# success on a wheat free diet



## len12 (Oct 19, 2011)

My problems started about a year and a half ago, I believe it started with a bout of food poisoning. After this I experienced diarrhoea at least a few times a week. At first it would happen at any time regardless of whether I'd eaten or not. It required me to take days off work and university. A couple of weeks passed and I realised this was not normal so I went to the doctors, had tests to see if I had any stomach bugs, I didn't. After another couple of weeks I was still experiencing diarrhoea so went back to the doctor, had some blood tests, again nothing wrong. More weeks passed and my symptoms had improved very slightly, usually I would get ill after eating, or the morning after, but still I was not well. I was losing weight, getting very tired, upset and hugely frustrated with the whole thing. So back to the doctors I go. I was told I had IBS and prescribed Colofac (mebeverine) tablets. I took these and they worked, for about 2 days. After this I still had diarrhoea but was feeling very very sick all the time. So I went back to the doctors, was prescribed tablets to stop me feeling sick but these only made my symptoms worse as they sped up the movement of food through the digestive system. By this time about 6 months had passed, I had been managing my symptoms with Immodium instants and eating very little. I cut down on very fatty foods, sugary foods and basically ate a lot of bread, rice, pasta and chicken. I returned to the doctors and saw a different person who carried out my blood tests again which showed no abnormalities. I was told to take Immodium and I could do so for as long as I wanted. When I mentioned this did not solve the underlying problem, I was offered a referral to a gastroenterologist. Upon seeing the specialist I was examined, more bloods carried out etc etc. And again the IBS diagnosis was given. I was advised to continue taking Immodium, try peppermint tea and the symptoms should eventually improve..... they didn't. After another few months and lots of stress I returned to the specialist. Prior to this I must mention I had turned to a few self help books. These generally spoke about a change of diet; especially the benefits of soluble fibre (i.e. bread, potatoes, rice etc being the basis of most of the diet with other components on top), more peppermint (peppermint oil tablets did not go down well, gave me bad diarrhoea), lean meats like chicken and fish, relaxation techniques (I tried hypnotherapy but it wasn't for me), medication, soluble fibre supplements etc. These books did help me but I still had some symptoms. After all this time I also was experiencing anxiety, didn't want to go out especially not out for dinner. The specialist advised me to try cutting out dairy and wheat as these are the two main triggers for digestive upsets. So I did. To cut a long story short it worked! Within a few days I felt so much better and had no diarrhoea. I gradually introduced small amounts of dairy back in to my diet. But I mean small amounts, I still drink soya milk and don't really eat cheese, I use dairy free spread. But I don't actively exclude things like cakes which may contain some dairy products. I am strictly avoiding wheat and it has worked. I can still eat pasta, bread, rolls, cakes as long as I buy the wheat free versions. I do have to watch what I eat in terms of fat and sugar content and things like that. But my appetite has returned, I can eat so much more than before and am feeling well again, I am slowly putting weight on and am so much happier than a year ago. I also eat a couple of polos (on recommendation of another doctor) after a meal if I can feel myself getting bloated or gassy, this helps but I just could not tolerate the peppermint oil capsules. If you have IBS, try a wheat free diet, it might just work


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