# Psyllium husk alternatives that don't dehydrate/have medical risks?



## Colon Carer (Nov 14, 2011)

Skip to bottom if you don't wanna read it all.I tried psyllium husks the other day for a couple of days but was very turned off for a couple of reasons centering around the fact it dehydrates you.I already have to urinate alot and have done from a young age- around once every 30 mins. Docs say it's to do with nerves/stress as I'm a sensitive person; the IBS just being another thing I've picked up due to this general disposition. Anyhow the first day I didn't really drink more than usual thinking I could 'get away with it'. Through the day I was really pleased with the soothing effect of the husks thinking I might have found a keeper but come evening I began getting awful feelings in the gut, like I had blocks of cement stuck in there. Remembering people have died and had serious medical complications from these husks I panicked and began downing water furiously. This bloated me up alot but after a bit it caused what felt like an unblocking of the system. It felt most uncomfortable tho as the husks felt like they were hard and scratching my innards. I soon went to the toilet and felt really relieved after- moreso than I would normally without anything however I thought that the extra 'baggage' was not worth it. I tried again with a lower dose to similar effects. Each time I had to drink so much that it made me urinate like crazy such that it was more of a nuisance than the IBS itself so defeated the object, not to mention the constant worry of getting clogged up by these husks. So I binned those. Next I got the idea that if its fiber that helps what better than nature's goodness- vegetables. The past few days I bought loads of vegetables to try and supplement my fiber intake. Well that turned out to be a bad idea. At first raw vege was upsetting my stomach so thought cooking it would work so I made somewhat of a stew. I have been eating that yesterday and today and found it to give me bad stomach pains and diarrhea. I just did a search online as to why and read that soluble and insoluble fibre are diff and IBS sufferers should avoid insoluble. So that one is out too.So I was rather pleased with the soothing effects initially of the husks but the backlash of the side effects plus having to drink water make it out of the question for me. I just read oats are good which I eat but eating alot of oats makes me put on weight fast (same with other carbs of that class). Is there any psyllium alternatives which wont dehydrate me or does it 'come with the territory' with those things? I'll just do without if so and try and find more nutritional foods which would be soothing to add to my regular diet. I'm disappointed that vegetables caused this violent reaction as I thought that would be an obvious fix but was very wrong. Gotta eep looking I guess. So suggestions please given the criteria.


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

> I just did a search online as to why and read that soluble and insoluble fibre are diff and IBS sufferers should avoid insoluble. So that one is out too.


Not necessarily. Depends on the IBS. ANY fiber that you ingest all of a sudden in large amoutns will do what you describe. Try lessening the amount you try at a time. Try s-l-o-w-l-y increasing your fiber via diet. Slowly is the key word. This way uyou will much more easily (on your system) find out what your individual need is.If you want to stick with supplements....Have you thought of trying Benefiber and other products etc...??


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## Colon Carer (Nov 14, 2011)

BQ said:


> Not necessarily. Depends on the IBS. ANY fiber that you ingest all of a sudden in large amoutns will do what you describe. Try lessening the amount you try at a time. Try s-l-o-w-l-y increasing your fiber via diet. Slowly is the key word. This way uyou will much more easily (on your system) find out what your individual need is.If you want to stick with supplements....Have you thought of trying Benefiber and other products etc...??


Cheers, ye lessening the fiber i thught was antoehr idea. It's good in that my stools are sfotened vs the pellets of doom when id not been eating hardly any, just too soft. So I guess ill just taper it down and see how I go. Id perefer that to supps' if it works out.The benefit is that it means i have to eat less and the portions will be more inline with a normal meal portion i guess. I had just been eating 3-4 mouthfuls to see what effects id get.


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## rhonalomey (Aug 15, 2005)

Really psyllium only does those bad thongs if you dont drink enough water WITH IT. One teaspoon mix with a little milk to make a paste, eat the paste and drink a glass of water. No need to keep drinking more water then your body needs. Then increase to one teaspoon at another time of day. with water. This fibre is highly recommended for IBS D and C


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

I agree with rhonalomey. You don't need to drink any extra water once you've consumed it. The choking hazard only occurs in the airway when swallowing. And this can only happen if you wait too long after mixing it has gummed up into a paste. Even then it's such a soft paste you will likely just cough it up if it goes down the wrong tube. And despite the name psyllium "husk" there isn't anything harsh or rough about it. It's not "scratching" your colon. It's a fiber that absorbs water. It's soft, mushy, and not harmful in any way.


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## AIRPLANE (Mar 15, 2004)

The water issue is somewhat confusing. I know that every doctor that recommends psyllium to me says that you have to drink A LOT of water with it. But I always end up urinating most of it so what's the point. Now, when I do take it, I will drink one additional glass of water but that's all and even then it mostly exits via the bladder.I was just curious- since initially, taking fiber might increase gas, does anyone ever try taking Beano with it? I'm not positive, but I seem to recall doing just that some time back and feeling nauseous afterwards even though there is no rhyme or reason to it since Beano is only normal enzymes.


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

AIRPLANE said:


> The water issue is somewhat confusing. I know that every doctor that recommends psyllium to me says that you have to drink A LOT of water with it. But I always end up urinating most of it so what's the point. Now, when I do take it, I will drink one additional glass of water but that's all and even then it mostly exits via the bladder.I was just curious- since initially, taking fiber might increase gas, does anyone ever try taking Beano with it? I'm not positive, but I seem to recall doing just that some time back and feeling nauseous afterwards even though there is no rhyme or reason to it since Beano is only normal enzymes.


The gas caused by psyllium husk is unrelated to the type of gas that beano treats.


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## IBSUserX (Nov 17, 2011)

OP here. Signed up again as didn't like my original name. Na the husks aren't for me. I don't care what you say about it being smooth/not dehydrating etc etc. I def felt like I had cement in my guts. I go with how I feel not just what other people say is good (that can help but like in this case turned out not for me).I think that my explosive diarrhea is from a bug I probably caught since I've had a fever and been in and out of bed/lethargy/slightly delirious for a few days.if it was just the vege then I imaigne that owuld have passed within a day. I'll give vege another go when better tho I am gonna have to get over the negative stimulus I have associated with it now since I got ill at the same time







.Slow n steady i guess.


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## AIRPLANE (Mar 15, 2004)

I wanted to mention that often, when I eat popcorn, it seems like it has the same effect on me that psyllium is supposed to. I tend to forget about popcorn and haven't tried eating it on a regular basis so don't know if it would be of help long-term or only if it evens things out short-term. And it doesn't seem to cause the discomfort and gas that psyllium does. So, unless you have something like diverticulosis where things like popcorn might get stuck, it might be worth trying, strange as it sounds.I don't know if the white, fluffy part of the popcorn maybe absorbs fluid while the hard center provides bulk? I'm IBS-A and this is the only explanation I have as to why popcorn can help but not make me swing to D or C.


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## daraoceania (Nov 30, 2011)

I have the similar problems. I get constipated very easily, but when I tried taking psyllium it just made it worse. I started at the minimum dosage, but the only thing that happened was that I got extreme bloating, pain, and even worse constipation. It was almost as bad as prune juice.Vegetables are good, but I avoid eating too much raw. When I do eat raw vegetables it's usually cucmbers and lettuce(not iceberg, but dandelion greens, red/green leaf lettuce). Steamed kale is also really good.


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