Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Case Study
The medical community characterizes Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) as a gastrointestinal condition involving intestinal motility dysfunction. This condition affects 12-14% of the adult population in the United States, appearing almost 50% more in women than in men (Anastasi, 2013; Smeltzer, Bare, Hinkle, & Cheever, 2010). According to Anastasi (2013), health care practitioners can diagnose IBS six months after appearance of symptoms with the use of the Rome III Diagnostic Criteria. The Rome III criteria allow an IBS diagnosis if the patient has two of the following three conditions on at least three days of three consecutive months: pain relieved by defecation, change in the frequency of bowel movements, or a change in stool appearance (Anastasi,
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Patients suffering from IBS, and for whom a regular well-balanced diet is insufficient to control symptoms, often transition to a low FODMaP diet. Studies show that foods high in these short-chained carbohydrates often perpetuate symptoms that can produce gastrointestinal upset in IBS patients (Phillips, 2012). It is important to realize that the FODMaP diet is a complex dietary structure in which requires a patient to work one on one with a registered dietician and is not easily followed (Phillips, 2012). Studies show the diet’s success, however, shows amazing potential in the patients who do stick with the regimen. Phillips (2012) alleges that a low FODMaPs diet is successful for approximately seventy-five percent of patients in reducing symptoms of IBS. Moore (2013), a nurse practitioner, declares a sixty percent success rate in the resolution of IBS symptoms in patients attending her clinics over a five-year period. Subsequently, after six weeks of successful treatment, in which little to no IBS symptoms originated on the low FODMaP diet, patients reintroduce high-risk foods slowly into the diet (Moore 2013). This reintroduction of FODMaP foods, allows the patients to determine which foods bring the onset of symptoms (Moore, 2013). By the time this process concludes, patients are more able to control their symptoms by virtue of diet, therefore, increasing quality of life (Moore
Patients suffering from IBS, and for whom a regular well-balanced diet is insufficient to control symptoms, often transition to a low FODMaP diet. Studies show that foods high in these short-chained carbohydrates often perpetuate symptoms that can produce gastrointestinal upset in IBS patients (Phillips, 2012). It is important to realize that the FODMaP diet is a complex dietary structure in which requires a patient to work one on one with a registered dietician and is not easily followed (Phillips, 2012). Studies show the diet’s success, however, shows amazing potential in the patients who do stick with the regimen. Phillips (2012) alleges that a low FODMaPs diet is successful for approximately seventy-five percent of patients in reducing symptoms of IBS. Moore (2013), a nurse practitioner, declares a sixty percent success rate in the resolution of IBS symptoms in patients attending her clinics over a five-year period. Subsequently, after six weeks of successful treatment, in which little to no IBS symptoms originated on the low FODMaP diet, patients reintroduce high-risk foods slowly into the diet (Moore 2013). This reintroduction of FODMaP foods, allows the patients to determine which foods bring the onset of symptoms (Moore, 2013). By the time this process concludes, patients are more able to control their symptoms by virtue of diet, therefore, increasing quality of life (Moore