Irritable Bowel Syndrome Self-Care

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal disorder that can cause diarrhea, constipation, and bloating. In addition, IBS pain may feel like abdominal cramping or aching.

Irritable bowel syndrome self-care measures—such as dietary changes, stress management, and exercise—can provide short- and long-term symptom relief. Your healthcare provider may suggest home remedies in addition to medication to help manage your symptoms.

1. Heat

Applying heat to your belly may ease abdominal pain. Try placing a heating pad or hot water bottle on the part of your belly that aches, being sure to protect your skin to prevent burns.

2. Tea

Herbal teas have long been used to ease digestive symptoms. To ease IBS symptoms, try brewing a tea made from one of these medicinal plants:

• Peppermint: Peppermint oil may reduce inflammation and act as an antioxidant, which can help with IBS symptoms.
• Fennel: This plant contains nutrients that help improve the barrier function of the gastrointestinal tract.
• Anise: The leaves of this flowering plant have properties that may help reduce abdominal discomfort or pain, bloating, diarrhea, constipation severity, headache, and fatigue.
• Chamomile: This calming herb may help reduce inflammation related to IBS.
• Turmeric: This herb contains a powerful antioxidant that can help alleviate IBS symptoms due to inflammation.
  

3. Probiotic Foods

Research suggests that probiotics (beneficial microorganisms found in some foods) may improve IBS symptoms.

Foods rich in probiotics include:

• Kombucha
• Miso (soy paste)
• Pickles (cucumber)
• Sauerkraut (cabbage)
• Yogurt

4. Avoiding Trigger Foods

For many people, diet is the biggest trigger for IBS and certain foods exacerbate their symptoms. To identify your trigger foods, keep a food diary: Track what you eat, how you feel, and any other circumstances (such as sleep and stress) that may have influenced your body. 

Common IBS-trigger foods include:

• Fruits: apples, apricots, blackberries, cherries, mango, nectarines, pears, plums, and watermelon
• Gluten-containing foods: wheat, barley, or rye breads, cereal, grains, and pasta
• Vegetables: artichokes, asparagus, beans cabbage, cauliflower, garlic and garlic salts, lentils, mushrooms, onions, and sugar snap or snow peas
• Dairy products: milk, milk products, soft cheeses, yogurt, custard, ice cream
• Sweeteners: honey and high-fructose corn syrup
• Food ingredients ending in "-ol": sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, and maltitol (found in candy and gum)

Once you've identified your trigger foods, do your best to avoid eating them.

5. Low-FODMAP Diet

The low-FODMAP diet is a research-proven eating plan to reduce IBS symptoms. It's based on the finding that foods high in a type of carbohydrate called FODMAPs (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols) are poorly absorbed by the small intestine. This in turn causes digestive issues in some people who eat them.

The diet requires limiting certain foods (such as those containing wheat) for two to six weeks, then slowly adding foods back one at a time to determine what your body can tolerate.

6. Fiber

Many people with IBS are afraid of fiber because they fear it will worsen their symptoms. However, dietary fiber is essential to keeping the digestive system working at its best. 

People with IBS should increase their fiber intake very slowly to give their digestive system time to adjust. Soluble fiber, the kind that dissolves easily in water, may be better tolerated. Common sources of soluble fiber include oats, peas, apples, beans, and citrus fruits.

7. Physical Activity

Physical activity has many health benefits and can help improve IBS symptoms like fatigue. Keeping up an exercise routine for 12 weeks or more may even start to have a positive effect on cognitive symptoms like depression and anxiety.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends adults get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week, plus two days of strength training. You can break that up into 30 minutes of brisk walking five days a week plus muscle-strengthening activities for your major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).

8. Stress Management

Stress can trigger IBS symptoms, so one of the mightiest tools in your IBS kit is to know how to calm your body.

Regular practice of relaxation exercises helps to lower your baseline anxiety level. This practice also offers you a way to manage symptoms in real time when anxiety is caused by events like an IBS attack.

There are three basic types of relaxation exercises:

• Visualization: Also called guided imagery, this technique involves breathing deeply as you imagine every detail of a scene where you feel relaxed. It can be imaginary or somewhere you've been.
• Deep breathing: Starting from the diaphragm, take long, deep breaths. This is proven to help lower blood pressure and reduce the production of stress hormones.
• Muscle relaxation: This process involves tensing certain muscle groups to notice what that feels like and then releasing the tension and noticing what that feels like. It helps you raise awareness of sensation and tension as a way to reduce stress.

If you need help getting started, check your local community for classes or workshops or find an online guide. Try out different types of relaxation exercises to figure out which one works best for you.

9. Support

Dealing with IBS is stressful and talking about it can help relieve some of that anxiety. One option is an online IBS support group, which can be found on standalone websites or through social media sites.

A mental health therapist is another option. Therapy targets the connections between outside stressors, your brain, and your gut. In addition, working with a good therapist can help you better deal with the stress and disruptive nature of IBS.

Two forms of therapy, in particular, are proven by research to help reduce IBS symptoms:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy can help improve symptoms by helping you find new ways to think and act about your condition.
• Gut-directed hypnotherapy is a technique that uses hypnosis to help alleviate symptoms.
  

10. Massage

Massaging your abdomen may help when you need immediate IBS symptom relief. A gentle belly massage can help relieve bloating and constipation, and reduce abdominal discomfort. What's more, getting a full-body massage may be an effective way to manage IBS in the long run, since it reduces stress.

When to See a Healthcare Provider

If self-care options and your existing treatment plan don't relieve your IBS symptoms, talk to your healthcare provider.

Contact your healthcare provider immediately if you have any of the following symptoms that are not characteristic of IBS:

• Anemia (low red blood count)
• Blood in the stool (red blood or black, tarry stool)
• New symptoms after the age of 50, or changes in your typical IBS symptoms
• Unexplained weight loss
• Fever
• Shaking chills
• Night sweats
• Diarrhea that wakes you from sleep
  

Summary

People who deal with IBS symptoms have many available options that may help to reduce discomfort and improve their quality of life. Some self-care remedies are simple measures, like using heat or sipping tea, while others focus on stress and relaxation techniques.

Dietary changes, such as eating more fiber or eliminating the foods that trigger symptoms, may go a long way to improve your symptoms. If you have concerns about IBS symptoms, talk to your healthcare provider.