Natural Remedies for IBS Relief: A Holistic Approach to Gut Health

Buttermilk

Posted by CheeMiss (Toronto, Ont) on 05/26/2009
★★★★★

I know that this might sound to simple, but please try CERTIFIED ORGANIC BUTTERMILK.

I have been in such IBS intestinal pain, gas, bloating, burping, D etc., ....all this came about after I finished an IBS study for meds (4mths), incl CBT (cognitive behavior therapy.) The meds gave me nasty side effects and the CBT although nice, but also not effective. You have no idea all the natural things & meds that I have tried all these years. Nothing worked.

Our local health food store recently started to carry the NEW and ONLY one out there...Certified Organic Buttermilk. I could not find this before. The conventional buttermilk just did not help me as it did prior to the late 60's. I grabbed the last 3 liter cartons and drank 1 liter that day and started on the others first thing on an empty stomach in the mornings. By the afternoon of the 2nd day....everything started to subside drastically. After the 3rd liter (3rd day), I could not believe that all my IBS attacks symptoms had vanished. All these years of suffering with next to no remission time.

I ordered 4 more liters and drank 1 liter per day. It has now been 2 weeks and I am IBS free. My D stopped on the 2nd day, along with the intense cramping. My tummy has greatly reduced in size and I am not gassy, burpy or acid reflux, and my D is gone.

I have been eating all my trigger foods with no problem. If I feel a twinge coming on, I merely pour a very large glass of this amazing thick, rich buttermilk and drink it all in one shot. Do not sip at it. It seems to work best when you drink it all at once.

I can't seem to get enough of it. My body is craving it like nothing I have experience before. I advance ordered another 4 liters. THERE IS A HUGE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CERTIFIED ORGANIC BUTTERMILK AND THE CONVENTIONAL ONE.

Research the ingredients for yourselves and you will see. This type of buttermilk is like the product my mom use to give me when was a kid to settle down my IBS. Nothing has worked like this since until now. Check out Harmony dairy in Ontario. They seem to be the only ones supplying it so far. (btw: the ACV almost killed me and although I have been using coconut oil for the past 2 yrs., it too has not settled down my IBS.) I hope this remedy helps someone as much as it has helped me.

Probiotics

Posted by Amy (Burlington, VT, USA) on 05/27/2009
★★★★★

Perioral Dermatitis - Acidophulis... I've sufferred from Irritable Bowel Syndrome for 25 years and perioral dermititis and roseacea for about 10-15. Probiotics have cured the IBS and greatly improved/nearly cured the dermatitis. I eat a high probiotic count yogurt everyday and take a high quality probiotic supplement every day. I use a yogurt mask every other day. I tried the ACV and couldn't stand the taste or the smell and it didn't seem to be doing anything. I do now occasionally drink kombucha tea (2-3 times a week) which seems to be very similar to ACV in terms of types of probiotics, but slightly more palatable and I occasionally use it on my face as well (not nearly as stinky as the ACV). This site was great for encouraging me to take matters into my own hands and see what would work for me. Thanks! And good luck to all.

Aloe Vera Juice

Posted by lyn (grapevine, tx) on 04/28/2009

Please keep in mind that aloe vera can deplete potassium from your body. Just a little fyi. I have seen it on lab values affect a patient's potassium level and she swore by aloe vera juice for everything.

Peppermint Oil

Posted by Rich (Boca Raton, Fl) on 03/31/2009
★★★★★

Peppermint Oil can cure IBS in many people. It also kills candida.

http://www.webmd.com/ibs/news/20081113/peppermint-oil-fiber-can-treat-ibs

"Based on the combined data, the researchers estimated that one in 2.5 patients would get significant relief of symptoms if treated with peppermint oil, compared to one in five patients taking antispasmodics and one in 11 patients taking fiber. Peppermint oil is sold in capsules, and the study participants took about 200 milligrams two or three times a day.

Nystatin

Posted by Jerome (San Francisco, CA., US of A) on 03/10/2009
★★★★★

TRUST ME, THIS IS ABOUT CANDIDA...

I didn't get over my illness until:

1) I discovered that I had been living with intestinal parasites. My physicians didn't believe that I was ill at all. They didn't want to waste their time and resources testing, don't you know. I was so happy to have them *diagnose* the animalia I presented to them in a box.

(a) the parasites, worms, protected themselves by secreting a biofilm which is both immunomodulating and immunosuppressing. Do you honestly believe my physicians knew / told me that?

2) My physicians explained, (ie., LIED), to me and explained that I had "IBS". Try googling the two words: "IBS" and "TRASHCAN DIAGNOSIS".

(a) "IBS" is a catch all *syndrome* which physicians use to substitute for real medical diagnosis, given that they do not have the time, inclination, energy or desire to solve your health problems for you. They have other things to think about.

3) Once I discovered, after nearly two decades of living in a near constant state of hopelessness, that there was an alternative, legitimate community of health care providers known as alternative, holistic, integrative and herbal medicine, I decided to take the initial plunge into the world of colon hydrotherapy.

(a) This felt great.

4) I went on a candida free diet. I went to an alternative health clinic. I paid $40 for a refrigerated, very fine grain powder, mycostatin. In 3 weeks, I was 85% better. I can now eat fruit, veggies, grains, eggs, etc.,. I had not eaten these things in over a decade. How awful is that!

5) I returned to my HMO with the good news. They were upset. Pissed off even. They couldn't believe that I would BETRAY them like that! How dare I go outside of my HMO! I had gotten off their hook!

(a) I visited a gastroenterologist at my HMO, for kicks. I asked him to take a look at the word, nystatin, which is the generic form of mycostatin. He had never heard of it before but he was willing to do what I asked. It turns out, my HMO's database stated that NYSTATIN WAS INDICATED IN THE TREATMENT OF IBS. Funny thing is, nystatin is a broad spectrum antifungal. And very, very few doctors in mainstream medicine are using it to treat IBS. I met a woman suffering from the same thing I had. She gave me the name of her gastroenterologist. Same dude. I asked her if he had given her a prescription for nystatin. She told me, "No, what is that!"

And so it goes...

Biotin

Posted by Stacy Mills (Monticello, Arkansas) on 02/25/2009
★★★★★

I have irritable bowel with diarrhea. After my last colonoscopy, no prescription or OTC meds would help. I started taking 5,000 mcg of biotin every day and got relief. Sometimes I do get diarrhea, but it doesn't last long. This even helps the spasms and cramping.

Bentonite Clay

Posted by Revonda (O H, WV) on 02/10/2009
★★★★★

Bentonite Clay for IBS, Ulcerative Colitis & Gastroenteritis: Bentonite Clay is a miracle!! I have suffered w/ these conditions since I was a child (I am almost 42). As no meds would help & doctor's couldn't do anything. These conditions had left me pretty much, home bound. I was desperate and would have tried just about anything.

For the past several months, I have been taking just a small amount (no more than 1 T a day, in purified water) & I have went from 10-15 loose bowel movements a day, to two normal bm's. I saw the results immediately. I do not take fiber.

I had forgotten what normal was. It was so bad that I could eat, almost nothing w/o getting extremely sick. On occasion, I still take Prilosec for acid reflux, but no other stomach meds!!

I hope this info helps others, as it has given me my life back. ;)

L-Glutamine

Posted by Robert (Nashville, TN) on 11/09/2008
★★★★★

A natural doctor recommended the powdered supplement l-glutamine for my IBS. He said to take 5g(1 teaspoon) twice a day with juice or water but don't take it with protein at the same time because it will lesson the effect. It works! I have had far fewer attacks. It is inexpensive and easy to find because weightlifters also use it for muscle building benefits.

Psyllium

Posted by Naomi (Auckland, New Zealand) on 10/13/2008
★★★★★

Psyllium husk (remedy) Irritable Bowel Syndrome (ailment)

After years of laxative abuse associated with an eating disorder, I ended up with sever IBS and an intolerance to a wide range of foods, including many fruits. I started taking psyllium husks recently after reading about it in a health magazine, and I have been amazed by the difference. I can eat most foods without the bloating, flatulence and chronic stomach pain that I have had to live with for years!

Although, I have found that when I have not taken the psyllium for several days, the symptoms have returned again. But to be able to live without pain, a tablespoon of psyllium on my breakfast in the mornings seems a small ask!

Dietary Changes

Posted by Jessica Nicholson (Toronto, Canada) on 09/02/2008
★★★★★

I suffered from chronic IBS along with acne mostly in my T zone and fluctuating weight gain/loss for a number of years. after much toying with medications birth control pills and numerous skin creams which all had horrible side effects like rashes, yeast infections, bladder infections Candida, massive mood swings, depression, bad breath etc... I decided to find my own cure by following my bodies urges. I did a ton of research about digestion and the causes a poor diet has on digestion and eventually the skin after all our bodies organs are all connected to one another I then kept a food journal recording how I felt before and after everything I ate I eventually discovered that wheat was the culprit I was eating the stuff daily pasta, bread, and cereal.who'da thunk it wheat supposibly the miracle food giver of life was poisoning my body. After this discovery I eliminated wheat completely from my diet went on a regime of detox and colon cleanses all with natural products such as olive oil and lemon juice mixture for getting rid of gall stones, Dr Natura for a gentle natural non intrusive colon cleanse regime. and the master cleanse along with a juice fast for 10 days. and I eventually switched over to a vegitarian diet very high in live green foods, fruit and soy. This totally cleared up my skin, cutting out the wheat cleared up my IBS almost immediately and I have been IBS free now for almost 10 years. Another neat side effect of wheat elimination was I had suffered from a series of learning disabilities while I was a child and young adult after cutting out the wheat the brain fog cleared up and I was finally able to focus for the first time in my life. The cleansing cleared up my skin and the dietary changes dropped my weight to a my optimum weight I'm 5'8" tall and weigh 140 pounds with a very athletic build and have had no fluctuation since the change.

I am now 9 months pregnant and have never been so healthy in my life.I have put on the appropriate amount of weight needed for a health pregnancy. I have experienced no discomfort and had a totally normal exceptionally healthy pregnancy on this diet.

Follow your body's intuition and you will never go wrong. health is in your hands and diet!
best of luck Jessica xo

Lemons

Posted by Irene (La Habra Heights, CA) on 08/31/2008
★★★★★

I have suffered intestinal problems for years finally diagnosed by a 'functional' doctor as dairy intolerance. A friend finally convinced me to try taking straight lemon juice from two smaller, greener lemons from Mexico and it has cured my problem almost immediately. Apparently I also cannot handle soy as I had a bad reaction to Chinese food. I have been treated by normal MDs and none have ever diagnosed this dairy intolerance, they only treated the symptoms and never identified the cause.

Activated Charcoal

Posted by Joyce (Joelton, Tn) on 08/04/2008 490 posts

Hi Annabelle, if your IBS has been a lifelong problem, try eliminating bleached flour from your foods - go with whole grain cereals and breads & pastas - or least unbleached flour. Eliminating bleached flour got rid of my lifelong digestive complaints - but whole grains also increases fiber in your diet and eliminates the constipation problems. Also when you cook beans (dry) add l/4 tsp. of ground ginger to a pound of beans. You won't taste the ginger but you will also have less gas. If you continue to have the gas/bloating on whole grains, you might need to be checked out for gluten intolerance. Of course you can check that out for yourself by leaving all all wheat products and see if it makes a difference.

Activated Charcoal

Posted by Annabell (Bakersfield, California) on 08/04/2008
★★★★★

Irritable Bowel Syndrome: I am 33 years old female with a sensitive stomach..Almost everything I consume always result in heavy gas and bloating. A friend recommended to take Charcoal pills..I have tried almost every prescription medications there is and was excited that charcoal is an old asian alternative medications. I take 1-2 capsule 1-2hours prior to eating..I make sure to have water intake at least 8 glasses a day. Within 1wk I felt immediate results, less bloating, irrability and back to having a regular bowel movement.

Happy stomach.

EC: Read more about Activated Charcoal here: https://www.earthclinic.com/remedies/charcoal.html

Ginger

Posted by Clyde (Chesapeake, VA) on 06/21/2008
★★★★★

Fresh Ginger Root also helps Acid reflux and IBS. peel off a small teaspoon size chunk of the root (after peeling and rinsing) chew it well. NOTE: the root is very spicy (hot) but not too bad.

Wheatgrass Powder

Posted by TAN KOON PENG (SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE) on 06/20/2008
★★★★★

Wheatgrass Powder for IBS! John suffers from irritable bowel syndrome , and sometimes he get shocking stomach cramps and diarrheah. After years of suffering, he have finally found something that works. Buy some wheatgrass powder from the health food store and mix up a double or triple dose of it with water and drink, followed by a glass of plain water. The taste may be awful, but the instant relief makes it soooo worth it!!!!!!

Cold Showers

Posted by Zvonko Spasic (Belgrade, Serbia) on 05/14/2008
★★★★★

Cold showers helped me to become stronger. When I was little, stomack problems often troubled me. Diarea, for example. Whenewer it was cold you could se me running home or to the nearest bathroom. Sometimes I would not eat anything for houres, so I would not have the need to go. Also, I had a few embarassing moments because of my problem, but nothing to seiouse. Then, one day I came across the idea of a cold shower, because I saw the Russians runing in to the frozen lake after being in a sauna for 15 minutes, as a tradition. There were children, little boys and girls among them. I remember thinking:"Those must be some strong people.". Then it also came to me that we, in Serbia, have a simillar tradition, but without the sauna and as a part of oure religiouse heredity. Those are definitly strong people, because most of them are members of serbians ellite police force. That made me step up. I wanted to become stronger... And i did. I have been taking relatively cold showers for a year and a half now. I have stomack problems very rarrely now and they are more under my controle. I rarely get a cold now, although i hade a few ones only because I took a cold shower and went in to a, not so warm, room. So be carefull. Don't make the same mistake. That would be stupid,as was I. Also, my whole body functions much smoother... I can't explane it, but it feels good. Then I made another step. I joined the Serbian tradition and jumped in to the lake in the middle of winter, alongside the members of the police force and some more people like me. It was freezing. Despite the air themperature, wich was 12 degreas (Celsius), the water was 3-4 degreas (Celsius, don't know how much is that in Farenheits). It felt like my mind separated it self from my body and alowed it to run on authomatic for a few seconds. When I came out off the wather I expected to get a flew or something, but I was just fine, and had a simbolic lunch with the other guys who jumped. Anyway, cold showers helped me plenty. With my body and mentally. The coldnes takes youre thoughts from the things that are on youre mind and leave you in a peacefull state. Try it... If you like it, continue, and begin with babysteps. Sorry for the gramar mistakes and for writing this much. Greatings...

EC: Read much more about cold showers here: https://www.earthclinic.com/remedies/showers.html

Turmeric

Posted by Gillian (DF, Mexico) on 11/27/2007
★★★★★

have the indian spice turmeric on hand for emergencies. Usually IBS has a lot to do with our emotional well-being and suggests something is or many things are stressing us and we need to make changes in ourselves. However becoming perfect can take more than a life time so i recomend turmeric, i swallow half a teaspoonfull when I have a bad case of IBS and in half an hour I am much better. Only thing is as with lots of cures natural and pharmaceutecal, if the IBS keeps coming back eventually the effect of the turmeric or other cure is lessened. what it gives us is a chance to feel better while we try to solve the underlying problems.