An Overlooked Cause of IBS: Eating Disorders
Content warning: this article discusses eating disorders, disordered eating and compensatory behaviours involved.
Turns out, there is a clear link between eating disorders (or disordered eating) and gut symptoms. Think bloating, pain, gas, diarrhoea, constipation and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).
It’s complex, multifaceted and… far too often overlooked.
It’s also two-way. Eating disorders can cause gut symptoms and vice versa. But, understanding what’s going on and how a Dietitian fits in will help you identify the best starting point to tackling your health goal.
How Does Disordered Eating Cause Gut Symptoms?
Restricting food
Extreme food restriction (think cutting calories and eliminating foods or food groups) will disrupt gut health. Without enough calories, the body slows down digestion - the muscles along your gut physically weaken! Eliminating foods may also “starve off” certain bacteria, meaning your overall gut microbiome is altered. The end result? Gut symptoms like bloating, constipation, or diarrhea.
Irregular meal timing
Skipping meals or eating inconsistently throws off your body’s natural digestive rhythm. The act of eating stimulates your gut to start working, so long periods without food causes sluggish bowel movements, bloating, and feeling full too quickly. Erratic eating patterns can also swing into overeating or binge eating, both causing bloating and physical discomfort.
Purging
Behaviors like self-induced vomiting or laxative misuse weaken the oespohagus and large bowel. This cascades into symptoms like reflux, heartburn, constipation and long-term reliance on laxatives to pass stools.
But, Gut Symptoms Also Lead to Disordered Eating
Fear of foods
Suspecting a food triggers gut discomfort and distress easily causes a fear of certain foods. This fear just as easily leads to restrictive eating, avoiding foods and disordered eating.
GOING ON an elimination diet
It’s commonly recommended to trial elimination diets when dealing with gut symptoms and IBS. Think going low FODMAP, diary free, gluten free and more. But, these only promote further food restriction, an even greater anxiety around food and an over-fixation on certain foods. Even worse? Elimination diets are stressful to plan, and stress itself directly impacts gut function (read more about this here).
Rigid rules
Imposing rules on what and how much to eat is a sure-fire way to feeling restricted. Both physically (growling stomach, we’re looking at you) and mentally. Together or alone, both forms of restriction can trigger overeating and binge eating.
How a Dietitian Helps
An Accredited Practising Dietitian specialising in this area (like our team!) will provide personalised nutrition support tailored to your unique relationship with food and individual gut symptoms. A specialist Dietitian will pinpoint the right starting strategy that won’t have you heading back into the chicken-and-egg cycle between gut health and disordered eating. You should (and deserve) to also be supported by a Dietitian with the psychological aspects of eating. And, along the entire way, a Dietitian will support you in exploring all the other tools beyond food that help manage gut symptoms, like stress and relaxation techniques, mindfulness, gut-directed hypnotherapy and more.
If you’re after a healthier relationship with food and body and wanting to work towards an intuitive eating style where food and gut symptoms don’t control you, book an appointment with our team today. We can’t wait to meet you.
