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Irritable bowel syndrome - Management
What advice should I give regarding diet and lifestyle?
- Encourage people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) to try to identify sources of stress, and discuss ways to create relaxation time.
- Give general advice regarding diet.
- High fibre diets are not recommended for people with IBS.
- Advise the person to adjust their fibre intake according to their symptoms:
- Fibre intake often needs to be reduced in people with IBS. Advise people to reduce their intake of insoluble fibre, such as wholemeal or high-fibre flour and breads, cereals high in bran, and whole grains such as brown rice.
- If more fibre is needed, recommend soluble fibre supplements (e.g. ispaghula) or foods high in soluble fibre (e.g. oats).
- Single food avoidance and exclusion diets should only be undertaken under the supervision of a dietitian.
- Give people with low physical activity levels brief advice and counselling to increase their activity levels.
- Discuss the use of probiotics where appropriate. Advise people who wish to try probiotics to choose one brand and:
- Take them for at least 4 weeks while monitoring the effect.
- Take them at the dose recommended by the manufacturer.
In depth
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