Testimonial

Sam Gowing is one gutsy angel. She has freed me from years of gut aches, bloating and breath which was at times capable of killing entire GM canola crops. She has given me a new lease of life and I feel fantastic. Her professional manner is personal and there’s no one else in the world like here. I trust and respect Sam implicitly.”

Flip Shelton, Flip Shelton’s Muesli

Don’t you hate it when your belly misbehaves?

They can ferment, rumble and explode, not only causing us irritation in our irrigation, but embarrassing us too.
While most of us can live with the occasional abdominal indiscretion about one in five Australians
suffer from more than just the occasional bad bowel day. Their symptoms are severe enough to be
given a name – Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or IBS.

DO YOU?

• Frequently experience abdominal pain which is relieved when you have been to the toilet.
• Frequently experience abdominal bloating, nausea, flatulence and discomfort.
• Frequently experience altered bowel function (alternating periods of constipation and diarrhoea).
• Experience the need to go to the toilet frequently to defecate or feelings of incomplete emptying of the bowel.
• Experience times where there is frequent passage of mucus.
• Experience altered stool passage (straining, urgency, feeling of incomplete evacuation).
• Experience varying degrees of anxiety or depression.

If you answered yes to three or more of the following questions, you may be suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

GET THE BOTTOM LINE

So what causes IBS?

While the exact cause of IBS remains unknown IBS is often associated with physiological, psychological and dietary factors.

Changes of routine, emotional stress, infection and diet can often trigger an attack. Wheat, milk, coffee, alcohol, yeast, spices, citrus fruits and artificial sweeteners can be common irritants causing the bowel to malfunction.

Stress is another major factor of IBS and this needs to be dealt with by the individual, through meditation, counselling, yoga, exercise or just identifying and eliminating stress.

IBS affects the nerves and muscles of the bowel and is classified as a functional gastrointestinal disorder. Research has shown that the neurotransmitter serotonin may play an important role in IBS by altering the function of nerve cells in the bowel, causing changes in pain sensation and bowel function.

As such, many sufferers of IBS also experience extra symptoms such as poor sleep, menstrual difficulties, lower back pain, headache, fatigue and insomnia.

The good news about IBS is that it can be successfully managed! And, while the symptoms are painful and disruptive, they are not a sign of – nor do they lead to – serious underlying illness.

So it’s important to see your doctor to make sure it is IBS and not something else. It is advised that you see a doctor immediately if you have any of the following:

• Blood in your stool.
• Unexplained weight loss.
• A family history of bowel cancer.

Herbal medicine using antispasmodics, mucous membrane tonics, nerve relaxants and antimicrobials, diet changes and vitamin and mineral supplementation play important roles in Irritable Bowel Syndrome, as does reduction of stress.

Food sensitivities or allergies should be checked especially for lactose intolerance or gluten sensitivies. Increased water and dietary soluble and insoluble fibre is important.

Acidophilus and bifidus bacteria levels are crucial to maintain.

Vitamins A, B complex, C, zinc, L-glutamine, and F.O.S. (fructoligosaccharides) found in fruits and vegetables such as bananas, tomatoes, asparagus, onions, garlic and Jerusalem artichokes, encourage the good bacteria, and can be beneficial.

Digestive enzymes also play an important role.