Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
|
Food |
IBS patients with IgG Antibodies in the blood[1] |
|
|
Yeast |
86.7% |
|
|
Milk |
84.3% |
|
|
Whole egg |
57.3% |
|
|
Cashew nut |
49.3% |
|
|
Wheat |
49.3% |
|
|
Pea |
38.6% |
|
|
Almond |
28.0% |
|
|
Barley |
26.7% |
|
|
Beef |
24.0% |
|
|
Soy bean |
22.7% |
|
|
Brazil nut |
22.7% |
|
|
Corn |
22.7% |
|
|
Chicken |
21.3% |
|
|
Shellfish |
21.3% |
|
|
Haricot bean |
17.3% |
|
|
Fish mix |
17.3% |
|
|
Cabbage |
12.0% |
|
|
Peanut |
10.7% |
|
|
Potato |
9.3% |
|
|
Rice |
8.0% |
|
|
Rye |
8.0% |
|
|
Orange |
6.7% |
|
|
Pork |
5.3% |
|
|
Celery |
5.3% |
|
|
Tomato |
4.0% |
|
|
Walnut |
2.7% |
|
|
Cocoa bean |
1.3% |
|
|
Apple |
1.3% |
|
|
Strawberry |
0.0% |
|
“In the United States, it appears individuals with celiac disease often have their diagnosis delayed. The Celiac Disease Foundation in the U.S. surveyed its members in 2001 and found that:
• Only 12% of individuals were diagnosed before age 10.
• The most frequent initial diagnosis was irritable bowel.
• The classic presentation of severe malabsorption was uncommon”[2]
A connection between Irritable Bowel Syndrome and food intolerances has been long suspected by some and rejected by others. A 2003 study has demonstrated that most food Irritable Bowel Syndrome are associated with food intolerances, most commonly gluten and dairy. Both diarrhea- and constipation- predominant cases of IBS respond well to the elimination of the offending food from the diet.[3][4][5]
Irritable Bowel Syndrome may be a consequence of malabsorption, autoimmune attack on the bowel, or both.
Diarrhea and Constipation?
Diarrhea would seem the natural result of malabsorption, which can result from gluten intolerance. The undigested food forms irritants and toxins and the body responds by driving the material out as fast as possible. Excess amounts of fatty acids, water, and starch gels are not digested making the stool loose, watery, sticky, gassy, foul smelling, and burning.
Yet chronic constipation is also a common problem with gluten intolerance that is easy to miss if you assume gluten intolerance must cause diarrhea. Constipation possibly results from problems that interfere with mucus production that helps lubricate the passage of the intestinal contents.[6] Other factors such as neurological effects and diverticulosis that can be caused or aggravated by gluten intolerance may contribute to constipation. Constipation is predominate in some cases of Irritable Bowel Syndrome while is diarrhea is predominate in others.
Lactose
Intolerance
Lactase is the enzyme that humans need to digest the lactose sugar in milk. When someone loses the ability to make that enzyme, eating lactose will cause many of the intestinal or abdominal problems of malabsorption.
Lactase is produced in the tips of the villi lining the small intestine nearest to the stomach. This villi is the first part of the intestines damaged by the immune system’s reaction to gliadin. Therefore, lactose intolerance can easily be one of the earliest obvious symptoms of gluten intolerance.
In a retrospective study of 54 patients with lactose intolerance, 24% were diagnosed with classic Celiac Disease while 50 people without lactose intolerance had no recognized intestinal signs of classic Celiac Disease[7]. Classic Celiac Disease is an advanced stage of gluten intolerance.
Because lactose intolerance is such an early effect of gluten intolerance, this symptom can precede Classic Celiac Disease by many years. Therefore, the signs of lactose intolerance should serve as an early warning of gluten intolerance and potential development of Celiac Disease or other associated autoimmune conditions, which may be prevented off with a gluten free diet that may treat the lactose intolerance.
Several more articles are available at Celiac.com.
Leaky Gut Syndrome
“Leaky Gut Syndrome (LGS) means just what it sounds like. The lining of the intestinal tract is no longer perfectly protecting our inner body from the foreign substances in the outside world. Remember, inside your intestinal tract is still outside your body. Just like inside your mouth is still outside your body--you have to go through the lining of your mouth to get inside your body. Things from the outside world travel through the tube from mouth to anus. The function of the lining of that tube is to break those substances down into particles that are so simple that, when absorbed, they can no longer be identified by our immune system as having come from something outside our body.” [8]
The direct effect of the immune system’s reaction to gliadin causes micro-holes in the small intestine. The secondary effects of malabsorption, specifically inflammation and infection, cause micro-holes or even ulcers in the small or large intestines. The effects of autoimmune conditions of the intestines, many of which are triggered by gluten intolerance cause tiny or large holes in the intestines.
A perforated or leaky gut provide a way for larger allergenic proteins and larger neuro-toxic molecules like Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)
Gastroparesis (Slow Stomach)
Description of Gastroparesis on WebMD
“Gastroparesis is the medical term for delayed stomach emptying. During the process of digestion, the stomach must contract to empty itself of food and liquid. Normally, it contracts about three times a minute. This empties the stomach within 90-120 minutes after eating. If contractions are sluggish or less frequent, stomach emptying is delayed. This results in bothersome and sometimes serious symptoms, as well as malnutrition, because food is not being digested properly. Gastroparesis may be caused by various conditions such as diabetes mellitus, certain disorders of the nervous system, or certain drugs.”[9]
Gastroparesis is associated with Celiac Disease, but there is mixed opinion but general suspicion about the effectiveness in treatment by the Gluten Free Diet. However, the Gluten Free Diet prescribed for any form of gluten sensitivity may treat other conditions (such as neuropathy, enteritis), which may provide some relief in some cases of gastroparesis. Such relief may take some time, however, 6 months to a year in the case of neuropathy induced gastroparesis.
“When I started the gluten free diet after decades of misdiagnose gluten enteropathy, I became aware of symptoms of lasting fullness, that is, food seemed to stay in my stomach longer, perhaps too long. I would have slow rolling painful cramps of the stomach, suggestive of slowed stomach contractions of gastroparesis. Perhaps the gastroparesis had been present before the diet, but either the non-wheat foods generally digest slower or healing of the duodenum on the diet permitted retention of the food in the stomach. This sensation went away after a year of the diet.”
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) Sensitivity
While one really can’t argue that MSG is generally toxic to most people with an intact digestive system when eaten as a modest food additive, the FDA does recognize that MSG is toxic to some unknown percentage of people (scroll down to the 1995 FASEB Report). MSG manufactures argue that MSG has to be safe because the molecule is too large to get across the gut lining into the blood. However, it is well established that conditions like gluten intolerance cause holes in the intestines large enough for molecules as large as MSG to pass through (see Leaky Gut Syndrome). People who are convinced that they are sensitive to MSG should investigate other food intolerances, especially gluten intolerance.
More to come…