. A good idea is to maintain a food journal, that can help you track what foods induce reactions, and which foods help your guts digestive processes.

Hormones: Hormonal imbalances, sometimes trigger certain chemical pathways, causing your bowels to be irritated. This is probably why, more women suffer from IBS, and have reported to have bowel sensitivities around the same time as their periods.

Medical Conditions: Gastrointestinal conditions, such as bacterial infections, diarrhea, or food poisoning could cause your gut to become more sensitive. As similar as the symptoms may be, one must make sure to not confuse IBS with Irritable Bowel Diseases (IBD), such as Celiac’s disease.

Conventional treatments for IBS include anti-emetics such as Immodium, Tums, pepto-bismol, etc. These over the counter medications help contain the symptoms temporarily, but do not at all address the root cause of your condition. In fact, the constant use of these compounds cause frequent tightening and loosening of your bowels and intestinal muscles. This could be detrimental in the long run. The ideal line of treatment would be to assess the root cause, and address it holistically.

‘Irritable Bowel Syndrome’ is a term coined by Western Medicine. The word ‘syndrome’ by itself designates that there  is something Wrong with your body. The condition of IBS is simply correlated with oversensitivity in the mind-body condition. Which is not all too necessarily a bad thing? It could be because of a strong emotional or psychological connection. It could also be because of sensitivity to a certain food group or maybe a synthetic element (for eg ingredients in processed foods, chemical stimulants, preservatives, etc) that could be triggering your bowel movement, because your body recognized this substance as a toxin and immediately tries to expel it out. It is thus essential to first carry out a thorough preliminary understanding of your exact causality and then take appropriate measures, so as to ensure that the symptoms do not re-occur.

At VedHerbs, we have a team of trained doctors and holistic practitioners that first help assess your condition, diagnose your root cause and then suggest an appropriate line of treatment.  The ideal route would be to talk to an Ayurvedic doctor first, that can assess from your body composition and your dominant doshas, what foods or habits are causing you the discomfort. Along with pinpointing these changes, they can also refer you herbs that will help with detoxifying your gut and soothing your gastrointestinal tract. Additionally a homeopathic adjunct and/or a nutraceutical (vitamin or minerals) may be recommended if needed. We will then forward you across to our dietician, who will recommend you dietary and lifestyle changes, and also certain Yoga positions or breathing exercises that will help soothe your stomach and assist in better digestion and assimilation.