Prevent Irritable Bowel Syndrome
According to health research, IBS is the second most common cause of work absenteeism after common colds. But this is not uncommon to those of you experiencing any form of gastrointestinal disorder as IBS and similar diseases have a significant impact on your quality of life. Prevention starts with understanding the nature of your condition, like what causes flare ups and why, so that you can make choices that result in healthier outcomes.
Prevention of IBS Triggers
Triggers are elements in our environment that we interact with to produce negative responses in our body. We may never understand why we react to certain triggers. Regardless, what’s important is that you know the triggers chronically affecting you so you can eliminate them as best as possible you’re your life. Common triggers for IBS are diet, lack of exercise, stress, certain medications or drugs. It’s worth thinking about your lifestyle habits as an overview in order to identify trends as they play out in terms of these common triggers. Are you feeling nausea after meals? Do you experience stress in your work or home life? What drugs are you taking in addition to those prescribed by your doctor? The more you know about your triggers, the better off you will be to prevent the symptoms of your IBS from flaring up unexpectedly.
IBS Prevention Strategies
Now assuming you know what triggers are affecting your health on a regular basis, you can develop strategies to prevent IBS symptoms and eliminate these triggers as much as possible. For example, if you were to work in a restaurant that gives complementary lunch meals, you may take the proactive step in bringing lunch to work after finding out that the spicy restaurant food is causing the problems you experience later in the day and at night after work. Making a schedule of your diet habits is a good way to log results and hold yourself accountable to sticking to a system. Since IBS is also linked to mental health, cognitive behavioral therapy and other methods of reducing mental stress are very effective methods for preventing the triggers that lead to IBS flare-ups.
Since you’re reading this article, you must be ready to make some changes and start becoming healthier in your life. So here’s a suggestion that for the next month you try these few ways to becoming a new, better you.
- Drink at least 8 glasses of water each day
- Exercise an hour every day
- Eat 1g of fiber each day, and add 1g of fiber to your daily intake each consecutive day until you are consuming 10g of fiber per day
IBS Prevention for Women Specifically
Studies show women with IBS experience a worsening of symptoms during ovulation periods. Some strategies may be applied to reduce potential issues, but nothing will provide a complete cure for this disease. Certain drugs, while meant to ameliorate your condition, may actually cause further damage. Anti-depressants for example, adjust levels of serotonin in the brain, which can lead to adverse, long-term issues. Make sure to visit your doctor to go over medication you are currently taking as you plan on using either over-the-counter or prescribed medication so that you avoid any adverse side effects.
Whatever you can do to eliminate old, unproductive habits, and practice new, healthier ones will help you better manage your IBS and save you time otherwise spent sick at home. Your Los Angeles colorectal specialist can help you plan and take action on improving your day to day health with IBS. Having practiced medicine for colorectal diseases in patients for over 50 years, Los Angeles Colorectal Surgical Associates is dedicated to delivering the highest quality, compassionate surgery for you and your loved ones.