# Are you too thin? if you have IBS-D?



## mustovercome (Aug 24, 2010)

I have IBS-DMy height is 5.5 feet.My weight is 128 pounds(58 kg)Before I started everything I can to increase my weight I weighed 108 pounds.Do you have IBS-D? And are you very thin like me?I want to figure out if my low weight is because of IBS-D.


----------



## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Low weight should not be from IBS-D assuming you don't avoid eating to avoid symptoms. All people who don't eat will lose weight, that is normal.That you have gained weight seems to indicate you are absorbing nutrients so wouldn't tend to mean you need additional tests at this time for other things that cause weight loss even when you are eating way too much.Some people are naturally on the thin side, so if you have been thin the whole time you were growing up you are likely to be thin as an adult. Have you counted out how many calories a day you eat and then used any of the on line calculators to see how many calories a day you need. Younger people need more than older people, active people need more than sedentary ones, so find one where you can select what fits you the best.


----------



## IBSD88 (Mar 23, 2009)

Hi mustovercome, I have IBS-D and I am underweight, I know my underweight is because of IBSD for a fact.I have tried everything to gain weight with no luck, I thought it was just because i couldnt eat milk products which are high calorie foods but I medically increased my calories and had no luck. as my ibs symptoms got slightly less severe i noticed an immediate change in my weight dispite nolonger being on any bulk up diet, if anything I was most likely eating too little because I was too paranoid over my ibs coming back hard if I wasn't so strict over my diet.I am now seriously trying to gain weight again and though my ibs symptoms are worse than they were at my best because they aren't as bad as they used to be I have gained some weight. I am now just under 9 stone but with my ibs as it is I dont think I am going to get much higher than that until I can get some more improvement ibs wise.I have tried every combination possible to gain weight, with suppliments I had my calorie intake over 15,000 a day (done with doctor supervision) I didn't gain a single pound, tried a high carb diet, nothing, high proteen diet, nothing, fastfood diet, nothing, and I could go on for ages. best thing to do to gain weight is to try and reduce your ibs symptoms as much as possible and you will find that your body will naturally gain weight if you are eating enough. sadly the extra stone I have gained has meant I have had to buy a new wardrobe as none of my trousers fit but I cant fit in a 30inch waist and the 32's are too big, so I either need to shave an inch off my stomach (without loosing weight) or put on another inch of weight, both of which seem impossible at the moment.I am currently working on learning how to bake so I can hopefully made some high calorie snacks full of things to reduce my D symptoms like linseeds and being high in calcium. Don't have much hope but at least I will learn something. Goodluck and if you have any breakthroughs please tell me


----------



## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

If you cannot gain weight at all you need to make sure you have been checked for all the other things that block absoption or mess with your metabolism.IBS-D by itself should not effect weight. Big issues with weight is an indication something else (like celiac, for instance) is going on. I assume if the diet was medically supervised they did the usual thyroid, celiac, inflammatory issues, tests, right? Have you seen an endocrinologist or other specialist like that? Do you have any nutritional issues like anemia from being unable to absorb any calories because sounds like something is really off because most people need from 1500 to 2500 calories a day, not 15,000 (or are we having a kcal/cal conversion issue...that can happen as different places have different ways of doing the units).If it is just a conversion issue 1500 calories a day is a typical weight loss diet for most people or just barely enough to maintain weight for the slimmer people. I can't imagine eating 10X that amount. Because my calorie counter has this amount of food as a 15,000 calorie a day diet.2 pounds chicken breast4 1-pound loaves of bread1 pound apples1 pound cooked cod1.5 pounds cooked carrots24 large eggs boiled7 cups cooked rice12 tablespoons butter (to get fat % to just over 30%)13 cupcakes.I mean even chugging something like Ensure which is 355 calories a cup it would be hard to get to 15,000 calories the way we count them over here, and like I said if there is some conversion issue 1500 isn't really a weight gaining amount, 2500 to 3000 a day is usually enough unless you are Michael Phelps (swimming athlete) and he only eats like 10-12,000 a day.


----------



## Murph (Jul 26, 2010)

I have IBS-D, and I am overweight. It doesn't seem to matter a bit as far as weight loss is concerned for me. The only thing that helps me lose weight is eating less and exercising more. No amount of D makes me lose a pound! Unless of course I'm eating less to try to avoid it.


----------



## IBSD88 (Mar 23, 2009)

Yes I had all the test done including absorbtion, and ill presume overcome has too. Dont know what you've tried must overcome, if you say what you've tried someone on here might be able to suggest something new to try.it was actually 15,000 calories but keep in mind a very high % of that is through additional suppliments, ie calcium/calorie drinks such as the ones you give to elderly people to make sure they are getting enough, plus proteen drinks such as you would take if you were on an exercise regime and so on. So it wasn't all food though I did have 7 meals a day.Though my doctors like many don't have the greatest of understandings of IBS, and I have even less, they have said something to the effect of a lot of the nutriants will be flushed out as D, I know I have a fast metabolism and my last good doctor was in the process of working out a theory that my other doctors do not carew about, he thinks my body uses a large amount of calories just in normal operation but he has also noticed that at various times (more so when ill or having an IBS epesode) that my thyroid and liver start to ramp up their activity which obviously uses up a lot more energy. He thought this could be a problem as if my body keeps doing this often not only will i struggle to gain weight but more so that it might cause too much stress on my liver and cause issues later in life, my other doc's who have looked at the results just think the readings where high but as it was for a short period of time it doesn't matter.I know alot about finance and very little about biology so I dont even know if i have the story right let alone an opinion on what to believe. To be honest if I can stop the ibs symptoms the D, stomach crtamps, sickness, headaches, dizziness, hot flushes and the fact i get cramps in hands and feet as well as going red and blue id be happy enough with that.


----------



## ashia (Jun 15, 2010)

Hi - I have IBS-D as well and have had problems with weight loss. In the last couple of weeks, I'm happy to report I've been able to STOP my weight from going further down, but I haven't yet been able to get it to go UP, despite counting calories and eating far above my base calorie requirements. I am currently 46.4 kilos (102 lbs.) and 161cm (5'3"). My usual weight is around 52 kilos. For a while there I was losing about 400-500g/week, which started feeling pretty scary - the weight loss was completely undesired. I think the main thing that has helped me with the weight loss is getting my IBS under somewhat better control. I've been doing a combination of the IBS Audio 100 program and a diet focusing on soluble fiber intake (google for the book "The First Year IBS"). I'm not all the way there yet by any means, but I've seen real improvement and I'm starting to feel better overall. It has been a lot of work with cooking and shopping etc. -- even so, it's much, much better than having to run to the bathroom all day and being miserable! I wish you luck with it all... you're not alone!


----------



## Siea (Jun 21, 2010)

ashia said:


> Hi - I have IBS-D as well and have had problems with weight loss. In the last couple of weeks, I'm happy to report I've been able to STOP my weight from going further down, but I haven't yet been able to get it to go UP, despite counting calories and eating far above my base calorie requirements. I am currently 46.4 kilos (102 lbs.) and 161cm (5'3"). My usual weight is around 52 kilos. For a while there I was losing about 400-500g/week, which started feeling pretty scary - the weight loss was completely undesired. I think the main thing that has helped me with the weight loss is getting my IBS under somewhat better control. I've been doing a combination of the IBS Audio 100 program and a diet focusing on soluble fiber intake (google for the book "The First Year IBS"). I'm not all the way there yet by any means, but I've seen real improvement and I'm starting to feel better overall. It has been a lot of work with cooking and shopping etc. -- even so, it's much, much better than having to run to the bathroom all day and being miserable! I wish you luck with it all... you're not alone!


I have IBS-D and also weigh quite litte.The problem is that I cannot eat as I want. When away I avoid eating if not necessary. When at home or away I cannot eat myself totally full because whenever I do that D gets worse.


----------



## ziggy7 (Oct 24, 2009)

when my IBS-D was at its worst my weight was the highest it's ever been and i had diarrhea everyday. i was 330 pounds and very very sick.after changeing the way i ate and following my diet i droped too 230 pounds but i still looked bad. then i started going to the gym and lost about another 40 pounds of fat and gained 50 pounds of muscle so im now 240 pounds and look good sept for my excess skin however you wont need to worry about excess skin anyways i think if you want you gain weight eat lots of healthy foods like pasture raised eggs, grass fed butter, grass fed meats, raw milk, rasberries, animal organs and do not over cook your food because eating over cooked food can cause inflammation. anyways eat healthy and work out preferably at a gym because it has equipment. but also try going outside at times too at 11 am too 2 pm to get sunlight aka vitamin D which also helps with muscle growth and never use sunscreen it blocks 95-99% of vitamin D sunlight oh and dont forget to get some omega-3 too.when you work out make sure you exercise every muscle on your body thats a key to gaining weight so during the course of a week make sure you did some exercise that worked all your muscles like 1 day chest and triceps and another day legs and another day shoulders and abbs and another day back and biceps and some more abbs too something like that would be good.when starting you will need someone to teach you how to work out properly.


----------



## sharanne (Aug 23, 2006)

Kathleen M. said:


> If you cannot gain weight at all you need to make sure you have been checked for all the other things that block absoption or mess with your metabolism.IBS-D by itself should not effect weight. Big issues with weight is an indication something else (like celiac, for instance) is going on. I assume if the diet was medically supervised they did the usual thyroid, celiac, inflammatory issues, tests, right? Have you seen an endocrinologist or other specialist like that? Do you have any nutritional issues like anemia from being unable to absorb any calories because sounds like something is really off because most people need from 1500 to 2500 calories a day, not 15,000 (or are we having a kcal/cal conversion issue...that can happen as different places have different ways of doing the units).If it is just a conversion issue 1500 calories a day is a typical weight loss diet for most people or just barely enough to maintain weight for the slimmer people. I can't imagine eating 10X that amount. Because my calorie counter has this amount of food as a 15,000 calorie a day diet.2 pounds chicken breast4 1-pound loaves of bread1 pound apples1 pound cooked cod1.5 pounds cooked carrots24 large eggs boiled7 cups cooked rice12 tablespoons butter (to get fat % to just over 30%)13 cupcakes.I mean even chugging something like Ensure which is 355 calories a cup it would be hard to get to 15,000 calories the way we count them over here, and like I said if there is some conversion issue 1500 isn't really a weight gaining amount, 2500 to 3000 a day is usually enough unless you are Michael Phelps (swimming athlete) and he only eats like 10-12,000 a day.


----------

