Managing IBS With a Hectic Work Life
We all wish to create a personal-professional balance in our lives, but it’s not as easy
as it sounds, nor is it easy to achieve. We all strive to create balance between one
thing or the other, but it’s easier said than done. Our lifestyle drives everything that
happens to us physically, emotionally and mentally. It’s common to hear about stress
related issues, but it is common often to ignore the symptoms in our own lives.
From depression, to muscle soreness to gut issues, stress has a direct relationship
with our health ailments, but it often goes undiagnosed.
Did you know, depression, anxiety and stress directly affects our intestines and gut?
Our stomach reacts to the thought of food by releasing digestive juices, regardless of
the fact that we actually consume the food or not. One often experiences that while
managing a hectic work schedule. Missing meals is a common habit for workaholic,
where one prioritizes attending meetings, or traveling or finishing tasks over having
timely meals. Stress and fluctuating diet intake is a leading factor of IBS i.e. Irritable
Bowel Syndrome.
IBS is slowly becoming one of the most common ailments, with no fixed solution on
the horizon. However, IBS is not a disease but a combination of symptoms that lead
to gut issues. More often than not, stress is one of the leading factors of IBS and is
found commonly affecting working professionals and teenagers.
Although managing IBS with a hectic lifestyle isn’t easy, one can still take measures
to help alleviate the symptoms of IBS, like:
Staying hydrated
Balancing your electrolytes by increasing water/fluid intake helps in managing
the acidic content of the stomach and also regulate bowel movement. Fluids
like water, ORS, juices, detox waters, herbal teas, etc are good options to
keep oneself hydrated.
Timely meals
A simple habit like having timely meals can have an immense effect on your
gut health. Timely meals not only help in increasing your metabolism but also
helps increase food digestion.
Regular sleep schedule
Small changes like changing your sleep cycle or fixing a routine in your daily
life can do wonders for your gut. Even if you have a fixed sleep schedule,
making changes to it helps in managing the symptoms of IBS.
Reduce processed food
Processed food have preservatives and other hidden ingredients that can
harmful for our gut, and quintessentially our health in all. Certain chemicals,
combined with stale or preserved food can easily trigger the symptoms of IBS.
Increase fibre in your diet
Fibre-rich foods (like fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, supplements etc.) can
help if you’re struggling with constipation. Introduce fibre slowly into your diet
to give your gut time to adjust.
Limited caffeine intake
Caffeine products like tea, coffee, energy drinks, etc. can increase acidity and
damage your stomach lining. These alleviate the symptoms of IBS and add to
your discomfort.
Limit dairy products
IBS often makes people lactose intolerant, causing IBS symptoms to flare up.
Limiting or avoiding dairy products like cheese, milk, butter etc. prevents your
gut from getting irritated and helps avoid symptoms like acidity, gas and
diarrhoea.
Opting for a supplement, preferably plant based can help you deal with IBS
symptoms and help to heal your gut. Bene Esse’s IBS Gone is one such precision
based nutraceutical that aims at healing your gut from within without the help of
synthesised chemicals, which can harm your health in the long run. However,
making changes to your lifestyle, along with opting for supplements is one of the best
ways to deal with symptoms of IBS. The key to maintaining your gut health is to
focus of reducing stress in your life and making changes to your daily routine.