Exclusion Diet – An Explanation

 So what is an exclusion diet? 

No, it’s not an exclusion from dieting, nice try though! 

Nor is it a fancy weight-loss system. 

An exclusion diet is a food-based process of elimination, more often than not, prescribed for IBS sufferers and those with sudden, unexplained allergic reaction that keep reoccurring over a lengthy period. 

Basically, certain foods or groups of foods are excluded from the diet for a short period of time and then sometimes reintroduced, to see whether they are causing the symptoms. Likely allergens or other foods to which a patient may be sensitive are avoided. 

The foods which most often cause intolerance, such as wheat or dairy are usually the first to be excluded. They may progress to cutting out other foods such as citrus fruit, gluten-containing foods such as barley and rye, and caffeine-containing drinks such as coffee. 

The exclusion diet will work in one of two ways, depending on whether the likely allergen is known. In cases where a particular food is suspected to cause an allergic reaction or intolerance, that food is strictly avoided for a period of time. If avoiding the food causes the symptoms to subside, and ingesting some in a double-blind food challenge causes them to return, that normally indicates allergies. 

Exclusion diets can be very useful because they are like small scientific experiments with your body. If the only factor you change is the food you are eating, and your symptoms change dramatically, then there is a good likelihood that that food is causing the change. 

The problem with a diet like this is that is does take time and commitment and like any diet it can be difficult to stick to. However, finding that your symptoms improve, or disappear, is often a great motivator! 

If you find that an exclusion diet identifies certain foods that make your IBS symptoms worse, they are often called 'trigger foods' (because they 'trigger' the symptoms). 

Trigger foods will vary from person to person, but there does seem to be some foods which are identified by many sufferers as being problematic. 

It should be clarified that exclusion diets should only be undertaken after consulting a doctor and then being adequately supervised by one.

These diets are generally safe, but a medically trained doctor or specialist will be able to recommend when exclusion diets are appropriate, advise how they can be effectively carried out, and interpret their results properly. 

Written by

Darren Gray

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