IBS or Idiot Bowel Syndrome.

I've written about this many times before and will just briefly go over it again today.

One of our friends has been told today that she has IBS, she has been getting cramps, bloating and discomfort after meals.  The solution from the GP gave her was medication to combat spasms, essentially covering up the cramping problem by using drugs to relax the bowel.

She eats pretty much 'cleanly' according to our guidelines but not all real foods work for all people.

We are basically chemical test tubes and food is full of compounds that then mix with our chemistry and when they play nicely together produce a healthy body that looks, feels and functions brilliantly.

Some foods work better for some people than others; for example, I get heartburn when I eat some types of apples.

I find I get really tired following a 'carby' meal and need a little power nap.

The key to getting over IBS symptoms is finding which foods are your triggers and avoiding them.

Hence my term Idiot Bowel Syndrome; we have helped lots of people establish which foods don't really work for their system.  They feel grey and have flatter stomachs, only to see a couple of months later that hey have added them back in for convenience and now feel tired and irritable again :(

It's not often the person themselves who is the idiot though but the system that suggests drugs over nutrition strategies.

The reasons being time and money based.

Sometimes it isn't the fault of the Doctor, how many people are disappointed if they go to see their GP and don't receive a script.  When a Doctor advises that you could take responsibility and make some changes to your diet, how many people are prepared to do that when taking a tablet could cover the problem up.

Nutrition is unfortunately a minefield of misinformation, I met somebody earlier today who has been given lots of nutrition advice by various trainers, nutritionists and coaches over the past couple of years.

They all gave him 'their' plan, not one that could work for him in the situation he is currently in.  They didn't listen to his concerns or help him understand WHY they were asking him to do certain things.

We've done the same here in the past, The Real Food Plan is brilliant and I swear by it 100%.  However, we now meet people where their at and educate them and guide them in to the process rather than forcing everyone to follow it to the letter.

We know it works when followed to the letter but the most successful diet you will ever follow is the one you can stick to and don't feel like you're on.  That is, the consistent one.

It frustrates me when so many people suffer with something like IBS but are given such poor information that they will continue to suffer for many years to come.

If you do suffer and would like to get to the bottom of it, we can help. 

It will take some time and lots of commitment on your part but that should be an easy decision to make to not be on the look out for the toilet every time you walk into a new building.

Darren 'Got kicked out off chemistry' Checkley

P.S. If you want to see an experiment that shows just how quickly food items can react to each other and the explosive effects that happen in your gut to make you feel 6 months overdue, check out this video -

http://metro.co.uk/2014/03/31/yeah-science-what-happens-when-nutella-and-durex-joins-the-mentos-coke-mash-up-4684285/?ITO=facebook

I'm really not sure why he uses Nutella, I think it's just as a barrier so he can control the mints descent.