Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Is it a Psychogenic or Organic Disease?

Abstract

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a very common medical condition amongst the Mexican adult population, this chronic syndrome is characterized by abdominal pain and changes in bowel habits. The ability to identify a definitive etiology of this disease would not only help us to improve the treatment, it would also enable the possibility to prevent it. This is why the main objective of this article is just that, finding the cause and linking it with dietetic management and nutritional intervention.

There is a bidirectional communication between the central nervous system and the gastro-intestinal tract (brain-intestine axis), this axis is made up from afferent fibers to integrate impulses in the central nervous system and efferent fibers to control smooth muscle, as well as glands and neuroendocrine cells. This communication permits the brain to have direct influence over the intestine, and therefore change bowel habits based on alterations in the brain chemistry such as stress or other strong emotions. Describing a single cause for IBS would be incorrect since there are multiple causes that might be happening simultaneously. Some of them are: infection, immune response, food intolerance, genetics and the psychological factors that were previously mentioned. It is not possible to talk about IBS without considering diet. Most patients with IBS report an intolerance to certain food from the mexican diet, such as lactose, legumes, oligosaccharides, monosaccharides and polioles this group is known as FODMAP,  and they share three main characteristics that are associated with developing symptoms: they have osmotic activity, are poorly absorbed and also are fermented by the microbiome.In conclusion the are multiple etiologies for irritable bowel syndrome, that may or may not be simultaneously happening in a single person.