Diet for women with irritable bowel syndrome - a preliminary study

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is one of the most frequent digestive system diseases, of various medical signs. It is assumed that proper life style, including appropriate, rational diet is a factor helpful for treating such a disorder.

The purpose of this paper was to assess the selected dietary habits, and to evaluate the nutritional value of daily food rations for patients with a mixed type of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

The questionnaire survey involved a group of 32 women suffering from a mixed type of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (The Rome III Diagnostic Criteria were used to diagnose the disease). The control group was comprised of 32 healthy women. The methods used to assess the diet were divided into quantitative and qualitative ones.

The most frequent dietary mistakes among patients with IBS were associated with snacking sweets (83.0% of the subjects) and fruit (17.0% of the subjects) between the meals. A higher intake of sucrose was found amongst women with IBS, than in the case of the control group (p=0.0169). The analysis of the results demonstrated a significantly higher intake of water (derived from drinks and foods) amongst patients with IBS, than in the case of women of the control group (p=0.0267). An insufficient intake of plant proteins and polyunsaturated fatty acids was recorded in both groups. The supply of protein in general, animal protein, fat in general, saturated fatty acids and sodium, exceeded the recommended norm, both amongst women with IBS and women of the control group.

The obtained examination results showed that there are significant dietary improprieties in the diet of women suffering from IBS. In order to eliminate these mistakes in the future, it seems justified to extend the knowledge on rational nutrition amongst patients with IBS.