This disease is becoming increasingly common today and causes serious complaints for around 14 million Germans. But what exactly is irritable bowel syndrome—or an irritable bowel? How can this disease be treated? And how exactly is it connected to the gut flora? You’ll find out all about this in this blog post.
1. What is meant by irritable bowel syndrome?
Irritable bowel syndrome—also called IBS for short—is a disease of the digestive tract, more precisely a functional disorder of the intestines. This is usually related to the fact that the gut flora of affected individuals is not healthy. This leads to a range of symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Compared to healthy people, certain harmful or disruptive bacterial strains occur more frequently in the gut.
Irritable bowel occurs about twice as often in women as in men. According to current gastroenterological research, the reason for this is not yet clearly understood. In general, the exact causes of this disease are still relatively unclear. However, scientific studies have proven connections between food intolerances, infections, and stress. Nowadays, scientists increasingly believe that there is not just one but several types of “irritable bowels.” This is because researchers have identified different subtypes that mainly differ in the symptoms or complaints they cause. Additionally, science assumes that irritable bowel syndrome can be triggered by interactions between the brain, psyche, and gastrointestinal tract. This happens via the gut-brain axis, through which the central and enteric nervous systems communicate closely via nerves, neurotransmitters, and hormones.
Experts now suspect that the enteric nervous system—also called the “second brain”—is overactive in people with irritable bowel syndrome. This can cause digestive tract symptoms and affect the psyche. Some studies have scientifically shown that irritable bowel syndrome often occurs alongside depression, chronic stress, psychological trauma, and anxiety disorders. However, fundamentally, this disease cannot be classified as a psychological disorder.
2. What are typical symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome?
It is estimated that four to ten percent of all Germans suffer from recurring diarrhea, abdominal cramps, constipation, or bloating. Because the causes of this disease remain unclear, treatment is complicated and often unsatisfactory. The symptoms are incredibly diverse and usually occur in combination. These include nausea, heartburn, bloating, lower abdominal pain, diarrhea, or constipation.
3. What causes this intestinal disease?
Here comes some bad news: irritable bowel can have many different causes and has only been researched for about 10 years, which is a very short time scientifically. Accordingly, there is relatively little information about this disease.
When symptoms like frequent diarrhea, bloating, or abdominal pain occur, the affected person usually first visits a general practitioner. If the GP cannot help, they refer the patient to a specialist in the field—an internist or gastroenterologist. Normally, these specialists perform an endoscopy or ultrasound examination. But even then, doctors often find no answers to all the problems because irritable bowel syndrome manifests very differently and can present in various ways. Here we have listed important factors that can influence the occurrence of irritable bowel syndrome:
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Nutrition: It is well known that nutrition can have a significant impact on our health. It also plays an important role in the occurrence of irritable bowel syndrome. Patients with an irritated bowel often report a connection between certain foods and reduced well-being. These are usually specific carbohydrates, sugar alcohols, and sugars such as lactose or fructose. Additionally, gluten, gluten proteins, and other substances found in wheat can cause problems.
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Genetics: Studies show that people suffering from irritable bowel often have genetic changes. This seems to be the reason why either the number or the structure of so-called receptor molecules is altered. These are located in the intestinal cell wall. This, in turn, impairs the transmission of signals in the gut and leads to overstimulation of the digestive tract.
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Gut flora: Researchers have found that the composition of the gut microbiome and gut flora in people with irritable bowel syndrome differs from that of healthy individuals. This is expressed by certain bacterial strains occurring more frequently, while the overall number of bacterial species is usually reduced. The use of antibiotics, the influence of chronic stress, and gastrointestinal infections also have strong negative effects on the composition of the intestinal microbiome and thus on gut health.
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Inflammation: Chronic, low-level inflammation of the intestinal mucosa can be one of the causes of irritable bowel syndrome. This is mostly the case in patients who suffer from frequent diarrhea.
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Intestinal motility: Normally, a healthy gut moves regularly and rhythmically. But the gut doesn’t move without reason—it moves to transport the intestinal contents, i.e., partially digested food, through the body. If the gut is unhealthy, this can cause changes in intestinal movements, either slowing down or speeding up significantly. If the gut moves much slower, this can result in constipation. If the muscles move faster than average, the opposite effect occurs. You can probably guess the result—an unpleasant symptom, namely diarrhea. Additionally, cramps in the intestinal tract can cause severe and uncomfortable abdominal pain.
One thing is clear: many different factors influence the likelihood of developing this disease. Patients with irritable bowel need patience because both the precise investigation of causes and the healing and treatment of irritable bowel require careful observation and time.
Some doctors recommend not only changing the diet and identifying which foods trigger symptoms but increasingly also strongly recommend taking good bacteria, i.e., probiotics, to help restore balance to the gut.
4. Are gut flora and irritable bowel connected?
The causes mentioned above affect the gut flora to varying degrees. From this, it can be concluded that irritable bowel is directly linked to an altered gut flora. The reverse conclusion is that a positive change in the intestinal microbiome can lead to the disappearance of irritable bowel symptoms. However, this is not yet fully scientifically clarified. Many gastroenterologists and doctors do see clear improvements in symptoms with a positive change in the intestinal microbiome.
5. What can I do about it?
The most effective methods so far to rebuild your gut flora are dietary changes, taking pro- and prebiotics, and avoiding excessive chronic stress. Ideally, you should pay attention to all these factors and improve them if necessary to achieve long-term improvement. Nevertheless, everything starts small—that’s something our little helpers in the gut would also agree with.
In general: if the gut flora is out of balance, this negatively affects human health. It is interesting to know that studies have shown that the stool of people with a healthy intestinal microbiome differs significantly from that of those who are ill. This, in turn, indicates a disturbance of the gut microbiome. To restore balance—to “repair” it—taking probiotics can help. They contribute to strengthening the gut barrier and thus help fend off disease-causing substances. They also inhibit the growth of harmful germs and prevent their colonization on the intestinal mucosa. But that’s not all—they can strengthen the immune system and also stimulate intestinal motility!
6. DIY – Home remedies to strengthen your gut flora
We believe that the most underestimated factor regarding the influence on gut flora is stress. Both physical and psychological stress directly affect the diversity and number of bacterial strains in our gut through the release of stress hormones.
To keep your gut healthy and balanced, we have put together a small collection of tips that we fully believe in:
- Take a phone- and laptop-free break and focus on the here and now.
- Prepare a cup of your favorite tea or hot chocolate (preferably without sugar or sweetened cocoa, as sugar does not help with stress).
- Do your favorite sport or replace it with some stretching exercises that have a calming effect on our nervous system.
- Take a walk in the fresh air (without your phone) or simply open a window and breathe deeply in and out.
- Fifteen minutes of yoga with appropriate breathing exercises (Pranayama) also significantly help reduce perceived stress.
- Sauna sessions and sunlight also have stress-reducing effects. (Just choose what appeals to you most)
If you have already incorporated all this into your daily life and want more, you can also support your gut flora with our specially developed pro- and prebiotics. Sounds good? Then feel free to take a look around here:
