Low-carb diets can help reduce IBS symptoms

Researchers at Sweden's Sahlgrenska Academy have found that cutting carbohydrates can help reduce symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).

The Sahlgrenska study shows that eight out of 10 IBS sufferers themselves put their symptoms down to diet. Removing carbohydrates can significantly reduce those symptoms, the study suggests.

The researchers point out that dietary advice can be effective in the treatment of IBS, but they also add that it is important to consider individual patients' food intakes and to specify what food the patient believes causes IBS symptoms. In that way, doctors can provide individual dietary advice catered to the patient's needs.

IBS symptoms were especially prominent in patients who consumed food containing indigestible carbohydrates, a food group that is known as FODMAPs and includes apples, beans and wheat. In the study, IBS patients tried a low - FODMAP diet for four weeks - with good results.

"This diet excludes foods that contain large amounts of indigestible carbohydrates and replaces them with other foods better tolerated by the stomach and intestines. This may, for instance, involve replacing apples and cauliflower with oranges and carrots," said Lena Bohn, a doctoral student at the Sahlgrenska Academy.