When you suffer from IBS, you might find that there are certain days when you're asking yourself what to eat for IBS when you can't eat anything. It may feel as though every ingredient in your kitchen is destined to start an IBS attack, and in some cases when your disease is raging, you can find that your reflex is so sensitive that a drink of water can be enough to cause IBS symptoms to appear.
When this problem happens, you will need to think about how you can give your body a break and maintain a diet full of the safest drinks and foods possible to break your discomfort cycle. Remember, the pain and diarrhea from IBS should resolve themselves within a few days, whereas IBS constipation can take several weeks to get better.
Restricting Your Diet:
When you need to know what to eat for IBS when you can't eat anything, one of the best things to do is restrict your diet to nothing but soluble fiber and supplements. Making sure that you drink plenty of peppermint tea can help too. Peppermint is particularly effective because it is a strong muscle relaxant and a fantastic way to minimize the pain of IBS. On the other hand, Fennel can be ideal for gas and bloating.
While you're changing your diet, try to make sure that you stick to soluble fiber supplements and foods that should assist in stabilizing the GI contractions that are causing your pain and promoting problems with your IBS. This will help to normalize your bowel function from extreme constipation and diarrhea. It's a good idea to stick with plain foods like rice, pasta, breads, oatmeal, and potatoes. Though this isn't a particularly exciting meal plan, it should only be needed for a few days.
Chances are that after a certain period of time of following such a diet, you should start to feel better and notice that your contractions have stabilized. Your diarrhea may have resolved itself, though your IBS constipation could still be an issue. If you are suffering from constipation, try to start expanding your diet carefully with more insoluble fiber, perhaps by blending fruits into your smoothies, or adding cooked vegetables to pasta sauces.
Eating for IBS:
When you're considering what to eat for IBS when you can't eat anything some of the best foods to stick to include pumpkin breads, bananas, zucchini, and more. Make sure that you keep your fat content as low as possible, and be very cautious when you start to incorporate amounts of insoluble fiber into your diet. As you stabilize your diet, you will be able to expand to various other recipes to help control your IBS and continue to follow the general guidelines that are typically in place for IBS sufferers – including low fat, no trigger foods, and careful consumption of insoluble fiber.
As you progress and notice that your stomach has started to recover, you will be able to incorporate a healthier and more complete diet without worrying too much about your IBS. Just keep in mind that soluble fiber should continue to form the basis of your IBS diet, and the foods that are outlined above should continue to make up the basis of your meals.