Does anyone have gut problems?

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To everyone with IBS or non-celiac gluten sensitivity: check out FODMAPs.

I had some pancreas problems 2 years ago and got diagnosed IBS-like after that (being lactose intolerant and having had idiopathic pancreas issues, I so do not qualify for IBS, which, by defintion, you only have, if there's NOTHING else).
Anyway, after things got so bad I was down to 70kg ( at 190cm height), I tried astronaut food, as for the life of me, no exclusion diet worked.

And then I started a low-FODMAP diet.
Basically, for some reason you might not be able ro break down certain carbohydrates properly, like the lactose intolerant can't break down lactose.
Plants are made of carbohydrates. However, there's lots of different ones, and two plants may look similar, but use different carbohydrate chains to build their cells and store energy, so you need to look up *every* *single* *thing*.
Luckily, the university (monash, in australia) checking food items for their specific types of carbohydrates has an app.

But it's incredible how unintuitive this fodmap stuff is.
Which might explain why my exclusion diets and food-diaries never made sense to me.

Anyway. There's reason to nelieve that for the non-celiac glutwn sensitives among us, it's not actually gluten causing symptoms, but fructan, the carb that wheat is partially made of. Diet-wise, it makes no difference.
But if you're actually fructan-intolerant, you should have trouble with garlic, onion, chicory, dandelion leaves and other stuff as well.

Anyway, I've been low FODMAP for a while now, and gained 10kg over the last year by spreading butter on everything.
I recommend anyone who's doctor told them there was nothing medicine could do for you to try out a low-FODMAP diet.
You might have to learn to cook, while you're at it, and learn what asafoetida is.


P.s.: Astronaut food, i.e. high caloric liquid nutrition is expensive, but also works great. However, it contains so much glucose, it made me sugar crash like a 5year old several times. I do not recommend that. My gut was fine for the first time in a year and a half though, so if you're really, really desperate.

Yes, I have lots of gut problems and food sensitivities. What has helped me the most is to check the label and ingredients and the manufacturer on everything I eat and take note of anything that causes problems. And I try to cook for myself as much as possible so I know what's going in my food.

First off I have learned to avoid almost anything made by a huge manufacturer. http://www.thegoodshoppingguide.com/ten ... rlds-food/. Yes this rules out a lot of things but I don't miss any of them. These types of foods are prone to give me digestive upsets of one kind of another and don't really taste that great anyway. There are also lots of ethical reasons to boycott some of these companies, which is not just a coincidence. The ethical practices of a company are closely connected to the quality of their food.

Same thing with restaurants, I can easily avoid problems by staying away from most major restaurant chains and only sticking to the few that haven't caused me problems. Pizza is a gamble though, no matter where I get it from, there's about a 50/50 chance it will make me sick.

When it comes to processed foods, I look for things that have a short list of ingredients and preferably no additives or just a few natural additives.

I try to just avoid corn and soy ingredients altogether because in the US the vast majority of it is GMO. I don't know how it is in Australia but here almost any kind of processed food has some sort of GMO corn or soy derivatives. Even some foods that were labelled organic have been found out to be GMO. The corn is especially bad because it has a built in pesticide and it is known to cause inflammation in the body as a whole particularly the digestive tract. I think the sheer overuse of corn and soy is probably causing people to become allergic to them.

The same rule applies to meat and dairy. Most animals get GMO feed, usually corn. I only eat grass-fed beef or organic chicken. I buy eggs and milk from one brand only that says non-GMO.

Wheat is another culprit. I've read a lot of stories from people who thought they were gluten intolerant, but when they switched to organic wheat only they stopped having any problems.

I pretty much avoid baked goods altogether, like bread or pastries, because they make me feel so sick. I make an exception for cake when someone has a birthday but god do I regret it.

I eat lots of pasta though, and it's not marked organic, but it comes from Italy where they don't play around with this GMO garbage. Usually any kind of food made in Italy I can eat with no problems.

There is an additive commonly used in flour that is known to cause a lot of digestive problems called azodicarbonamide. Again I don't know how prevalent this is in Australia, but here it's used in a lot of baked goods and in fast food chains.

Another nasty ingredient I completely avoid is carrageenan. This is an emulsifier derived from seaweed. It's known to cause digestive problems, but that's the least of it, it's associated with all kinds of health problems. The sad thing is it's considered "natural" so it's used in a lot of foods that are labelled natural or organic. It's also sneaked into a lot of pet foods and it's not good for dogs or kitties either.

Speaking of emulsifiers, many others are linked to digestive problems. http://civileats.com/2015/02/25/how-emu ... ng-us-fat/

Also probably goes without saying but if you have gut problems, it's a good idea to avoid food colorings or artificial sweeteners. Some of those sweeteners actually have a laxative effect. Food colorings are notorious for causing allergic reactions.

As for food sensitivities, I avoid onions and garlic as much as possible. Both make me feel sick. I think I'm probably allergic to onions. Peanuts or peanut butter tend to slow down my digestion and make me constipated. I've read that this can be a sign of having a mild peanut allergy, in other words food allergies don't always cause strong reactions like having your throat swell shut.

Most of the time for me though, it's not that I have a problem with a particular food, it's more about the overall quality of it, where it came from, what was added to it and how it was produced and handled.

Another big thing for me is I can't handle a lot of seasonings and spices in my food. Sometimes at a restaurant if you ask they will leave off the seasonings for you. I like spicy food so sometimes I just eat it anyway and suffer the consequences. lol

Hope something I've said here helps. Sometimes it's hard to track down the culprits of gut issues and keeping a food diary can be useful. But some ingredients and additives are known to cause problems for people in general and are best avoided.

I used to get so constipated that every six months or so I'd be in incredible pain. Sometimes I was in danger of passing out if I tried to walk too far at once. Then I'd have a huge bowel movement after a few hours of this and that would reset my system. Eating better seemed to help with that.

Another time my colon got impacted and I was in the ER for twelve hours in a great deal of pain until they gave me a super-laxative to clean me out.

After that I got almost religious about my fiber intake. I must have at least 4g of fiber in every meal (8g is better). That helped tremendously.

Then several years back I got a c. difficile infection and it came back 3 or 4 times even after massive courses of expensive antibiotics. Probiotics eventually helped break the cycle.

After that I got IBS type symptoms off and on for a few years. Sometimes going back on probiotics helped (I recommend Align), sometimes quitting probiotics helped. Eventually I stabilized by taking fiber supplements every evening along with at least 8 oz of water. Now I'm pretty stable, although I can have problems eating right when I travel.

Fiber and hydration are the key. Having an Aspie-like dedication to ritual probably helps here.

My "gut problems" are so severe that they make my life completely intolerable. Depression? Social Anxiety? OCD? Chronic pain from a genetic bone disease? Even Asperger's related challenges I either have overcome or could over come, but a digestive system that is completely broken? I can't fix that despite an aspie level of extreme determination that has lasted years and has just continuously deteriorated. I really don't want to live anymore. I don't have a life, everyday is absolutely hell because of my severely f****d up GI system. All my hopes and dreams in life are gone and they are not coming back. All I have to look forward to is the doctor assisted suicide laws to be drafted and finalized in Canada and then I'll be out. The last 10.5 years of my life(1/3 of my life) have been one serious health problem after another and I am tired of this s**t. Doctors do absolutely f**k all to help me live, so the least those scum can do is help end my suffering. If not, I'll just do it myself.

Yes, a lifelong easily-upset stomach and bowel. It's not anything a doctor has seen as I've simply never bothered to go to a doctor with this issue, I've just put up with it. But it's been a constant presence in my life.

Yup,

- diagnosed casein (dairy protein) intolerant in my teens

- diagnosed severely gluten intolerant a few years ago. Doc said I'm probably celiac but I didn't go through the whole horror that is the proper celiac test since the end result is the same anyhow --> can't eat anything with gluten anymore.

I have been bloated for years, and I didn´t suspect constipation, as I went four-five times daily. I even had to reduce fiber - but after a hernia operation, I had to make things easier for myself, so I started having Plantago Psyllium (one teaspoon) and a couple of prunes on my breakfast youghurt. That did it for me. I still take it every day and
everything has been normal since then.

When I was younger, I had my share of stomach problems for one reason or another something didn't agree with me or I had a virus. Either way, it wasn't fun and it probably played a part in why I've had emetophobia since I was about 8 or 9. For me, even now, I notice that I've had a strange relationship with milk practically since I was a baby. My dad says they couldn't give me milk for the longest time at least until my first birthday. Since I've gotten older, I think I'm slowly starting to become allergic to milk because sometimes when I drink it or have a dairy product, my skin begins to itch.

Anyway, if something doesn't agree with me or if I'm laying on my stomach after having a meal, I'll get diarrhea. This happened to me about a few weeks ago. If I lay down too quickly after having a meal (especially a greasy one btw), it'll also happen and it seems like it'll take forever to stop. And sometimes when this occurred, if I got dehydrated and tried to drink something (especially if I was thirsty), my diarrhea would return. It's awful. Now, I try to watch what I have and carry some type of pink bismuth chewable tablets. Often times, I'd also get diarrhea whenever it got close to my time of the month.

My appetite has been on the fritz for more than a year now. Never hungry. Have lost at least 45 pounds (Last checked on December 21). Last blood work done showed no anemia or other deficiencies. My appetite has done this before but usually only lasts about 3 months or so.

Yes, have IBS, GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) and Esophagitis.

It seems that if I have Bread and Potatoes together it will reliably make me feel bloated.

For IBS it can help to learn what foods trigger it as well as probiotic supplements may help. Also eat enough fiber and increase fiber gradually as well as drink more water when eating more fiber. Adults need 25-35 grams of fiber daily.

I have coeliac disease and a generally sensitive stomach. It's a pain.

Me.