Intestinal irritation is caused not only by certain foods, but also various exogenous and endogenous factors. Disorders in the work of the lower digestive system affects every fifth inhabitant of the planet. Doctors even gave this disease its official name: patients with characteristic complaints are diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome. According to statistics, women face this disease twice as often as men. In addition, more than half of the population suffering from this problem does not seek medical help due to mild symptoms.
What is this disease
The above syndrome is a pathological disorder in the digestive system, accompanied by intestinal cramps, bloating, diarrhea or constipation. It is impossible to completely cure such a disease, but at the same time it is possible to improve the quality of life by changing lifestyle, following a diet, and using maintenance therapy.
Irritable bowel syndrome cannot be called life-threatening pathology, since it does not lead to structural changes in the organ. The disease brings a lot of discomfort to a person’s life, but at the same time it is not able to lead to the development of cancer or other serious ailments.
Gastrointestinal tract in anatomy
This department is a soft tissue tube in the human body that originates in the mouth, stretches through the esophagus, stomach and ends with the anus. Everything that enters our body through the oral cavity undergoes numerous processes of processing, digestion, absorption. Digestion is the main function of the gastrointestinal tract, which can reach 10 meters in length.
The gastrointestinal tract, located above the duodenum, is called the upper. It includes the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus and stomach. The lower part of the tract includes the small and large intestines, rectum and anus. The remaining internal organs involved in the digestion process are additional and do not belong to the gastrointestinal tract.
Now back to the topic of the article. The intestine, of which we will talk about the causes of irritation, is a kind of processing "enterprise" in the body of each of us. The small intestine reaches 5.5 - 6 meters in length and consists of 12 duodenal, jejunum and ileum. This organ begins at the site of docking with the stomach and ends with the transition to the colon. The main processing of food entering the body is carried out in the duodenum due to specially produced enzymes and bile. Then the processed food enters the jejunum, where beneficial substances are extracted and absorbed at the cellular level. The process of assimilation of nutrients in the ileum is completed, after which the remaining contents are sent to the large intestine. Irritation can occur in one or both sections of the gastrointestinal tract at the same time.
The main function of the large intestine is to extract fluid from the incoming contents and absorb water. Here, the remains of undigested products are formed into solid feces, which are excreted through the rectum and anus.
The length of the large intestine reaches an average of 1.5 m. The lower gastrointestinal tract contains about 500 species of living microorganisms involved in the digestive process. Thanks to the large intestine, the body is replenished with fluid. Here, vitamins and valuable trace elements are released from the incoming food, which subsequently penetrate the bloodstream. Proper functioning of the large intestine helps to maintain a normal level of acidity in the body, produce antibodies to various diseases and strengthen immunity.
Factors provoking the disease
Despite advances in medicine, little is known today about the true causes of intestinal irritation. However, researchers with full confidence can name the circumstances that adversely affect the condition of the lower gastrointestinal tract and create comfortable conditions for the development of the disease. Among all the potential reasons, it is worth noting:
- Impaired transmission of nerve impulses, autonomic disorders. Since the digestive system is controlled by the brain, failure to conduct feedback signals can cause bowel irritation. Medication in this case may not be enough.
- Deterioration of intestinal motility. This is one of the common causes that lead to IBS. With accelerated motility, diarrhea develops, with slow motility - constipation. If sudden spastic contractions of the smooth muscles of the intestine occur, the person will experience severe abdominal pain.
- Psychological disorders. The problem of irritation of the large intestine is faced by mentally unstable individuals suffering from panic disorders, who are in restless, depressive states, as well as people experiencing post-traumatic syndrome.
- Bacterial gastroenteritis. In this case, implies irritation of the stomach and intestines caused by representatives of opportunistic microflora.
- Intestinal dysbiosis. An imbalance of microorganisms inhabiting the lower gastrointestinal tract leads to the development of atypical symptoms. Dysbacteriosis can lead to flatulence, diarrhea or weight loss.
- Hormonal disruptions. In people suffering from intestinal irritation, the amount of neurotransmitters and gastrointestinal hormones often changes. For example, in the course of research it was possible to find out that in young girls during menstruation, symptoms of irritation become more pronounced.
- Hereditary predisposition to irritable bowel syndrome.
Can food cause irritation
A person who is observing symptoms of IBS should pay close attention to the diet. The qualitative composition of the products used plays a decisive role in the life of the gastrointestinal tract. Moreover, everything is individual: in different patients, completely different products and their combinations can cause an irritant reaction. Most often, symptoms of irritation of the small intestine occur after consumption:
- whole milk;
- alcohol;
- soda;
- sweets;
- caffeinated drinks (tea, coffee, cola, energy drinks);
- Chocolate
- fatty dishes.
Suspecting irritable bowel syndrome, a provoking factor should be identified first. For the development of the disease, the presence of one or two items from the list is sufficient.
Disease in children
Among the causes of the development of irritable bowel syndrome in childhood, it is worth noting the genetic predisposition, disturbances in the child’s psychoemotional background and nutritional errors. In almost half of children with intestinal irritation, parents suffer from the same pathology. Interestingly, the disease often occurs in twins, and the identical ones face this problem more often than the identical ones.
Doctors were practically able to prove that in a third of clinical cases of IBS occurs in children who have experienced certain traumatic circumstances. In this case, the disease may not occur immediately. In most cases, the pathology progresses after an acute intestinal infection. Sometimes the disease is caused by stiffness of the intestine on the background of an unbalanced diet. Due to the deficiency of products containing plant fiber that enter the body, dysbiosis develops, in which optimal conditions are created for starting the pathological process.
As for infants, among them there are also babies with intestinal irritation. In a child who is breast-fed, the risk of developing the disease is especially high. In order to prevent the occurrence of IBS in children under 1 year of age, it is not recommended to introduce complementary foods before six months of age.
Symptoms in IBS
Signs of bowel irritation occur primarily after eating. Symptoms appear paroxysmally, most often with bursts of manifestations within a few days, after which the irritation becomes less pronounced or disappears altogether. The most characteristic for this pathology are the following symptoms:
- pain and abdominal cramps, which usually go away on their own after bowel movements;
- frequent diarrhea and constipation, often alternating with each other;
- bloating and noticeable swelling in the waist;
- persistent flatulence;
- sudden appearance of urge to empty the intestines;
- a feeling of a full rectum after an act of defecation;
- the release of translucent mucus from the anus.
In patients suffering from irritation of the intestinal mucosa, overall health worsens, in particular, pain and discomfort in the abdomen appears, due to which patients become nervous, insecure, apathetic. Depending on the symptoms of IBS, there are three patterns of bowel irritation:
- diarrheal type, when the patient has bouts of diarrhea several times during the day;
- constipation type (with chronic constipation);
- mixed type when diarrhea and constipation alternate.
Such a classification is not exemplary. It is worth noting that in the same person all three models of irritable bowel syndrome can be observed over a long period with short asymptomatic interruptions.
Laboratory diagnostics
Turning to a gastroenterologist with complaints of intestinal disorders, constant bloating and other symptoms of alleged irritation of the intestinal mucosa, one should be prepared for the specialist to prescribe a whole range of procedures.
Fecal masses are necessarily investigated, therefore the analysis of feces needs to be passed in the first place. Its results will help determine the presence of blood or parasites in the feces, which can cause symptoms similar to other diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
A complete blood count is a mandatory study that helps to accurately determine the number of shaped blood cells (red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets), as well as determine the ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate). The number of each of them allows us to conclude that there is an infectious and inflammatory process in the body, to establish anemia, indicating internal bleeding.
You will also need to have a blood test for celiac disease. This is a test that eliminates the likelihood of a specific immune response of the body to gluten - a protein found in cereals.
Sigmoidoscopy and colonoscopy
Despite the similarity of these two instrumental procedures, their difference is as follows: colonoscopy allows you to examine all parts of the large intestine, while sigmoidoscopy is used to study the direct and sigmoid sections. Research is carried out in specialized medical facilities. For such procedures, you need to carefully prepare.
Having assigned the study to a specific date, the doctor should instruct the patient about the rules for preparing for it:
- A few days before the diagnostic procedure, the patient must adhere to a special diet. Plant fiber and products that cause increased gas formation in the intestine fall under the ban. Food should be liquid or puree-like consistency.
- 1-2 days before the examination of the large intestine, the patient must take a powerful laxative (Fortrans, Dufalac, Portalac, Pikoprep, Mikrolaks), and a cleansing enema immediately before the colonoscopy.
Before starting sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy, a slight anesthesia is performed. The patient should be supine. The procedure is carried out on a special table. An endoscopic examiner inserts a flexible tube into the anus of the patient with a camera at the end — it will display an image of the intestinal wall on the monitor screen. Irritation can be recognized by the hyperemic surface of the mucous membrane.
Such types of research are indispensable, as they are able to give all the necessary information about the condition of the large intestine. In addition, during the diagnostic procedure, the doctor has the opportunity to immediately take a sample of the detected neoplasm in order to find out the nature of its origin in a histological examination.
After the procedure, the possibility of side effects such as bloating and abdominal cramps within two hours is not excluded. Over the next day, the patient is better to refrain from driving a vehicle. This time is quite enough to completely stop the effects of painkillers and sedatives.
In extremely rare cases, patients are prescribed CT or MRI with gadolinium, a contrast agent that can detect malignant tumors. In addition to oncology, sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy is performed with suspected nephrolithiasis, appendicitis, fecal stones.
The role of fiber in treating bowel irritation
Symptoms in adults and children suffering from this problem determine the choice of therapy for diagnosed IBS. The principle of treatment is to correct the diet and change the lifestyle, as a result of which it is possible to achieve a significant reduction in the severity and frequency of symptoms, and in uncomplicated cases, completely eliminate it. In addition to diet, the patient may be prescribed drug therapy and the help of a psychologist.
It is important to understand that a single universal diet of some kind does not exist. What you can eat, and what the patient should refuse, the doctor must decide. An approximate menu is compiled at a specialist appointment. The diet is selected individually depending on the reaction of the intestine to different types of products. Today, gastroenterologists recommend keeping a diary in which for one month it will be necessary to note which foods were eaten and what kind of body reaction to them followed. Keeping a diary will help identify foods that contribute to intestinal irritation.
How to treat the disease? It is worth noting that taking medication will not bring results without dietary correction. Before taking medication, it is first of all important to review the possibility of consuming dietary fiber. In patients experiencing problems due to intestinal irritation, symptoms and treatment depend on the type of fiber used. There are two main types of fiber food:
- soluble fiber, which includes oatmeal, barley, rye products, fresh fruits (bananas, apples), berries and vegetables, except cabbage;
- insoluble fiber, which contains whole grain bread, bran, nuts and seeds, cabbage and other products.
Insoluble fibers are not digested, but are excreted from the body almost unchanged. Patients who suffer from diarrhea-type IBS should refuse to use products containing insoluble fiber. It is also recommended to reduce the consumption of vegetables with a hard skin, and fruits are not fresh, but baked or stewed. In chronic constipation, an emphasis in nutrition is best placed on products containing soluble dietary fiber. In addition, patients should increase the daily amount of fluid consumed.
The basic principles of diet for treatment and prevention
The clinical picture of the disease can worsen and fade, depending on the patient’s nutrition. To improve the condition and well-being with irritated intestines, it is important to observe the following rules:
- You need to eat regularly, try to do it at the same time, avoid hours-long intervals between meals.
- It is advisable to drink at least 6 glasses of liquid per day, not counting juices, broths, compotes. Tea and coffee should be discarded or at least limited to three cups per day.
- With irritation of the small intestine under the strict prohibition of carbonated and alcoholic drinks, caution should be exercised in the use of citrus fruits.
- With diarrhea, any sweeteners are contraindicated, including sorbitol and its derivatives. Most often, such substances are found in products for people with diabetes mellitus, chewing gums marked "sugar free".
- With flatulence and bloating, oatmeal will be useful.
Based on the above principles of dieting, a gastroenterologist helps the patient to make a healthy and non-intestinal diet, which should be followed not only in the treatment of intestinal irritation. Diet is the main and most effective measure of disease prevention.
Probiotics and Prebiotics
Probiotics are not a group of drugs, they are nutritional supplements that contain live microorganisms - sour-milk bacteria, which are necessary for the full assimilation of food and normal functioning of the digestive system (Bifiform, Linex, Acylact, Bifilis, etc.) . Prebiotics can conditionally be called food for beneficial bacteria. Such drugs help restore the balance of microflora, contribute to an increase in the number of lactobacilli and bifidobacteria, inhibit the activity of conditionally pathogenic microbes in the intestines (Lactulose, Hilak forte, Lysozyme, Pantothenic acid, inulin preparations).
It is clinically proven that the systemic use of probiotics and prebiotics helps to weaken the signs of intestinal irritation or their disappearance. Despite the fact that these drugs are not medicines, you need to take them after consulting a doctor, following the recommendations of the manufacturer.
Intestinal irritation medication
In addition to probiotics and prebiotics, other groups of drugs are used in the treatment of IBS.
First of all, antispasmodics are prescribed that help eliminate pain and spasms of the smooth muscles of the intestines (Duspatalin, Sparex, Trimedat, Niaspam, Papaverine, Mebeverin). Taking such medications helps to get rid of certain symptoms of the disease. Most antispasmodics contain peppermint oil, which can cause heartburn, short itching and burning in the anus. Before using the funds, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the contraindications. Many of the antispasmodics can not be used in children and pregnant women.
Laxatives are the second group of drugs that help relieve intestinal irritation. As a rule, patients with frequent constipation are prescribed Metamucil, Citrusel, and Equalactin. The action of these drugs is aimed at increasing the mass of feces and their fluid content, which makes the stool softer, allows excrement to move unhindered to the rectum.
When taking laxatives, it is important not to limit the amount of drink. Water is necessary so that dietary fiber, which is the basis of such drugs, getting into the intestine, can swell and increase the mass of excrement. When treating laxatives, it is important to strictly follow the manufacturer's instructions. It is advisable to start treatment with the drug with minimal doses, increasing them, if necessary, until the feces change their consistency and acts of defecation become regular. Before going to bed, laxatives are not taken. Almost all drugs in this group provoke bloating and flatulence.
Treatment of diarrheal type intestinal irritation involves the use of antidiarrheal fastening agents (Smecta, Loperamide, Imodium). The main purpose of these drugs is to slow intestinal motility: due to inhibition of intestinal motility, the time taken for the food to pass through the gastrointestinal tract increases. Due to this, feces have time to condense and reach the desired volume, which makes it easier to defecate.
In addition to a positive effect on the body, antidiarrheal agents have a number of side effects, in particular, they cause bloating, drowsiness, nausea, and dizziness. Pregnant women should not use these drugs.
If the patient's psychoemotional state is suppressed against intestinal irritation, antidepressants are prescribed. Among the popular and inexpensive drugs, it is worth noting Citalopram, Fluoxetine, Imipramine, Amitriptyline. By the way, the last two drugs belong to the group of tricyclic antidepressants, which are prescribed only if the patient complains of frequent diarrhea and abdominal pain, but he does not have depressive disorders. Among the side effects, dry mouth, constipation, and drowsiness are most often found.
“Fluoxetine” and “Citalopram” are representatives of the group of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, which are prescribed for abdominal pain, depression and constipation. If you take these medicines with diarrhea, your general condition may worsen. Both drugs can cause similar side effects, among which a short-term loss of visual acuity, dizziness. That is why antidepressants for bowel irritation should be taken under the strict supervision of the attending physician.