Gut Check Factsheet

Is it bloating, constipation, IBS or SIBO?

You have probably experienced the kind of bloating that leaves you unbuttoning your jeans and wishing you had stopped eating much sooner than you did. You have probably also experienced constipation at some point, perhaps when you’re travelling and the sudden change in routine seems to shut down your digestive system all together.

In all seriousness, it would be unusual if you hadn’t experienced gut-related symptoms at one point or another in your life! In fact, more than 50% of us experience poor gut health every year! That doesn’t mean the symptoms are pleasant to deal with or that they are always normal. When these gut symptoms are chronic and impact your quality of life, it may be something you need to get to the bottom of. Let’s explore common gut symptoms and conditions and what may be causing them.

• Bloating

Bloating is when our stomach feels incredibly tight and uncomfortable and is sometimes accompanied by pain and gas. Occasional bloating is common and can actually be a sign of a happy microbiome that just digested lots of fibre-rich foods. Sometimes though, bloating can be serious, painful, frequent, and severely impact your quality of life. What exactly causes it? Bloating may occur due to eating large meals, eating too often, constipation, eating plenty of gassy foods like brassica vegetables, legumes, and beans, or there may be underlying food intolerances. Those with sensitive guts may experience painful bloating when having high FODMAP foods including onion, garlic, milk, yoghurt, bread, beans, lentils, apples and asparagus. Working with a dietitian can help you beat the bloat and identify your bloating culprits!

• Constipation

Struggling to open your bowels completely, opening them infrequently or not passing enough stool? You might be surprised to know that constipation is one of the most common medical complaints. Constipation commonly occurs when waste products are moving slowly through the digestive tract or not passed effectively, resulting in the colon (large intestine) not absorbing enough water and your stools becoming hard, dry, and difficult to pass. This can lead to discomfort, nausea, and fatigue. To get things moving, drinking plenty of water and getting plenty of fibre in your diet can help! It’s not just your diet that can influence your bowel movements – lack of exercise, excess stress, resisting the urge to go to the bathroom, and changes to routine (such as travelling) can all lead to constipation as well. Here’s a fun fact for you: eating 2x kiwis a day may help with constipation relief!

• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)

Irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS, is a common bowel condition related to sensitivity of the nerve endings in the gut. Common symptoms of IBS are abdominal pain, diarrhoea and/or constipation, bloating, and excessive wind but these symptoms and their severity vary in people with IBS. Fortunately, IBS does not involve damage to the digestive tract. The cause of IBS isn’t well understood, but an imbalance of bacteria, genetics, medications, mental disorders and infections all may play a role in the development of IBS. Dietary choices, lifestyle choices, stress and your mood can all influence symptoms as well, and there are various management strategies available which can help reduce or alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life.

• SIBO

Small intestinal bacteria overgrowth (SIBO) is when there are excess bacteria within the small intestine. It can occur when there is poor motility (food travels slowly in the digestive tract) or there is reduced stomach acid. This can create the perfect environment for bacteria to grow, reduce immunity, and increase inflammation. When this happens, someone with SIBO may experience a range of unpleasant symptoms including nausea, bloating, abdominal pain, excess gas, changes in bowels such as diarrhoea, lose their appetite and experience weight loss. People who have gut health conditions might be at higher risk of developing SIBO. If you suspect you may have SIBO, it can be diagnosed with either a breath test or endoscopy, and it can be treated with medication from your GP as well as nutrition support from a dietitian.

Understanding what causes your symptoms can help you get things under control, but also help you identify when you may be experiencing something more serious. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms frequently, or they are significantly impacting your life, book in an appointment with your GP to investigate the underlying cause. Once the cause of your symptoms is understood, our expert Gut Health Dietitians can help you make changes to your diet to manage symptoms while ensuring a nutritionally adequate diet.

Book now with our experienced dietitians for help.

Sources

1. Bushyhead, D., & Quigley, E. M. (2021). Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth. Gastroenterology clinics of North America, 50(2), 463–474. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gtc.2021.02.008
2. Serra J. (2022). Management of bloating. Neurogastroenterology and motility : the official journal of the European Gastrointestinal Motility Society, 34(3), e14333. https://doi.org/10.1111/nmo.14333
3. Rao, S. S. C., & Bhagatwala, J. (2019). Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth: Clinical Features and Therapeutic Management. Clinical and translational gastroenterology, 10(10), e00078. https://doi.org/10.14309/ctg.0000000000000078
4. Xie, C. R., Tang, B., Shi, Y. Z., Peng, W. Y., Ye, K., Tao, Q. F., Yu, S. G., Zheng, H., & Chen, M. (2022). Low FODMAP Diet and Probiotics in Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Systematic Review With Network Meta-analysis. Frontiers in pharmacology, 13, 853011. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2022.853011