IBS Specialist or Gastroenterologist: What’s the Difference?
**note: I wanted to thank Melissa "Missy" Culp for finding these articles and for asking intriguing questions on the Gastroparesis Facebook Page. She was my inspiration for my article, so I would like to name her a co-author.
There are IBS Specialists and there are Gastroenterologists.
IBS specialists are experts in IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME (IBS). A gastroenterologist may diagnose IBS, but that will only tell you what you already know, that your bowel irritates you.
To the IBS specialist the label of IBS only serves as a starting point for further investigation, nothing more. The IBS specialist focuses on assessing and diagnosing the cause of your digestive problems, not on the gross structural integrity of the digestive tract. Rather than focusing on the patients symptoms, or simply treating the symptoms, the IBS specialist is devoted to identifying the condition or conditions in the patient that are causing the symptoms.
What Exactly Does a Gastroenterologist Do?
People often make assumptions about medical specialists and their areas of expertise. This is certainly true with gastroenterology, where many people assume that gastroenterologists are experts in all things related to the digestive tract.
Gastroenterologists are experts in diseases of the digestive tract, not syndromes or symptoms. While Gastroenterologists do primarily pay attention to the digestive tract, there are some surprising gaps in their training on the science of digestion. Gastroenterologists primarily focus on performing colonoscopies and upper endoscopies.
They may also do other imaging work of the GI tract, such as an ultrasound, CT scan,MRI, x-rays, and even “pill cameras.” And they may perform studies that assess the motility of the digestive tract. Therefore, if you go to a gastroenterologist your diagnosis will be based on this testing.
Gastroenterology is primarily a specialty in assessing the structure of the digestive tract. Gastroenterologists are focused on diagnosing ulcers, polyps, cancers, and other physically apparent abnormalities of the digestive tract. Surprisingly, they do not have training in nutrition or most reactions to foods. And though the digestive tract is the single most concentrated area of immune activity, gastroenterologists have no special training in immunology.
What Does an IBS Specialist Do?
There are literally hundreds of different causes of IBS and the digestive problems associated with IBS. An IBS specialist does not have any idea about how they will treat an IBS patient when they first meet that patient. Patients with identical symptoms may have radically different causes for those symptoms. An IBS specialist focuses on the detective work required to develop the proper treatment plan for each unique patient.
This process involves a detailed evaluation of how the body is responding to the foods in the diet (food allergies, intolerances, and sensitivities), and a thorough assessment of the profound ecosystem (including probiotics, yeast, bad bacteria, and parasites) that is contained within the digestive tract. It may also involve evaluating enzyme production, acid production, and the overall functioning of the digestive tract.
IBS specialists do not do what gastroenterologist do, and gastroenterologists do not do what IBS specialists do. These are completely different specialties. There is only a very tiny amount of overlap with regard to stool testing. But even this is extremely minor as the IBS specialist utilizes much more advanced stool analyses.
If you have IBS and continue to see gastroenterologists, then you will continue to get the same kind of testing and treatment that you’ve always received, even if you go to the Mayo Clinic, or the Cleveland Clinic, or any other big name medical facility or highly regarded expert – because they have a “standard of care” that recommends limiting testing. If that hasn’t helped, or you’d simply like to begin your journey with a different approach, then you need to see an IBS specialist. Your experience will be very different, which makes it far more likely that the outcome will be very different.
If you suffer from Irritable Bowel Syndrome, you need an IBS specialist. The link to the article can be found HERE.
My friend Melissa, suggested to me, that it would idea to follow a FODMAP DIET. The article about the Fodmap Diet says,
"The FODMAP theory holds that consuming foods high in FODMAPs results in increased volume of liquid and gas in the small and large intestine, resulting in distention and symptoms such as abdominal pain and gas and bloating. The theory proposes that following a low FODMAP diet should result in a decrease in digestive symptoms. The theory further holds that there is a cumulative effect of these foods on symptoms. In other words, eating foods with varying FODMAP values at the same time will add up, resulting in symptoms that you might not experience if you ate the food in isolation. This might explain the mixed results of studies that have evaluated the effects of fructose and lactose, two types of carbohydrates, on IBS. Ongoing research is being conducted as to the accuracy of the FODMAP theory and the effectiveness of the diet for IBS. Research into its effectiveness for IBS is at a very preliminary stage and it is unknown at this point if following such a diet would be safe for your health over the long term. As with any new treatment or dietary approach, it is always best to discuss the issue with your own personal physician."
Common High FODMAP Foods for IBS:
Fruits:
Apples
Apricots
Cherries
Mango
Pears
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Plums and prunes
Watermelon
High concentration of fructose from canned fruit, dried fruit or fruit juice
Grains
Level of FODMAPs is increased when these foods are eaten in large amounts:
Rye
Wheat
Lactose-Containing Foods
Custard
Ice cream
Margarine
Milk (cow, goat, sheep)
Soft cheese, including cottage cheese and ricotta
Yogurt
Legumes
Baked beans
Chickpeas
Lentils
Kidney beans
Sweeteners
Fructose
High fructose corn syrup
Isomalt
Maltitol
Mannitol
Sorbitol
Xylitol
Vegetables
Artichokes
Asparagus
Avocado
Beets
Broccoli
Brussel sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Garlic (with large consumption)
Fennel
Leeks
Mushrooms
Okra
Onions
Peas
Radiccio lettuce
Scallions (white parts)
Shallots
Sugar snap peas
Snow peas
Common Low FODMAP Foods
Fruits
Banana
Blueberry
Grapefruit
Grapes
Honeydew melon
Kiwi
Lemon
Lime
Mandarine oranges
Orange
Raspberry
Strawberry
Sweeteners
Artificial sweeteners that do not end in -ol
Glucose
Maple syrup
Sugar (sucrose)
Lactose Alternatives
Butter
Hard cheese, brie and camembert
Lactose-free products, such as lactose-free ice cream and yogurt
Gelato
Rice milk
Sorbet
Vegetables
Bell peppers
Bok choy
Carrots
Celery
Corn
Eggplant
Green beans
Lettuce
Parsnip
Scallions (green parts only)
Sweet potato
Tomato
Grains
Oats
Gluten-free products
Spelt products
Now I want to get into SIBO. If you have Gastroparesis, SIBO is a legit concern. Crystal Saltrelli wrote an article about SIBO not too long ago. Here is an exert of her article about SIBO if you would like to read it,
"What is SIBO? SIBO stands for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. It’s also sometimes called small bowel bacterial overgrowth or SIBO. It all means the same thing: there are bacteria in your small intestine that are not supposed to be there. What causes SIBO? One of the biggest risk factors for SIBO is… slow gut motility. Muscular contractions within the gut are supposed to sweep things, both food and bacteria, through the GI tract. When it doesn’t, bacteria can take hold and multiply in places where they don’t belong. This is bad news for GPers, of course, and even worse if you’re chronically constipated, as bacteria may migrate upward from the colon to the small intestine, as well. What’s more, it’s thought that protein pump inhibitors (PPIs), which many GPers are immediately prescribed, may encourage the growth of bacteria by limiting (or even eliminating) the anti-bacterial effects of acid in the stomach."
You can find Crystal's Article by clicking HERE.
The link to the article can be found >HERE.
