ieve pain and improve motility of the digestive system.The final recommendation of this article was to reduce stress. Doctors used to view IBS as a disease that was "all in the head" of patients. Although many physicians realize the legitimacy of the syndrome, it has been proven that stress can aggravate symptoms by causing an anticipatory response. Many patients complain of anxiety and feeling a lack of control in certain situations, which increases the probability of experiencing problems with IBS symptoms on that particular occasion *8*.Because of the lack of response from medical doctors and failure to be taken seriously, many IBS sufferers have chosen to take a different route to healing-alternative therapy. Various forms of this type of therapy include the use of herbs, vitamins and minerals, yoga, aromatherapy, meditation, massage and acupuncture.According to the April 2000 issue of GreatLife magazine, Australian researchers treated 116 IBS patients three times a day with the following herbs: Dang Shen, Huo Xiang and Fang Feng. Improvement in these patients was confirmed by gastroenterologists (18). Further herbs used in the management of IBS symptoms include milk thistle, licorice, burdock root, red clover, alfalfa, aloe vera, skullcap, peppermint, valerian root, balm, chamomile, ginger and pau d'arco.Vitamins and minerals can be used to supplement the body to help heal the intestines and lower the stress level in IBS patients. It is important to have extra B vitamins in the body for proper muscle tone in the gastrointestinal tract, proper absorption of foods, protein synthesis, and metabolism of carbohydrates and fats. Acidophilus is a necessary nutrient to replenish the friendly bacteria and to aid in digestion and the manufacture of B vitamins. Garlic is also used as a digestive aid and destroys toxins in the colon. A major metabolic fuel for the intestinal cells, L-Glutamine maintains the absorption surfaces of the...
