Using the principles of a Mediterranean diet to promote a healthier gut microbiome to help manage IBS
Why a Mediterranean Diet?
It’s important to acknowledge that there is no one “perfect” Mediterranean diet and that the Mediterranean diet is not the only way of eating to benefit our gut health. But the Mediterranean diet has been studied extensively and so has good evidence, and for those of us living in Australia eating a largely western style diet, it’s easy to start incorporating a number of the principles. However, any traditional diet will likely contain the variety of foods required to keep our gut microbiome healthy.
A recent trial of the Mediterranean diet in people with IBS and anxiety and/or depression showed improvement in IBS symptoms (and mood) without restricting any foods such as FODMAPs.
Clinical trial: A Mediterranean diet is feasible and improves gastrointestinal and psychological symptoms in irritable bowel syndrome
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There are few other factors to consider before starting to explore the Mediterranean diet as a way to improve IBS symptoms and we find most people start to see improvements even before implementing diet changes.
These include:
- Regularity and consistency of eating pattern
- Really understanding what comfortably full means to you – it’s not unusual to confuse a level of fullness with feeling bloated
- Your general relationship with food – any form of anxiety or distress around food, often in relation to body size and shape or due to concern over having a food reaction, click link for free relationship with food quiz
- Your mood or stress levels at the time of eating
We will help you ensure all of these points are addressed before considering any possibility of food intolerance (or dietary elimination) and before looking at the Mediterranean diet as an alternative to long-term management of your IBS.
Symptoms of IBS can include (but not limited to):
- Bowel changes (diarrhoea and/or constipation)
- Abdominal bloating (with or without distention)
- Stomach cramps or other stomach pain
- Excess (and sometimes) smelly wind
Zoe has been working as a food intolerance dietitian for over 20 years and Kerrie for 15 years, helping adults and children (all ages) with both the RPAH (or failsafe) elimination diet and the low FODMAP diet when it’s necessary. Years of experience working with individuals and elimination diets have shown Zoe and Kerrie that in most cases they are NOT necessary. Part of your assessment with our dietitians will be to determine if an elimination diet is necessary for you, or if the elimination that you have been doing actually needs to be relaxed for you to start seeing managing your symptoms better.
When assessing you for food intolerance, we will also consider your overall mental health, including your relationship with food and any trauma or eating disorder history, as these can significantly impact gut health and symptoms. Our experienced dietitians will discuss the mind and gut connection and how any anxiety, especially anxiety around your relationship with food and body image, can be a key cause for gut symptoms.
Many of our clients are relieved to discover that though addressing their relationship with food and establishing a calm and consistent eating pattern, that many of their gut symptoms settle right down. This can also be true for non-gut related symptoms, where certain eating behaviours can lead to over-dosing on known food triggers, and if those eating behaviours are resolved, the food is no longer a trigger for symptoms. It is a much better outcome to find you aren’t as food sensitive as you thought and that you can eat more freely, especially with social eating!
This page is in the process of being written, much more info coming soon…
