ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Ivanhoe Newswire) – Avoiding trigger foods and finding relief can be difficult and cumbersome for those with irritable bowel syndrome, IBS. But a new test can simplify the entire process.
Prepping dinner for Natalie Vasher means chopping peppers, marinating chicken, and serving it all with a side of relief. Vasher was suffering from irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS. It started in 2016.
“I felt gas, and bloating and just not feeling like myself no matter what I ate,” Vasher tells Ivanhoe.
She did what many in her situation do – an elimination low FODMAP diet. FODMAP is an acronym for a class of carbohydrates that are hard for some people to digest. The process of elimination can take up to four months. But a new blood test, called inFoods, can cut that time down to two to four weeks.
“The blood sample is tested for various antibodies to common food triggers in patients with IBS, based upon results, an elimination diet is fashioned,” Professor of gastroenterology at Michigan Medicine, William Chey, MD, explains.
It looks at patient reactions to 18 foods that can commonly activate an elevated immune response through the production of IgG antibodies. The results show if a food should be green-lighted or red-lighted.
Dr. Chey adds, “Eliminating those foods, in our study, was associated with an improvement in overall IBS symptoms.”
Natalie’s red lights are onions, stone fruit, apples, and high-fat dairy. She makes adjustments to her diet that keep her symptoms under control.
The Biomerica inFoods IBS blood test needs a doctor’s prescription. It will be offered at gastro-health locations around the country and will be offered at other medical networks soon. The study took place at the University of Michigan, Harvard University, the Mayo Clinic, and Texas Medical Center.
Contributors to this news report include: Hillary Rubin, Producer; Darius Smith, Videographer; Roque Correa, Editor.
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MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS
RESEARCH SUMMARY
TOPIC: IBS STUDY: FINDING FOOD TRIGGERS FASTER
REPORT: MB #5229
BACKGROUND: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common condition characterized by abdominal discomfort associated with altered bowel movements. Recent research has shown that many symptoms of IBS are related to hypersensitivity of the nerves found in the wall of the gastrointestinal tract. These nerves are distinct from those in your spinal cord and brain. For some people, IBS may arise from how the gut nerves communicate with the brain, or how the brain processes that information. It is estimated that 10% to 15% of adults in the United States have IBS. It’s also diagnosed in about twice as many females as males.
(Sources: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/irritable-bowel-syndrome-ibs
DIAGNOSING: Symptoms of IBS vary but are usually present for a long time. The most common include: abdominal pain, cramping or bloating that is related to passing a bowel movement, changes in appearance of bowel movement, and/or changes in how often you are having a bowel movement. There’s no test to definitively diagnose IBS. Your health care provider is likely to start with a complete medical history, physical exam and tests to rule out other conditions, such as celiac disease and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). After other conditions have been ruled out, your provider is likely to use one of these sets of diagnostic criteria for IBS:
Rome criteria. These criteria include belly pain and discomfort averaging at least one day a week in the last three months and also occur with at least two of the following: pain and discomfort related to defecation, a change in the frequency of defecation, or a change in stool consistency.
Type of IBS. IBS can be divided into four types, based on your symptoms: constipation-predominant, diarrhea-predominant, mixed or unclassified.
(Sources: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/irritable-bowel-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20360016
NEW TECHNOLOGY: inFoods® IBS is a laboratory developed test designed for the identification of foods that cause an elevated immune response in IBS patients that may cause or trigger symptoms such as pain and bloating. Trigger foods and specific cut-off levels were selected for each food in the inFoods IBS panel by comparing the immune responses in healthy control subjects to IBS patients. (A cut-off level is the value used to determine if someone is positive or negative for the food.)
(Source: https://biomerica.com/infoods/)
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS REPORT, PLEASE CONTACT:
Jina Sawani
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