#40: Have IBS? The Advice That Works for 8/10 Women That No One Tells You

Do you have ongoing bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, wind or all 4?

Have you been to see doctors, dieticians or gastroenterologists and feel like you're still getting no where?

Perhaps they've been told you that you have IBS and that you should follow a low FODMAP diet to fix your concerns. But, has that not worked? Or, have you attempted to do it but received NO direction as to HOW?!

I get it, because I was there too, and 8/10 of my clients have been in this position too and feel disheartened, confused and stuck.

But, I healed myself and now help women in this exact same position…. like those below!

I offer a DIFFERENT approach and outlook, one that heals about 8/10 of the women who use it. In this post I will explain what that is, so that you can try it yourself and hopefully find the relief you've been searching for!

I couldn't believe the link between, food sensitivities, gut health, and weight loss that I ended up figuring out from my own health journey. If you haven’t already and want to find more about my healing journey, you can read or listen to my entire story in Episode #1 here.

This post is for you if you are someone that feels like you're trying it all, but you're still getting bloated every day, perhaps you get pain diarrhoea, constipation, or a mix of both! Food sensitivities may be the missing piece of your puzzle, they could be the cause of your IBS concerns and then in turn may be a part of your weight loss journey, because if you're sensitive to a food and it's causing inflammation that can indirectly affect your weight loss results.

Maybe you've gone to GP’S and been told to increase your fibre, drink more water, or follow a low FODMAP diet. Don’t get me wrong these things will work for some people, but for a lot of people, they don’t. Maybe you’ve been recommended you go see a gastroenterologist, a specialists in gut issues or been booked into the hospital and do a colonoscopy. Theses are great for ruling out more serious conditions however so many a still left without answers to their IBS concerns!

What happens if you still don’t have the answers and are experiencing little relief?

Now I'm never discounting specialists and GP’s because what they say is still true. However if you've gone to see these people and their advice or recommendations haven't helped you, then this post is to give you a push in the right direction so that you can continue to explore what could be possibly causing your bloating issues and IBS concerns.  

Have you been told by your specialist or dietitian to either follow a low FODMAP diet or adviced on the the foods to avoid and left to go do it yourself? Often the specialists don't give you meal plans or recipes which can leave you feeling overwhelmed as the diet can feel too restrictive and hard to keep up with.

Maybe you have told you to do an elimination diet where they explain to you that food sensitivities could be your issue. You are told the top food sensitivities, which are gluten, dairy, corn, eggs, soy, yeast, nuts and nightshades.

Often the advice is to just eliminate all those foods for six weeks and then gradually introduce them. Once again without a proper meal plan to follow which is hard to find recipes that are completely free of all those foods. This will make anyone feel alone, stuck, and confused.

What I do differently?

I'm here to tell you that I have helped women in this exact situation for nearly six years. I help women who have tried it all, who have been to the GP's, the specialist, and the dietitians. I have made it my absolute mission to help women in this position because I just don't want people to go through what I had to go through. I was lucky enough to find the answers for myself which lead me to then working with 450 women, one to one to use my knowledge of food sensitivities to help more women.

I found that for most women following a low FODMAP diet wasn't the best thing for them. I found that looking at the food sensitivity side of things was a better approach with the personalised meal plans I made, that removed all the guesswork. The women could follow to a tee with no confusion, stick to it and see results!

But do you know what I didn't do?

I didn't remove all the food sensitivities, I made personalised plans for the majority of people that had bloating, concerns that were free of gluten and dairy. I did this because, in all my research, I found that gluten and dairy were the most common food sensitivities that women would have.

Let's say you follow a gluten and dairy-free diet for three weeks and you're not getting relief? Then you need to figure out if it's something else. This is when you cut out other common sensitivities such as corn, eggs, soy, nuts, and nightshades for a full six weeks, as well as gluten and dairy. I know what sounds like a lot, but I promise you, it's so worth it. Whilst keeping a symptom diary you introduce one food back at a time to see if you get a reaction. You will do the same thing with each common sensitivity and then you can pinpoint what food may be making your IBS flare.

when to do testing?

If you're feeling like, that's a lot of work to do, there are food sensitivity tests out there that you can get to identify your sensitivities.

I recommend working with an integrative doctor for this because the ones they recommend will be of the highest quality. The one that I did was an IG food sensitivity test, and that helped me personally skip the guesswork of having to do an elimination diet.

At the same time, you want to be working on healing your gut, looking at your balance of gut bacteria which may involve getting a microbiome test. You can get also this done with an integrative doctor, which is what I spoke about here in Episode #38. I have alo linked the resource of amazing integrative doctors that I recommend at the bottom of this page.

Food SENSITIVITY link to weight LOSS?

A food sensitivity is when you can't digest that food properly causing symptoms such as bloating, excess gas, constipation, diarrhoea, and sometimes even nausea. It's not to be confused with a food allergy where you get allergic responses. It's more of localised sensitivity, however over time undetected, it makes your gut inflamed. This constant inflammation is something that can hold you back from losing weight because it is also making the rest of your body inflamed. When your body is in an inflamed and stressed state, it doesn't favour weight loss.

I want you to know food sensitivities are certainly something you can look into that can cause a world of difference, because in the 450 women that I worked with, about 70 to 80 percent of them found relief and they've kept it up. That's exactly why I then could formulate my 3 Week Body Reset, because I found these common themes that worked for women that have tried it all to support weight loss and gut health, and at the same time and couldn't get answers.

If you related to this and you do have IBS concerns and you feel like you're at a loss, but feel ready to start by trying a gluten and dairy-free diet for three weeks like I've recommended. Then the 3 Week Body Reset can help you without the guesswork of doing it yourself.

This is another reason that I'm so passionate about my 3 Week Body Reset because it's not just a weight loss plan, the food sensitivity piece helps people so many women lose weight because it's helping reduce the inflammation. As always there are so many different factors that help with weight loss, but it is the focus on gut health, that helps these women that have IBS concerns.

It does help so many women as you can see in the reviews, 60 percent of women say it's not just about their weight loss. The 3 Week Body Reset teaches you to record your symptoms along the way which is the first step to figuring out what your food sensitivities are. It also makes sure that you meet all your nutrient needs whilst following a gluten and dairy-free diet, you’ll still be staying full and following it in a very, very healthy way that isn't restrictive.

I hope this inspires you and that you can now see how this could be another piece of your puzzle!

More resources related to this topic:

See my directory of recommended professionals to help you get tested here

Follow me on instagram @health_with_bec

Want to learn more about my own personal gut and weight healing journey?

Click here to read the blog or listen to the podcast where I explain it in utter depth! It could really help you too.