There seems to be a common suggestion that food actually causes irritable bowel syndrome, and that the illness is caused by eating certain foods. This is simply not true – IBS is a functional disorder, which means that the problem is in the actual function of your bowels and not in the food that you eat. There is not any known cause of irritable bowel syndrome.

It is however true, that although not the cause of IBS, some foods will bring on the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. These symptoms include diarrhea, abdominal pains, constipation and abdominal pains.

This is a list of some foods (and drinks) that can cause problems:

(1) Any high fat foods - It is best to try and keep your fat content below 25%. This is because when fat is introduced into your stomach, your colon will then start to contract, causing the ibs symptoms.

(2) Alcohol – Although ok in small amounts, larger quantities can be an irritant. This is especially so if you drink on an empty stomach.

(3) Coffee – Most people accept that caffeine can cause a problem, but did you realise that even sticking to the decaf coffee can bring on the ibs symptoms. This is because the decaf coffee still has an enzyme which can be irritating to your gut. Coffee which is not decaf will be even worse as caffeine itself is also an irritant. So putting it all bluntly drinking coffee, whichever type, is not a good idea if you suffer with irritable bowel syndrome.

This is not an exhaustive list of ibs foods to avoid, but it can give you a good idea.

To balance out the foods that can cause problems, there are also those that are better for you if you suffer from IBS. One particular type of ibs foods to eat are those that contain a high soluble fibre content because these will greatly assist in the digesting of your food.

Try not to just see the negative side of what you can and can’t eat when you suffer with ibs, you just need to find the correct types of ibs foods that suit you. If you do this you will find that your symptoms will be more under control than if you eat the wrong foods. More Information on how you can look after your ibs here