Hello everyone i have been a sufferer of IBS for the past 3 years and it is agony for some people and a minor inconvenience for others but i have stumbled onto something which may help everyone effected with this problem, let me explain.
I was having terrible IBS pains and symptoms, so i thought i would try to find a solution to the problem. I have a friend in japan who gave me a very useful tip, in japan they have a routine which can help most digestive problems and i tried it and low and behold it worked. so here it is:
In the morning drink a pint glass of water but dont eat nothing for 45 minutes, you can clean your teeth but no food, once the 45 minutes is up you can have your breakfast and also after meals dont drink cold drinks as the cold fluid gets to the intestine before the food and creates a fatty fluid once the food reaches the intestine, drink a warm drink such as tea.
I know this may seem like a stupid idea to alot of you but trust me this works i started this 3 months ago and havent had any IBS symptoms since, i thought i would post this because of the pain i used to go through i hope this helps alot of you!
Thanks for reading!
StrangeyD
I'm sure the hot liquid stimulates your bowels to work. Good that you found the solution which I am sure would work well for most people. Can you add a smoothie to your morning regime? Berries, celery, an apple and or spinach. Add almond milk to it and some protein powder and voila...a nutritious breakfast...and you get 2 or 3 servings of fruit and veggies which means you are on your way to getting the required 6 - 10 per day. Your colon will REALLY love you for it.
Robin
I think from what i understand from my friend its all based on having water on an empty stomach that is the key to this regime, i think it is so that the water flushes the intestine before any food which helps it in such a way that then intestine gets a boost, my friend who i from japan says that they have done this for years for numerous ailments and it is daily practice in japan even when they are healthy.
So i am not sure about the smoothie thing as it is something i have never tried, if it does help you please feel free to share here!
My morning regime consists of a pint of water, then 45 minutes later i have some toast then carry on my daily schedule as normal but when i eat meals i drink a hot/warm cup of tea to follow it which seems to help loads as i said i havent had any IBS problems in over 3 months and feel great!
Aha! So you have NO fruit in the morning...? That means that you have to eat 6 - 10 vegetables and fruits in the other two meals or snack. I'll bet that you eat a sandwich and a Coke for lunch... If that's so, then you have to load up to 10 servings of fruit and vevetables into your dinner! How about at least putting a few fruits into a blender and add milk or almond milk (easier to digest) and enjoy! You will start your day feeling so good..and healthy! Certainly have your water first thing. I do that too, And then have your 2 - 3 fruit smoothie and toast. Don't forget your baggie with carrots and red pepper pieces....and the apple for dessert. Then for dinner you can eat another 2 or 3 servings of veggie for dinner.
Your bowels are probably begging you to eat better.
Hi, do you have any idea why this works?
Water doesnt flush through the bowels as you imagine actually. It is absorbed mainly by osmotic gradients in the small intestine into the blood stream and thus controlled by Osmoregulation.
The small intestine is directly supplied as the stomach empties, so it is at the upper end of the GI. It doesnt flush through the system as such. Water is transported via the blood to the kidneys and UT.
However, some believe that gut Dysbiosis is the main cause of IBS related symptoms due to an imbalance of bacteria which causes either an excess hydrogen and methane in the small intestine. It is still my belief that it is not caused by food but rather some internal mechanism which happens to be made worse with food triggers. Though, the cause may be due to bacterial toxins, it seems nobody can identify what causes this situation in the first place as the Dysbiosis tests arent conclusive in all cases.
My IBS started with food poisoning and antibiotic treatment of that, causing intestinal permeability issues. That relates to a gut flora issue, though I do believe there maybe various causes; damage done by toxic bacteria or viruses, extreme stress, genetic, overprescription of antibiotics (undetected C-Difficile).
However, IBS is only affecting 20% of population so there must be some correlation to this percentage of the population in the causage.
I sincerely hope this water cure is a help to IBS sufferers but in the worst time for me, even drinking water caused cramps and diarrhea.
It certainly wont hurt trying though.
Barb....Nobody is sure what causes IBS, let alone why a treatment works! However you cant go wrong drinking lots of water and increasing your vegetable intake to maximum as a start. I think everybody needs a tailored approach as their body reacts.
When my ibs is playing up even a sip of water creates excess gas (belching) feeling so ill like I'm dying. However I take digestive enzymes tablets that have betaine hcl in them and I'm fine. No special diet or 5 a day veg and fruit. I can also drink the water with no ill effects. I was in hospital recently, operation for appendix. I had a NG tube in and no food for a week. I produced gas all week and worse if I had a sip of water. Staff tried to convince me that the appendix problem caused my gas and would settle down. I found that when I got this horrible ill feeling before I was aware of gas building up I disconnected my NG tube and applied slight suction with a syringe. This immediately relieved the horrible ill feeling. The day I got the NG tube removed I could take my digestive enzymes and was ok immediately. Question for the experts out there. Why would water cause excess gas (belching would be continuous and could go on for hours and be quite violent). I had a real battle with the hospital staff to let me use the syringe on my NG tube.
Hi Robin,
I don't have fruit in the morning it would crease me the acid and sugar, could not touch peppers, do have three veg at night and water bloats me,so what we have to remember is what suits one does not suit everybody As my daughter is a bowel specialist she sees it all the time we are all different,yes we can say what works for us but not all.
Hi ice-cream, love the name tho I don't eat ice cream any more! I obviously was dealing with dysbiosis, but when I started taking a potent probiotic, it gave me profound improvements withink 12 hours. It took away my constant hunger which was awful to live with. It stopped my chronic constipation, and I finally feel like my bowels are under control. I learned about dysbiosis and probiotics on a website in AUS. Thanks for your posting. Hope your found relief.
Hi Joan, how unique we all are. I cannot eat peppers as they repeat on me. For years onions cause me bad stomach pain, yet I hear how good they are for you. I steer clear. There are so many things I have learned over the year I cannot eat (SO many), so I simply enjoy and get creative with those that I can so I do not get bored. LOL
I think gallee it is down to intestine sensitivity especially during severe episodes. I had it happen to me on a few occassions. I often drink mainly decaff. tea, this is water of course and doesnt cause any issues. The wind is caused by high osmotic activity and fermentation potential of incompletely digested and unabsorbed carbohydrates present in the small intestines. The type of gas produced by the bacteria also seems to impact the motility of the intestines. Hydrogen-producing patients are more likely to suffer from diarrhea, while methane producers are more prone to constipation. Damage to the lining of the small intestines, causes I outlined previously, may cause the body to treat undigested foods as foreign bacteria, and water could trigger a digestive process to start, hence the wind or pain. The digestive process has to be quite fast. i.e. diabetics in hypoglycema get their blood sugars raised sufficiently within minutes of being given glucose.
But I dont think there is a generalisation for sufferers as everybody reacts differently to their internal chemical composition.
What most of us cannot comprehend is how IBS can be abatted for long periods then suddenly to become troublesome on the same diet. Unfortunately, doctors seem not to take anything seriously thats accompanying a negative test report. I have very little faith in the medical profession. You get your 15 minutes then out you go.
thanks ice-cream sarnie for your knowledge; seems like you know alot about the digestive system; i think for me, i have bacterial toxins and part of it is a genetic thing-my mother had a poor gut... i do feel better when i take high quality probiotics and enzymes and eat little meat and no citrus fruits and stay away from potatoes, bread, white flour, white sugar-cakes, cookies, etc...little caffeine; i drink an organic 'green' food which is vegetables and fruit and vitamins every day and that helps and started drinking an organic whey protein drink that i blend with bananas and blueberries; and i seem to digest that okay; but i have problems in which i can have about 5 different sudden urges to defacate within an hours time and nothing comes out but then several hours later have a substantial bowel movement;no diarreah..does anyone else have that problem ? i know ibs can be caused by so many different reasons for different people so one thing may work and not work for another; one thing i will say... having cramps and feeling like the intestines and liver are inflammed and then pushing against the rib cage and also causing back pain... one of the most horrible pains a person can experience
Hi Gloria.
Sounds like plain old constipation. You should be able to 'go' easily every morning. Maybe that banana is your problem. Bananas, especially not fully ripe ones are constipating. Maybe replace with berries which you can buy frozen and keep on hand for your morning smoothie. Can you buy psyllium and have a tsp in a full glass of water at some point towards the end fo the day? Personally, I rely on magnesium that I take at bedtime. It works like a charm. And I never have to fear (and fear is the real word) an attack of IBS. I am as regular as clockwork. Travelling can be a real problem so I am extra vigilant and make sure I drink even more water than usual and take psyllium (Fybogel which is natural just as magesium is).
If you are having pain radiating to the back, could it be a kidney stone...of which have had three. That pain is as bad as IBS. I know the feeling of twinges right about waist level and I start drinking A LOT of water and cranberry juice (pure at 5 pounds a bottle) in order to keep those kidney 'sand' bits moving along.
Listen to your body. It will be working and purring like a kitten in no time.
Thanks for the tip, I'm just 58kg and 171cm, age 30, I'm not very tall and big 1 pint sounds like too much for me, Is it a bad idea to take half a pint maybe or take half wait 15 mins and take another half?
Or it's important to have 1 pint (not less or more)?
Thanks
thanks robin for the info; i will try the magnesium
Hi Gailee,
Oh no...you said 'no special diet of 5 a day veg and fruit'. Believe me, nutritionists recommend 6 - 10 fruits and veggies per day as a basic diet. It is not a special diet at all. Consider this:
Breakfast: berries and an apple...maybe as a smoothie in a blender with milk or better still, almond milk. I add protein powder.
Lunch: a sandwich with GREEN lettuce in it (not iceberg which has no nutritional value). Carrots and celery sticks, red pepper which is very digestible and cauliflower in a baggie. A ripe banana for dessert.
Dinner: a piece of meat the size of a deck of cards, broccoli, beets (from a jar) with a beautiful salad of GREEN lettuce with sliced radishes and cherry tomatoes.
What you add to that is fine....but this is considered a normal, basic diet...not special. And I will bet that our great grandparents ate this 'normal' way because there was no frozen, processed, prepared foods, junk food, fizzy drinks, crisps and greasy take out back in the day. I think we have lost our way...and our digestion is paying the price.
Hi Gloria, I don't use magnesium citrate, I just use magnesium tabs - same thing different form. Works good. Makes the intestine muscles move things out unlike bulkers.
Hi Barb and Gloria,
I take magnesium citrate because it is what my naturopath recommended since I have had 3 kidney stones. Also magnesium citrate is gentle and I can count on it 'working' every morning like clockwork. Believe me, having attacks of excruciating pain is something I want to avoid and magnesium citrate works wonders. I was taking another form that doesn't stimulate the bowel as much and it was called magnesium glycinate. Maybe that's what you are taking..or likely magnesium sulphate. It works well too. I read that 60% of American women are magnesium deficient so whatever kind one takes, as long as it works, it's fantastic. I swear by it.
As a matter of fact, I've just ordered magnesium threonate which a couple of rat studies have proven increased memory. I am going to become an experimental rat myself and see if it works for me. Here is an article stating that magnesium sulfate and magnesium threonate work equally well and that 2 human studies are in the works. Fascinating stuff! _____
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