If you have irritable bowel syndrome or IBS, you will have days where it feels like you can’t eat anything. This is not just in your head, it actually means that you have a flareup of gastrocolic reflex sensitivity. Even drinking water can send your colon into contraction at this point. So what to eat for IBS when you cant eat anything? First, you need to give your body a rest, and this also means watching what nutrients you give it.

Within a few days, the pain and diarrhea should resolve. However, the constipation can take several weeks. You must try to break the cycle by restricting what you eat. What to eat for IBS when you cant eat anything is based mainly on soluble fiber supplements and foods, as well as hot, strong peppermint tea. If you have acid reflux, you might want to take anise, chamomile, or fennel, instead.

Understanding What to Eat for IBS When You Can’t Eat Anything:

First of all, try incorporating mild activity in your life so that your bowel muscles are gently exercised and encouraged to return to normal. Easy yoga positions, Pilates, stretching, and walking work best. This is particularly important if you have IBS constipation.

Next, you need to fix the GI contractions through soluble fiber supplements and foods. This will help whether you have IBS constipation or diarrhea. Good foods include peeled potatoes, white breads, pasta, oatmeal, white rice, and other plain, boring foods. Make sure you also add a prebiotic soluble fiber, however, preferably a supplement.

You should feel a lot better after just a few days, as the contractions of your gut become stabilized. If you have IBS diarrhea, it should have stabilized, although you may still be constipated. Now is the time when you can start adding small bits of insoluble fibers, such as making smoothies out of fresh fruits, pasta sauces out of fresh vegetables, and soups. Continue to eat white rice as well.

IBS Diet Recipes:

There are a number of popular IBS diet recipes, such as pumpkin, banana, and zucchini breads, which are really good at this point. Jok rice porridge soup is also beneficial. Try to eat oatmeal with low fat soy milk and test the waters with some skinless chicken breast of grilled fish. Banana cream pie, peppermint fudge cake, chocolate or vanilla silk pudding, and lemon rice puddings are good occasional treats.

You must keep the fat content in your foods low, particularly when you start to add insoluble fibers. Always follow the IBS guidelines at each step, which includes low fat, insoluble fibers, and no trigger foods. Doing this diligently should mean you can return to a normal diet quite soon. Most important is that the basis of your diet is soluble fibers at all times. So long as that is your foundation, you shouldn’t have such bad flare ups as often anymore either. Essentially, it will help you to stabilize a spastic colon.

Safe Foods to Consider:

– White bread

– Toasted plain English muffins or bagels

– Cream of rice cereal

– Unsalted or salted pretzels

– Fat free fortune cookies or saltines

– Home made or mixed plain angel food cake

– Plain white rice or skinless baked potatoes

– Arrowroot crackers

– Cold fat free cereals

– Fresh or homemade dried bananas

– Plain non-egg cooked pasta

– Ginger, chamomile, fennel, and peppermint tea