People with SIBO put a lot of focus on food. Figuring out the Right Diet that will allay symptoms for good, once and for all, is basically our Holy Grail. I've talked about this a bunch, like in this earlier post about creating your own list of safe foods to eat. But what if not eating anything at all for a while was the answer?
In an article entitled "Effects of fasting on irritable bowel syndrome" (Kanazawa M, Fukudo S. Int J Behav Med. 2006;13(3):214-20), a study is described where fifty-eight patients with IBS were divided into two groups. One group was given prescription meds and psychotherapy to reduce their symptoms. The other group fasted for 10 days, drinking only water. To break the fast, food was reintroduced in a controlled manner over a 5 day period.
Results? The 10-day fasting group did better. Fasting was found to significantly improve 7 out of the 10 symptoms assessed: abdominal pain-discomfort, abdominal distension, diarrhea, anorexia, nausea,
anxiety and "interference with life in general" (love that symptom). Drugs and psychotherapy improved only 3 symptoms (abdominal pain-discomfort,
abdominal distension and interference with life.)
The researchers concluded that fasting may have beneficial effects on
intractable IBS. "Intractable" would include those of us for whom IBS has advanced to SIBO, I fathom.
In my former life, I juice fasted on a regular basis (consuming only
green juices and/or veggie juices with lemon and green apple added for
flavor and sweetness, see photo above.) A 3-day fast was sufficient to give great
results in the bloating department, although I remember feeling gassy was still a problem.
I hesitate to water fast, despite the great results reported above. Fasting on water alone is often not recommended for anyone. There are different reasons for this, such as potential to damage the intestinal lining due to lack of substrate for fiber-fermenting bacteria. (Hmmm...isn't that who we want to starve? I'm in a quandary.)
One popular SIBO therapy is to follow a 10-day+ Elemental Diet, which is essentially a modified fast with fortified liquid protein drinks taken daily. Supposedly they taste pretty nasty, though.
I'm having good luck doing a very simple, unflavored isolated whey protein shake in the AM, which I spike with powdered supplements including L-glutamine, quercetin and a powdered multivitamin/mineral. Now I'm thinking about doing some kind of fast, maybe drinking more of these shakes per day in place of meals, or adding in small quantities of low-FODMAP vegetable juices. Not sure, just contemplating. Would love to hear your thoughts.
Bottom line: Diet alone isn't cutting it.
There's also evidence that fasting improves intestinal permeability (leaky gut) although the benefits are often lost when eating is resumed. This might depend on WHAT is being eaten, of course. Example: a vegetarian diet with dairy caused relapse—not surprising to those of us eating SIBO-specifically!
ReplyDeleteRead more here: http://leakygutresearch.com/fasting/
I have read much on water only fasting and suggest you might benefit feom more research as well. Shelton condicted tens of thousands of water only fasts - some as long 60 days (fast over 3-5 days need qualified medical supervision, meaning someone experienced in conducting and monitoring water only fasts) a and there is no end to the conditions that were healed by the body. Fasting is natural and it's only in our corner of the world - industrial food corner - that 3 meals a day and fasting is dangerous became an unfortunate erroneous bit of prooganda. Health and happiness : )
ReplyDeleteIf it works for you, perishable goods, then great! However, I don't generally recommend water or any type of long-term fasting for SIBO. Our goal here is to learn HOW to EAT to keep symptoms down. Of course, not eating anything decreases bloating! But eventually, we must eat. Therefore, how?
DeleteFasting is especially problematic for people who have dealt with binge eating or any type of ED in the past, or present. Fasting can be extremely therapeutic but often the re-entry to eating solid food again does not go well, undoes any gains and may even make things worse. That is my experience.