Many people don't know there are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble.
There's a great review on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietary_fiber. Wikipedia's definition of fiber is as follows:
Dietary fiber, sometimes called roughage, is the indigestible portion of plant foods having two main components — soluble (prebiotic, viscous) fiber that is readily fermented in the colon into gases and physiologically active byproducts, and insoluble fiber that is metabolically inert, absorbing water throughout the digestive system and easing defecation. It acts by changing the nature of the contents of the gastrointestinal tract, and by changing how other nutrients and chemicals are absorbed.
I have read a lot about the benefits of fiber for both diarrhea and constipation over the years. However, in my experience, insoluble fiber tends to make diarrhea worse for many sufferers, while soluble fiber does help "thicken" the stools. Thus, I recommend to decrease insoluble fiber and increase soluble fiber in the diet.
Examples of insoluble fiber are: nuts, seeds, bran, seeds such as flax seed, sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds, skin of the potato & tomato, and wheat bran
Examples of soluble fiber are: bananas, oatmeal, inside of the potato, beans, soybeans, barley
**Note: I have been working on this post for several weeks now. I'm not sure why I let it stump me so much. I will add more fiber info later as I have time!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Tip #1 Avoid Caffeine
I have a handout I give my patients called, Top 14 Ways to Stop Typical Chronic Diarrhea. I will be posting each of my tips one by one. When the last tip is posted, I will attach the handout to the blog for reference.
Tip #1
Cut back or preferably stop consuming anything that contains caffeine, such as coffee, tea, soda, chocolate, energy drinks or diet pills. Caffeine speeds up gastrointestinal (GI) motility and makes everything move through faster.
Simply stated, CAFFEINE CONSUMPTION = MORE DIARRHEA. I find this to be one of the biggest dietary causes of chronic diarrhea in the clients I counsel. Yet, many do not want to give up that morning cup of coffee.
Tip #1
Cut back or preferably stop consuming anything that contains caffeine, such as coffee, tea, soda, chocolate, energy drinks or diet pills. Caffeine speeds up gastrointestinal (GI) motility and makes everything move through faster.
Simply stated, CAFFEINE CONSUMPTION = MORE DIARRHEA. I find this to be one of the biggest dietary causes of chronic diarrhea in the clients I counsel. Yet, many do not want to give up that morning cup of coffee.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Introduction - me, diet, and diarrhea
I have been working on a book on Diet and Diarrhea for about 3 years. (I just looked back and my first draft was dated 1-28-07!) Every year I write in my Christmas letter how the book will be finished before the next year. I am being sincere in my desire! Life just gets in the way.
Let me introduce myself. I am a registered, licensed, dietitian specializing in gastrointestinal problems. I provide outpatient nutrition counseling for conditions such as Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Celiac Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), past surgeries where parts of the digestive system have been removed, constipation, and what I like to call "garden variety" diarrhea. This is often chronic diarrhea where no cause has ever been determined. I really enjoy trying to solve those cases.
I have had diarrhea most of my life. It started to get worse when I was in 7th grade. I had my first barium enema (yuck) at 13, then a small bowel follow through, and sigmoidoscopy at age 17. Since they never found anything objective, my doctor shrugged his shoulder and labeled me with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or IBS.
The digestive system always fascinated me. I remember lovingly coloring my digestive diagrams in high school elective anatomy class. In college, I initially majored Pre-Med, then Pharmacy, before finally graduating with Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Food Management.
In school, I learned how to teach diabetic, renal, weight loss, weight gain, surgical, and other diets to patients. But no one taught me how to educate patients on what to do if they have gastrointestinal problems. This surprised me! ...it just makes sense-- the food you eat must go through the digestive system before it enters the body. So, it became my passion: to learn how to teach people to eat when their tummy doesn't seem to work like everyone else's.
Flash forward fifteen years. I have worked as a registered dietitian for 13+ years. My approach is three parts: first, my education in human anatomy/physiology and nutrition, secondly, my experience as a dietitian in learning what works for people and what doesn't, and finally, my own personal issues with diarrhea over the years.
I am a pretty straightforward person. I'm not afraid to talk about anything related to poop. I can even say diarrhea in public without my face turning red. One of my goals in life is to convince the world that it is ok to talk about bowels, diarrhea, and gas. It was said best in a children s book, "Everyone Poops". And let's face it, everyone does. If yours aren't normal, this might be a good place to discuss it, with people you may never meet.
My intent is to blog as I write my book. I will try to include bits of wisdom and insight into my blog, and hopefully, into my book. Let's take this journey together.
Let me introduce myself. I am a registered, licensed, dietitian specializing in gastrointestinal problems. I provide outpatient nutrition counseling for conditions such as Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Celiac Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), past surgeries where parts of the digestive system have been removed, constipation, and what I like to call "garden variety" diarrhea. This is often chronic diarrhea where no cause has ever been determined. I really enjoy trying to solve those cases.
I have had diarrhea most of my life. It started to get worse when I was in 7th grade. I had my first barium enema (yuck) at 13, then a small bowel follow through, and sigmoidoscopy at age 17. Since they never found anything objective, my doctor shrugged his shoulder and labeled me with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or IBS.
The digestive system always fascinated me. I remember lovingly coloring my digestive diagrams in high school elective anatomy class. In college, I initially majored Pre-Med, then Pharmacy, before finally graduating with Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Food Management.
In school, I learned how to teach diabetic, renal, weight loss, weight gain, surgical, and other diets to patients. But no one taught me how to educate patients on what to do if they have gastrointestinal problems. This surprised me! ...it just makes sense-- the food you eat must go through the digestive system before it enters the body. So, it became my passion: to learn how to teach people to eat when their tummy doesn't seem to work like everyone else's.
Flash forward fifteen years. I have worked as a registered dietitian for 13+ years. My approach is three parts: first, my education in human anatomy/physiology and nutrition, secondly, my experience as a dietitian in learning what works for people and what doesn't, and finally, my own personal issues with diarrhea over the years.
I am a pretty straightforward person. I'm not afraid to talk about anything related to poop. I can even say diarrhea in public without my face turning red. One of my goals in life is to convince the world that it is ok to talk about bowels, diarrhea, and gas. It was said best in a children s book, "Everyone Poops". And let's face it, everyone does. If yours aren't normal, this might be a good place to discuss it, with people you may never meet.
My intent is to blog as I write my book. I will try to include bits of wisdom and insight into my blog, and hopefully, into my book. Let's take this journey together.
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