Help me sort my stomach problems out

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Sorry, posted in AIBU to reach more people.

I'm 36 and have had stomach issues since my early twenties. At first I put it down to anxiety brought on by family problems. For a couple of years I managed this with anti-anxiety medication and then when I felt better came off them.
I've always been quite an anxious person anyway and have in recent years experienced two traumatic events which I've successfully completed therapy for and for the first time in years I feel like I'm back to the old me. I feel happy, don't feel overly anxious, I just feel content.
This has lead me to look into why I'm still having stomach issues. By stomach issues I mean an upset stomach, sometimes completely out of the blue so I have to run to the loo.
A few months ago I followed the FODMAP diet to try and work out if something in my diet was triggering the bad stomach. I found out (much to my amazement) that garlic was the main culprit! I have always eaten tons of garlic so it was crazy to me that all this time something I'd been consuming on a daily basis might have been affecting my stomach. It's that sensitive that even if something has garlic powder in it which you wouldn't expect like a pre-packed sandwich, it will set my stomach upset off.

The only thing I'm not sure about with the garlic issue is that if I've had an intolerance to this wouldn't I have had this all my life and wouldn't I have noticed sooner? I did have three rounds of antibiotics last year and someone mentioned that this could have destroyed the good bacteria in my stomach which has then led to an intolerance to garlic. It's so confusing!

Another culprit is alcohol. If I stick to spirits I am generally ok, but anything else and my stomach is awful.

So my question is...
After reading all of the above can anyone make out what might be going on with my stomach?

• Do I need to permanently cut out garlic or are there ways of restoring the good gut bacteria so that I can eat it again?
• Is there a reliable test to check for intolerances?
• What kind of medical specialist could I see who could help me come up with a plan to tackle this - would it be gastro?

Thanks so much for reading!

There is a lot to be said about probiotics. It would depend what good bacteria you are missing so I’d have a Google and start with a good broad spectrum probiotic. For me, acidophilus works a treat in keep my gut healthy (I have ulcerative colitis). If you know garlic causes stomach issues you either need to cut it out completely or accept that it causes issues. I’d maybe give it up for a good couple of months whilst you rebuild the good bacteria and then start to reintroduce. I am no doctor though.

Good luck!

Looking at the alcohol part if beer affects you you could be gluten intolerant. Also if you were it may be thevbre9ad in the sandwich or the pasta that's affecting you and not the garlic. You can become intolerant of gluten at any age. In order to get tested for coeliac disease you do need to have gluten in your system so don't eliminate it yet.

I think it might be worth asking your GP for community dietetics referral. There are some probiotics which are clinically tested but the vast majority of stuff you can get OTC are placebo at best. The way to restore microbiome in your gut is to eat more variety of fresh foods and plenty of fiber. So, look up pre-biotics rather than pro-biotics.
As far as I am aware, NHS doesn't offer intolerance testing. I am dubious about private routes. I think in a field of nutrition, you are most likely to encounter "pay to play" model where they will diagnose you with anything for your own money as long as you continue investing in their supplements-de-jour.

ETA: Just went through my emails to find the names of probiotics that are evidence based from our team's dietician: Symprove, VSL#3 and Alflorex.

If cutting out garlic helps, cut out the garlic! An intolerance isn’t an allergy and you can’t test for it. The test is exactly what you’ve done, an elimination diet and reintroducing it to see if symptoms return.

I would also absolutely cut out all alcohol. I had digestive issues for years. I stopped drinking and they are pretty much gone. I rarely even take my prescribed medication anymore. It’s 95% better just with one little change.

If you think it could be IBS, I’d consider trying hypnotherapy. It’s one of the recommended treatments within the NHS and can make a real difference.

I had stomach issues all my life with no real trigger but recently was diagnosed with coeliacs disease. I could eat a bowl of pasta and feel fine. And other days not eat any gluten and feel ill so I didn’t follow a regular pattern. Worth ruling this out and a simple blood test is the starting point so see your GP.

I am currently trying to heal my ulcerative colitis and I've been doing this for 10 days now. I think it's working!

I am sticking to porridge, live yoghurt, bone broth made into lot's of healing soups (salmon chowder, chicken, daal) and making sure I add turmeric and fresh ginger to as many things as I can . Also taking Vit D and cod liver oil. I'm totally avoiding alcohol as apparently it totally disrpts the cells in your digestive lining and makes them 'leaky'.

If you look up 'healing your gut' there are loads of ideas.

My entire life was affected by stomach issues. I’ve since learned what triggers my stomach and cut down my stress levels.
I also did fodmap for 2 years. Now I eat high protein, less carbs and sugar. Pepsi max was a trigger for me too. Ps get a test for SIBO too as it’s often missed but can be treated with antibiotics.
Sending love, it can be debilitating ❤️

I had really bad stomach issues my son was really into genetics and did the 24 and me and came back I carry the coeliac gene. I cut gluten out and it was a miracle cure for me, I feel so much better in myself too.

Are you affected by onions? That tends to go side by side with garlic. If not, it might be worth looking further to see if it really is the garlic.

What kind of medical specialist could I see who could help me come up with a plan to tackle this - would it be gastro

A close friend suffered from ‘urgency’ - suddenly needing the loo, which made life difficult especially travelling anywhere with a different time zone.
This caused her huge stress and finally she was diagnosed with bile malabsorption by a gastrointestinal doctor. She was prescribed pills which she has to take every day which have completely cleared up the problem and she says, given her her life back.

Could you have coeliac disease? Two of my sons have it. Worth asking for a blood test

Id be seeing your doctor for some blood tests including LFTs. Ive recently been diagnosed with NAFLD and struggling with my stomache

I sounds just like diverticulitis I’ve had this for years I’ve been hospitalised twice with this , many things can cause this I’ve learn with me it’s stress and any type of bread . Since I’ve cut the bread out and drink kefir I’ve been so much better- everybody who has this has different things that affect them but it’s worth looking into

Did you get help from a dietician or doctor when testing the Fodmaps? Which advice did they give?
Garlic is high in fructanes, as is wheat (which is used to produce beer and vodka). So I’m not surprised you get similar problems from alcohol (if you mean beer).
yes, you need to avoid garlic (and other fructanes) to avoid issues, as they are triggers.

I would ask to be tested for coeliac disease but don’t cut gluten out of your diet before the test is done - make sure you eat some kind of gluten (something containing wheat, barley, rye or oats) in at least two meals a day for at least a month before the test or it could result in a get a negative result even if you have it. Hope you get somewhere with it. No matter what, it’s worth asking for a Gastro referral.

an elimination diet is the most reliable trat for intolerances. I presume you did that with the fodmap diet. There are no blood tests or stool tests for intolerances.
A colonoscopy is common when suspecting coeliac (but that’s not an intolerance, more like an allergy).

you should see a dietician specialising in fodmaps or a gastroenterologist.

My gp recommended symprove probiotic and it has been brilliant for me

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lepicol-Original-Formulation-Contains-Travellers/dp/B002FON178/ref=sr_1_2_pp?crid=17SKSYA9SSUY6&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9._It_PxDxh4jqA1KZZNQUzS9I2fzWjmWV3wYtWfJFWNlnIcOg-0VanZhUdi58qhJF3MK1WKVDEQGYpWdQ0ZBGSScLyuHWL1nhlC3irJXAMqnFC3uS6AQscMG268gZWLH_pJq6KeQAUKKkP2AM7UylIPP3E2i-4jO8J0Pzwx4nXFb6tFcNPeO4DLsgn3trhaTfTZg_RgtcNYah65m9lwl-PtVoGSaoHOH1OLDewSL1Mn2QhqsuANcwO2DH3KSy0n_5fiKMaaKoibxvplOdUJnlUMaMePTvVA3bQu5wYEkgSmw.OClS5q3Jt9or4CbpmxH92qbS6okYBaXeNdAkPxnr4qw&dib_tag=se&keywords=lepicol&qid=1767908896&sprefix=lepi%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-2

this worked wonders for many family members

I have diverticulitis AND deep infiltration endometriosis of the bowel
Have a look into both.

I was really intolerant to lots of different foods, to the point that I’d occasionally lose control 😔.

Found out I have an autoimmune disease which is affecting my thyroid function. Since going on thyroid medication, my movements have been delightful.

Seriously though- who would’ve thought? Well, not the Drs who misdiagnosed my symptoms for years.

Hi! You need to see a dietitian, GP should be able to refer you. They will do a full and thorough assessment and give tailored advice. While you've given lots of relevant info here, they will have other questions and will consider things like your medical history, blood results, current diet and specific symptoms. Meanwhile avoid known triggers while maintaining as much variety in your diet as possible, trial a probiotic and look up the BDA food fact sheets on IBS and probiotics. There isn't a reliable lab test for intolerance, the only way to identify one is to eliminate from diet and then challenge. Good luck!

I would start with a food diary. Eat normally, record how you feel/any consequences.
Then speak to your gp.
Explain about the alcohol issue, which as another poster said, could be gluten related .
Sometimes something can trigger something that was always been there, but the switch hadn't been turned on.
I was diagnosed as celiac last year. Didn't go with obvious stomach problems, but after cutting out the gluten realised how bloated I had been. Other people have worse stomach issues, but have a negative result to celiac tests but are intolerant.

I don't know what tests are for for each food, and how dome are diagnosed, but gp seems a good starting point for assessment on alergies/intolerances/auto- immune conditions.

My anxiety and stomach issues sound similar to yours but I also had diary and eggs as well as garlic that triggered stomach issues. I cut them out with the advise of a doctor for 3 months then slowly introduced them back in increasing how much of each I had. Obviously can’t eat them everyday or in large quantities but I have them 2-3 times a week now. It’s been a year

Nothing to add but watching with interest as DD has lots of stomach issues (but our GP is useless, even getting a blood test is difficult!)

I'm watching too....I've had stomach issues since my early 20s as well (though different symptoms to op), I'm nearly 40 now. I'm pretty sure it was caused by an eating disorder for me. Ive been tested for celiac and had a FIT test which were both negative but important to do. I also recently found out I was quite badly anemic which I'm sure is linked to my digestion.

Ive been reading a lot about SIBO recently but I'm worried to bring it up in case the GP doesn't take it seriously. I've found they don't seem to care much about stomach problems to be honest. They just write it off as IBS and send me home. They don't seem to appreciate how much it can take over your life and limit what you can do. I'll definitely look into symprove, thank you to the pp who mentioned that