I have coeliac disease, lactose intolerance and PCOS (with insulin resistance) which means I have to avoid gluten, lactose and sugar for the rest of my life. I was diagnosed long years ago so it is quite easy to manage these conditions by now. As a matter of fact, I have created a blog with gluten free recipes a few years ago and helped many people with advice as well.
I am not a dietitian or specialist (yet) but due to my medical history I'm very interested in dietetics, gastronomy and the relationship of diseases and nutrition.
My connection with IBS is that my husband was diagnosed with it recently. The specialist sent him to a meeting lead by a dietitian. She introduced the low FODMAP diet to the group, gave them lots of information and booklets about it. She asked the members of the group to follow the diet for 8 weeks and come back to discuss the results (and learn the method of reintroducing the FODMAPs).
My husband passed all the information to me and I read the booklets as well. Because of my difficult diets, for me the low FODMAP diet wasn't so hard to handle. I started to adjust my usual recipes for his needs and figure out some new ones as well. At the end of the 8 week period all his symptoms were gone perfectly, which was bit of a surprise because in the last 1 or 2 years he'd suffered almost every day from IBS.
My husband passed all the information to me and I read the booklets as well. Because of my difficult diets, for me the low FODMAP diet wasn't so hard to handle. I started to adjust my usual recipes for his needs and figure out some new ones as well. At the end of the 8 week period all his symptoms were gone perfectly, which was bit of a surprise because in the last 1 or 2 years he'd suffered almost every day from IBS.
After the two month period he had to reintroduce the FODMAPs to his digestive system to find out which group of carbohydrates (and in what dose) caused symptoms. (We have learned he is sensitive to food containing fructose and fructans.)
This investigation is very useful because the tolerance level to FODMAPs is different in each case, but it is vital to have a registered dietitian to control the whole process. If you have IBS and would like to follow the low FODMAP diet, please visit you GP or dietitian first.
