What Is It?

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common disorder that causes a variety of symptoms, including abdominal pain, diarrhea and/or constipation, bloating, gassiness, and cramping. Because these symptoms may be caused by a number of different bowel diseases, IBS is usually diagnosed only after your doctor determines you don’t have a more serious problem.

The severity of the disorder varies from person to person. Some people experience symptoms that come and go and are just mildly annoying, while others have such severe daily bowel problems that IBS affects their ability to work, sleep, and enjoy life. In addition, symptoms may change over time. A person may have severe symptoms for several weeks and then feel well for months or even years. Most people are never cured of IBS, but the disorder is not related to any other disease and does not develop into any other disease, such as ulcerative colitis or colon cancer.

IBS usually starts in early adulthood. It affects twice as many women as men. Approximately 10% to 20% of the population has IBS, but at least half of all people with the condition never seek medical care for their symptoms. No one knows what causes IBS. Some studies suggest that the nerves of the colon may be much more sensitive than usual in people with IBS. The normal movement of food and gas through the colon causes pain, intestinal spasms, and an irregular pattern of bowel movements.

In the past, it was thought that stress might cause IBS. That is no longer the case. Stress does not cause IBS, but stress can increase the symptoms, especially pain.

IBS has been called irritable colon, spastic colon, mucous colitis, and functional bowel disease.

Symptoms

People with IBS may have some or all of these symptoms:

• Mild or severe abdominal pain, discomfort or cramping that usually goes away after a bowel movement
• Periods of diarrhea or constipation, or alternating between these two symptoms
• Bloating, gassiness, or a feeling of having a distended abdomen
• Mucus in bowel movements
• Feeling as though a bowel movement is incomplete
• In extreme cases, nausea, dizziness or fainting

Although the symptoms of IBS often change over time, people tend to develop their own patterns. For example, some people have mostly diarrhea, some have mostly constipation and others have abdominal pain without a major change in bowel movements.

Diagnosis

There is no test for IBS. Your doctor will diagnose IBS if you have the typical symptoms and have been tested for other disorders that can cause similar symptoms. Your doctor will ask about your medical history and symptoms. Your doctor will examine you, testing your abdomen for tenderness and feeling to determine whether internal organs are larger than normal. The doctor will check for fever or weight loss. If you have any of these signs, you may have something other than IBS.

Depending on your medical history, your doctor may do tests to eliminate other diseases that may cause similar symptoms. These tests might include:

• Blood tests
• A stool sample, to check for blood or evidence of infection
• Sigmoidoscopy, in which a flexible, lighted tube with a tiny camera on the end is inserted into the rectum and up the left side of the colon, or a colonoscopy, in which a longer tube examines the entire colon
• Barium X-ray, in which a chalky solution is swallowed or pumped into the rectum to coat the inside of the gastrointestinal tract and highlight abnormalities
• Asking you to stop eating or drinking certain foods for up to three weeks to determine if your diet is contributing to your symptoms (for example, your doctor may ask you to eliminate milk products if he or she suspects lactose intolerance)

Expected Duration

IBS symptoms may be a daily problem throughout a person’s life, or symptoms may come and go, lasting a day, a week, or a month before disappearing. Treatment may get rid of symptoms, and dietary changes may help to reduce the frequency or severity of symptoms.

Prevention

Because no one knows what causes IBS, it is impossible to prevent the disorder. Once diagnosed with IBS, a person may be able to reduce the frequency and severity of symptoms by reducing stress or changing the diet.

Treatment

One of the most helpful ways to treat IBS is to change your diet. This can minimize symptoms, or it can reduce the likelihood that an IBS attack will occur.

In almost every case, different foods tend to trigger IBS symptoms. Doctors recommend monitoring what you eat so you can find out what you ate before an attack. After you discover your particular trigger foods, eliminate them from your diet. Some common IBS trigger foods include:

• Cabbage, broccoli, kale, legumes, and other gas-producing foods
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Dairy products
• Fatty foods, including whole milk, cream, cheese, butter, oils, meats, and avocados
• Raw fruits
• Foods, gums, and beverages that contain sorbitol, an artificial sweetener

The way you eat may help to create IBS symptoms. Eating large meals can cause cramping and diarrhea, so eating smaller meals more often may help some people with IBS. Eating quickly can cause you to swallow air, which can cause belching or gas.

Adding fiber to your diet, especially if constipation is one of your main symptoms, can help to loosen stools and reduce abdominal pain. At first, fiber will increase the amount of gas in your system, so add fiber gradually. Over time, the body adjusts to the effects of fiber and the gassiness will decrease. Fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain bread and cereals are good food sources of fiber. Your doctor may recommend a fiber supplement. Some experts believe that the fiber methylcellulose creates the least amount of gas, and brands of this fiber are often recommended for people with IBS. Psyllium is also a good source of fiber.

If your symptoms are not relieved after you eliminate trigger foods and add fiber, your doctor may prescribe medications. Depending on what your most difficult symptoms are, medications can include:

• Antidiarrheals –  loperamide (Imodium), diphenoxylate (Lomotil and other brand names)
• Antispasmodics to reduce cramping –  dicyclomine (Bentyl)
• Pain-reducing agents – amitriptyline (Elavil), desipramine (Norpramin)

Two other prescription medications are available for very severe symptoms that do not respond to other therapies. Both drugs have been studied primarily in women, so they have been approved by the FDA for use in women only. These medicines affect the peristalsis (motility) of the gastrointestinal tract by influencing the way the intestine reacts to the natural hormone serotonin. Women with constipation related to IBS can take tegaserod (Zelnorm) for several weeks at a time but must stop the medication for safety reasons if it results in cramps. Women with a history of bowel obstruction, active gallstones, severe kidney or liver impairment, active diarrhea, and bowel adhesions should not take Zelnorm. Alosetron (Lotronex) is used to treat women with IBS who have very severe diarrhea. If you take this medication, you have to receive it from a specialist with experience using the medication (the doctor must register with the drug manufacturer and receive training to be a prescriber) and you must sign a form stating that you are aware that life-threatening complications of a blocked, ruptured or damaged bowel may be caused by this medicine.

If you would like to look into endoscopic procedures to address your IBS, visit IES Medical Group to learn more about your options.

When To Call a Professional

It is useful for anyone with irritable bowel symptoms to discuss their symptoms with a doctor, so that diet, fiber, and drug treatment strategies can be planned.

After you have been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome, you should revisit with your doctor if you have an episode of severe symptoms. You should also see your doctor if you have blood in your stool; if abdominal pain is accompanied by vomiting, dizziness or fainting; if abdominal pain or diarrhea awakens you from sleep; or if you have unexplained weight loss or fever.

Prognosis

There is no cure for IBS, but symptoms can be managed by changing your diet, reducing stress, and, if necessary, taking medication. It is common for IBS to be a chronic problem, although it resolves in some individuals.…

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Diabetes often causes poor blood supply to your legs and feet. As a result, your skin may become thinner, break more easily, heal more slowly, and become more vulnerable to infection. Diabetes can also lead to nerve damage, reducing the feeling in your feet. If this happens, you may not notice minor injuries that could cause an infection. Even a small cut or blister can lead to serious problems when you have diabetes. To prevent dangerous infections, you need to inspect and wash your feet daily.

Signs/Symptoms

If you have diminished blood supply to your feet, you may notice redness, warmth, or sores on your feet that heal slowly or not at all. If you have lost feeling in your feet, you may not feel any pain.

What You Should Do

• Do not go barefoot. Bare feet are easily injured.
• Check your feet daily for blisters, cuts, and redness.
• Wash your feet gently with warm (not hot) water and mild soap every day. Pat your feet and the area between your toes until completely dry.
• Apply moisturizing lotion to the dry skin on your feet and to dry brittle toenails.
• Trim your toenails straight across. Do not dig under them or around the cuticle.
• Do not cut corns or calluses or try to remove them with medicine unless your doctor approves.
• Wear clean cotton socks or stockings every day. Make sure they are not too tight.
• Wear leather shoes that fit properly and have enough cushioning. To break in new shoes without injuring your feet, wear them just a few hours each day.
• If you find a minor scrape, cut, or break in the skin on your feet, keep it and the skin around it clean and dry.
• When you remove an adhesive bandage, be sure not to injure the skin around it.
• Check any wound several times a day to make sure it is healing.
• Follow your doctor’s diet and exercise plan carefully, and take your medicines exactly as directed.

Call Your Doctor If…

• An injury is not healing or you notice redness, numbness, burning, or tingling.
• Your feet always feel cold.
• You develop pain or cramps in your legs and feet.

One condition that is commonly associated with diabetes is obesity. Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty (ESG) is an incisionless procedure that can help you or your loved one with diabetes or obesity issues eat better and lose weight. Click here to learn more about this treatment and book an appointment with experienced professionals.…

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To get energy from the starches and sugar we eat, everyone needs adequate supplies of a hormone called insulin. People with diabetes either do not make enough insulin or are unable to make efficient use of whatever insulin they do manage to produce. Without insulin, sugar builds up in the blood, eventually leading to a host of serious problems. Diabetes (referred to medically as diabetes mellitus) can start in childhood, but more often appears later in life. There is no cure for this disease, but it can be controlled. Left uncontrolled, it can result in damage to the heart, kidneys, eyes, blood vessels, and nerves.

Causes

In people with “Type I” diabetes–the kind that usually appears in childhood–, the pancreas makes too little insulin or none at all. In those with “Type II” diabetes–which typically develops in adults–, the pancreas continues to manufacture insulin, but the body fails to make use of it.

Signs/Symptoms

The tip-off that you have diabetes is a set of symptoms that includes fatigue, great thirst, weight loss, frequent urination, and increased vulnerability to infection. Wounds may heal slowly. You may also feel as though you are eating more than usual.

Care

People with Type I diabetes usually need regular injections of insulin. Type II diabetes can often be controlled with a special diet, exercise, and oral medicines, though temporary insulin injections may be necessary during periods of stress and times of illness. Since there is no cure, you will need treatment for the rest of your life.

Additionally, If you are seeking a weight loss procedure to ease your symptoms, visit IES Medical Group to learn about ESG and what it can do for you.

What You Should Do

• The more closely you follow your doctor’s instructions, the better your chances of preventing or delaying dangerous complications.
• It is very important to take the medication prescribed by your doctor exactly as directed. Never stop taking this medicine without talking to your doctor first.
• Be sure to test your urine or blood for sugar (glucose) as often as your doctor directs.
• Make a point of exercising regularly. Your doctor will suggest an exercise program you can follow.
• Eat wholesome, balanced meals at regular, fixed times. It is best to have 3 meals a day, plus 2 or 3 snacks. Your doctor or nutritionist will give you a special diet to guide your starch and sugar intake.
• Your doctor may advise you to lose weight. Losing as little as 10 to 15 pounds can improve your blood sugar levels.
• Always wear a medic-alert pendant or bracelet identifying you as a diabetic.
• Learn about your disease and about the signs of hypoglycemia and ketoacidosis (see below).

Call Your Doctor If…

• You have any questions about medicine, activity, or diet.
• You continue to have symptoms of diabetes (such as increased thirst and urination).

Seek Care Immediately If…

• You develop symptoms of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). These symptoms include confusion, sweating, weakness, paleness, and a rapid heartbeat. In severe cases, hypoglycemia can progress to seizures and coma.
• You develop symptoms of ketoacidosis (a dangerous chemical imbalance in the body). These symptoms include a fruity odor on the breath, a speed-up or slow-down in breathing, and a very sleepy feeling.
• You develop vomiting or have diarrhea.
• You notice numbness, tingling, or pain in your feet or hands.
• You feel chest pain.
• Your symptoms get worse, even though you are following your doctor’s orders.

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GERD is more commonly known as acid reflux.  GERD is a very serious form of GER.  Normally, in order to be diagnosed with GERD, you must suffer from acid reflux more than a couple of times per week and it doesn’t matter how young or how old you are – you can be a sufferer.  Acid reflux first occurs because the stomach acid isn’t kept in the muscle below the esophagus.  This muscle is known as the LES, or lower esophageal sphincter, and sometimes doesn’t close properly or opens up spontaneously allowing the stomach acid to enter into the esophagus resulting in acid reflux.

Heartburn

One of the most common symptoms related to GERD is definitely heartburn.  It is the most experienced symptom by those that suffer from GERD.  Heartburn is normally felt right in the middle of the chest and it is a strong, painful burning sensation.  More often than that, heartburn is worse and much stronger after eating.  Heartburn can also be made worse when one is bending over or even lying down.  Normally if heartburn strengthens after lying down or bending over, standing up will provide relief to some extent.  In addition, heartburn commonly occurs at nighttime after heading to bed.

Sour Taste/Material from Regurgitation

Apart from the burning sensation that you feel in your chest known as heartburn, there are a number of other symptoms that you will feel when suffering from GERD.  For one, you’ll likely have a sour taste in your mouth, which is made worse when you burp.  In addition to just the “taste,” you may also experience the material in your mouth that you have burped up or regurgitated.  It sounds disgusting and trust me, it is!  Many compare it to the taste you have in your mouth when you need to or have just vomited.

Sore Throat, Swallowing Difficulty and Pain

You are also likely to experience a sore throat, cough as well as hoarseness in your voice.  All three of these are more likely to appear in the morning, but they don’t have to.  The reason for the morning appearance is from irritation caused overnight from the acid sitting in the throat.  Having difficulty swallowing or even experiencing pain while swallowing is very common when suffering from GERD.  Those individuals that suffer from GERD and asthma may also experience a great deal of wheezing or a very dry cough.  Dry chronic coughs occur in non-smokers 41% of the time

What Can Cause GERD?

There are a number of factors that lead up to the cause of GERD.  It doesn’t just include the types of foods you eat, but that is included.  Foods such as chocolate, citrus fruits, spicy foods, fried and fatty foods, caffeine as well as tomato based sauces and foods can all create worsened symptoms of GERD.  A few other factors that often contribute to GERD include smoking, pregnancy as well as obesity.  If you have been diagnosed to have a hiatal hernia, this could be the cause of your GERD as it normally appears in the upper part of the stomach, near the LES, causing the acid to rise up into the esophagus.

What Can You Do?

Many people wonder what they can do to either help relieve their symptoms or prevent the symptoms from happening.  And, there are in fact a few things that you can do.  Let’s take a look at a few things that you can do to help prevent the development of GERD or to relieve the symptoms that you are facing from GERD.

In some cases, you can seek endoscopic GERD treatments like the ones provided at IES Medical Group. Meanwhile, we’ve listed a few other recommendations below.

It definitely boils down to changes in your current lifestyle.  For example, if you are a current smoker, the best thing for you to do is stop and stop right now!  Other changes may include the following:

• You will also want to avoid those foods and drinks that worsen the GERD symptoms such as the ones listed above.
• If you are overweight then it might be a wise choice to try to lose a little weight since obesity is a cause of GERD.
• Try consuming several meals a day – small meals that come less frequently than the standard 3-meal per day routine.
• Try to wear looser fitting clothes rather than clothes that fit snug around the stomach and abdomen.
• Eat early enough so that you aren’t lying down until two to three hours after you have consumed your last meal to help avoid nocturnal acid reflux.
• Try to put blocks under the head of your bed to raise your bed so that the head of it is up a few inches higher than normal.  Extra pillows won’t help in this sense so you actually need to raise the head of your bed.
• Speak to your doctor about treatments such as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs)

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