IBS Naturopath Adelaide.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome affects approximately 1 in 5 Australians. Learn how working with a Naturopath can help you to gain freedom from the unwanted symptoms that are associated with IBS.

What is IBS?

IBS is a gastrointestinal disorder that involves troublesome, persistent symptoms. These symptoms include:

– Bloating
– Abdominal pain
– Cramping
– Change in bowel habits e.g. constipation alternating with urgency or diarrhea
– Feeling of incomplete bowel movements
– Indigestion
– Nausea
– Passing excessive amount of gas
– Anxiety
– Loss of appetite
– Food intolerance (to specific or random foods)

While the symptoms of IBS may be severe and life altering, working with an IBS Naturopath can help you to manage these symptoms and in some cases, gain freedom from this condition.

A diagnosis of IBS can be a frustrating one. The women I work with have usually seen numerous healthcare professionals including Doctors, Gastroenterologists and Dieticians, they have often been prescribed random probiotics, Metamucil or the low FODMAPs diet, only to discover that none of these strategies work.

It is easy to lose hope but it is important to know that when the real underlying drivers of your symptoms are addressed, you can gain freedom from suffering. Fortunately, Naturopaths are trained to help their clients identify the underlying cause of their health challenges. When it comes to IBS, we adopt a holistic, personalised approach, we believe in treating the person rather than simply prescribing supplements or diets for the diagnosed condition. This is what allows us to facilitate such wonderful improvements in our clients health.

IBS Naturopath Adelaide: 3 Steps to Heal IBS

1. Identify the Underlying Cause of IBS

Our intelligent bodies do not produce symptoms for no reason. Symptoms are messages from our body and a skilled IBS Naturopath can help you to decode these symptoms to uncover what the body may be trying to tell you.

There are a number of common underlying causes that can make the symptoms associated with IBS worse, these underlying causes include:

SIBO: Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth produces symptoms that are very similar to IBS. While the incidence of SIBO is difficult to assess, it is now estimated that up to 80% of IBS patients have SIBO. When SIBO is addressed, bloating, bowel movements and other symptoms can improve. Herbal medicine may be used to clear the bacterial overgrowth, while diet changes can help to support the growth of beneficial bacteria.

Dysbiosis: Dysbiosis occurs when there is a disruption in gut bacteria. This may occur after a prolonged period of stress, after surgery, after using certain medications like antibiotics, the pill or reflux medication, or after a bout of gastro or food poisoning. Certain restrictive diets may also alter the health of the microbiome and gut bacteria. Symptoms of dysbiosis include bloating, excessive gas, loose bowels, sluggish bowels, pain and sometimes skin issues like eczema or acne. A number of these symptoms do overlap with those of IBS and improvements can be seen when the dysbiosis is addressed.

Digestive Enzyme Deficiency: Deficiencies, gastrointestinal disorders, certain medications and stress can affect our bodies ability to produce digestive enzymes and HCL. When we are deficient in digestive enzymes and HCL we may experience bloating, especially after food, fatigue after eating, sluggish bowels, reflux and indigestion. Supplements and stress management may be used to support digestive enzyme production and digestion.

Intestinal Hyper Permeability AKA Leaky Gut: When the gut lining become inflamed, food particles and pathogens may cross the gut barrier and enter the blood stream leading to inflammation in various parts of the body, skin issues, gut health challenges, immune challenges, and more. Stress, dysbiosis and using certain supplements or medications can be common causes of leaky gut. Improving the health and integrity of your gut lining can support the healing of the symptoms associated with OBS.

Nutrient Deficiencies: nutrient deficiencies can develop due to chronic digestive disorders like IBS, leaky gut and digestive enzyme deficiency. Nutrients are required to heal. Deficiencies caused by gut issues can quickly become a vicious cycle where deterioration in gut health further contributes to nutrient deficiencies and the nutrient deficiencies prevent the healing of the gut. In these situations, personalised care is required to heal the gut and address the deficiencies that can support healing.

2. Regulate the Nervous System and Manage Stress

There is a huge link between stress, anxiety and gut disorders. Stress is known to impair digestive acid production which can lead to dysbiosis, SIBO and nutrient deficiencies.

Working on reducing stress and regulating your nervous system so you can better manage the stressors that are out of your control will have a positive impact on your gut health and symptoms. Calming, nervous system regulating nutrients or herbal medicines may be used to support healing. Other nervous system regulating activities like meditation, hypnotherapy and gentle exercise may help too.

3. Targeted & Personalised Support for IBS

Once your unique, underlying drivers have been identified, we can begin the process of resolving the cause. Treatment may include non restrictive diet changes, short term use of nutritional supplements or herbal medicines, nervous system regulating techniques like gut directed hypnotherapy or mindfulness and other strategies that are specific to your needs.

Summary

Improvements in the symptoms of IBS can often improve rapidly when the root cause is addressed.

If you are ready to uncover and resolve the root cause of your IBS symptoms, here are 3 ways IBS Naturopath Adelaide can help:

1. Work with me! Book a consultation in person (Evandale, SA) or AUS + NZ wide online via Zoom

2. Listen to the Holistic Weight Loss Podcast

3. Connect with me on Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube | LinkedIn | Facebook