# How long does it take until you see relief from your symptoms?



## rednaxa (Apr 23, 2012)

Hi, I was just wondering how long it normally takes after cutting out problem foods until you can see relief from symptoms? I suffer mainly from abdominal bloating/distention, and I tried the low fodmap diet to figure out the problem foods. After a few days I gave in and ate foods I shouldn't have, however even after about 4 days of following it I didn't see much relief at all.I'm planning on starting it again, but I wanted to now how long it should take in case there might be other causes for my symptoms.


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## BeeRitt (Jan 21, 2011)

rednaxa said:


> Hi, I was just wondering how long it normally takes after cutting out problem foods until you can see relief from symptoms? I suffer mainly from abdominal bloating/distention, and I tried the low fodmap diet to figure out the problem foods. After a few days I gave in and ate foods I shouldn't have, however even after about 4 days of following it I didn't see much relief at all.I'm planning on starting it again, but I wanted to now how long it should take in case there might be other causes for my symptoms.


I didnt see relief the first week, everything was the same. I didn't see relief until the second week toward the end so give it some time.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

As long as we aren't talking Celiac disease I would think after a 2 week trial you should know if that diet will make a difference for you.With Celiac disease it can take longer as the lining of the small intestine has to regenerate and that can take longer before you see a big difference AND the diet may take awhile to really get completely gluten free.


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## knight85 (May 16, 2012)

Hi,When I started the FODMAP diet about 18 months ago it took me two weeks to see a real change. Then I went two weeks without any symptoms, and then my symptoms came raging back thereafter. I would give the diet around 6 weeks until you make your decision if it works or not. Everything deserves a real go and i dont think you can decide in one week. when you have food poisoning it takes one week to really get back to normal, so imagine years of eating foods that dont agree with you.Keep trying - These diets are not easy.


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## Clarice Dietitian (Feb 24, 2012)

knight85 said:


> Hi,When I started the FODMAP diet about 18 months ago it took me two weeks to see a real change. Then I went two weeks without any symptoms, and then my symptoms came raging back thereafter. I would give the diet around 6 weeks until you make your decision if it works or not. Everything deserves a real go and i dont think you can decide in one week. when you have food poisoning it takes one week to really get back to normal, so imagine years of eating foods that dont agree with you.Keep trying - These diets are not easy.


Generally when eliminating a suspect food containing a possible trigger protein or chemical, a child needs to do it for 2 weeks and an adult for 4 weeks. This is called the 'wash out period' and some people go through withdrawal symptoms especially for the first 4 days or so. But with FODMAPs the thinking is that by reducing the food supply to excessive numbers of bacteria /microbes that are flourishing in the intestinal tract, you reduce the number of bacteria /microbes and the amount of fermentation in your intestine. So for many people they don't get the greater extent of improvements on the FODMAP diet for at least 6 to 8 weeks.Good luck...


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## rednaxa (Apr 23, 2012)

Thanks for the replies. I decided to wait until I saw a doctor again about diet change. I discussed that cutting out wheat, gluten and dairy had improved symptoms of gas, but not bloating. Even though this was a new doctor (and that I suggested I may have intolerances to these foods rather than IBS), she stuck to the IBS diagnosis and prescribed me some mint capsules. What's more annoying is that she was more than pessimistic when I asked about seeing a dietician, saying something along the lines of they're strict on what they patients can be referred for (implying that IBS symptoms aren't serious enough). That pissed me off because apparently it must be perfectly normal for me to experience extreme bloating on a daily basis.Seeing as I never followed the diet strictly, I may as well give it a go now while I wait to hear about the dietician. It seems I've found more helpful advice online than I have with GP's, so I'll have to try and find possible solutions on my own.


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