Can IBS Cause Back Pain? 10 Tips To Limit Discomfort
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a widespread digestive illness that rarely causes back pain. But when it does, it can prevent you from performing your everyday tasks and intervene with your daily life.
Because this is a rare condition, there aren't many medications or treatments specifically known to treat IBS-related back pain.
Fortunately, there are countless resources around the internet regarding this unique condition, coming from experts and patients alike. From changing your diet and eating pattern to seeking pharmaceutical relief, there are many things you can do to minimize discomfort.
If you constantly suffer from IBS-related pain symptoms, here are some suggestions for reducing the discomfort associated with IBS-related back pain.
Different Causes of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
As mentioned in previous sections, it's not clearly defined what causes IBS. However, many experts believe that the following conditions can cause or aggravate IBS:
Chronic Stress
Stress is one of the most probable reasons for the onset of IBS. Stress can cause changes in your brain-gut connection, which could affect the way you feel digestion. People who experience chronic stress are more prone to developing IBS than those who can handle their stress levels better.
Mental Health Disorders
Mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD, can increase the chances of developing IBS. Several pieces of research indicate that mental health disorders change the makeup of the brain, particularly with pain modulation.
Studies relating to these two conditions are not yet finalized, but mental health is believed to play a critical role in this chronic pain condition.
Bacterial Infection
Infection in the digestive tract often results in IBS-like symptoms, also called Post-infectious IBS (PI-IBS). Bacterial infection such as from food poisoning, can cause inflammation in the gut, contributing to cramping as well as disrupt the good bacteria levels. On the flip side, being on antibiotics, especially long term, can cause IBS pain and IBS symptoms when the good bacteria don't balance back out.
Food Sensitivity
If you have a known food allergy or are sensitive to certain foods, it can trigger IBS symptoms. Foods such as wheat, milk, and grains are known to cause food intolerance, leading to abdominal pain and bloating. These symptoms could be indicative of IBS.
Pain Symptoms Related to Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Muscle pain around the digestive area and gastrointestinal symptoms like bloating, reflux, stomach pain, irregular bowel movements and constantly passing gas are some gastrointestinal symptoms of IBS.
Although IBS-related pain symptoms are not precisely well-defined, researchers were able to identify that the pain is not caused by any tear or other damage in the abdominal muscle. Researchers believe that IBS-related pain may be caused by the following:
Your pain receptors in the digestive tract or nearby area are hypersensitive, which could magnify the pain in mild digestive sensations.
Your gut-brain connection goes haywire during IBS, which could signal pain in the back of your abdomen or other areas.
Bacterial, viral, yeast or mold infections and imbalances. The microbiome is the collection of all of these microbes that can live in and on our bodies. As mentioned above, when the balance is disrupted; whether from an infection or if the microbes have extended past their proper location, as in the case of Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO), IBS pain can occur. This can be due to excess gas production, shifts in stomach acid production, mucosal layer degradation or intestinal permeability.
Intolerance to FODMAPs, food sensitivities and Mast cell activation all cause irritation in their own unique way. For instance, FODMAP intolerance worsens symptoms from poorly absorbed carbohydrates, such as fructose, lactose, sorbitol, and other fermentable sugars and starches.
However, severe and recurrent abdominal pain could be caused by inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBD is a serious condition that refers to the rapid and painful inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract.
This disease often indicates Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, so it is vital to seek medical assistance immediately.
Abdominal Pain
Abdominal pain is the most common type of IBS pain. Abdominal pain is often accompanied by a feeling of bloating or swelling and cramping in the lower part of your abdomen.
You can do many natural and at-home remedies to treat abdominal pain, such as applying warm and cold compressions, drinking ginger tea, or drinking clear fluids. You can also try the bone broth to soothe IBS pain.
Chest and Throat Pain
While IBS is a medical condition in the gastrointestinal tract, its physical symptoms could also manifest as chest pain because of trapped gas. Another reason people with IBS experience chest pain is gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD.
GERD is caused by a weakened lower esophageal sphincter, which causes the stomach contents to regurgitate back into the esophagus. Several ways you can reduce GERD-related chest pain. You can try at-home remedies such as sleeping with your head elevated, avoiding acidic foods and drinks, and eating smaller meals more frequently throughout the day.
Other lesser known causes of reflux that we routinely deal with are: bacterial imbalances causing excess gas putting pressure on the stomach, H. Pylori infection in the stomach and too low of stomach acid. Addressing these can greatly reduce or resolve this pain.
Headache and Jaw Pain
Like chest pain, many people find it hard to believe that IBS can cause headaches and jaw pain. Although this condition is not explained thoroughly, it can be attributed to the gut-brain connection. The brain is connected to your stomach with the help of the vagus nerve, one of our body's primary nerves.
This nerve relays pain signals between the brain and the gut. So when your stomach is dealing with IBS issues, it sends pain signals to your brain, resulting in headaches and jaw pain. Because of this connection, people with migraines often experience unexplained abdominal pain.
Rectal Pain
Similar to abdominal pain, rectal pain is also commonly reported among IBS patients. This pain is often felt as a burning sensation around the rectum, often accompanied by bleeding and itching. Severe rectal pain often leads to anal fissures or hemorrhoids when untreated.
An anal fissure is a tear in the anal canal, and hemorrhoids are swollen veins around the anus. Both conditions can cause unbearable rectal pain and should be treated immediately with medical attention.
Although this is seen in IBS, many gastrointestinal disorders, such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, can also cause rectal pain.
Back Pain and IBS Symptoms
IBS back pain is the most uncommon of all IBS-related pain symptoms. People with IBS often experience back pain due to prolonged gas build-up or colonic spasms. IBS patients can also experience referred pain originating from the lower part of the digestive tract.
Referred back pain means that it is felt in an area proximate to its source (i.e., the gut). Referred pain is not only observed in IBS-related back pain but also in other medical conditions, such as kidney stones and pelvic inflammatory disease.
Since back pain and IBS are uncommon combinations, there is no specific treatment for this type of pain. Doctors often recommend physical therapy and lifestyle changes, such as exercising regularly, eating a balanced diet, and managing stress — all meant to prevent or alleviate IBS symptoms.
10 Tips To Treat IBS-related Back Pain
As mentioned above, there's no particular way to treat IBS-related back pain, but you can take steps to reduce it or even prevent IBS from happening. We researched and collected 10 practical and helpful tips to help you manage your IBS symptoms, including back pain.
Here are some tips and tricks that might help with your condition:
1. Dietary Changes
Specific foods often disrupt your gastrointestinal tract and trigger IBS, so identifying and removing them from your diet could help alleviate IBS symptoms.
Try to minimize the intake of certain food groups, such as dairy products, artificial sweeteners, processed and fast food, caffeine, alcohol, and fried food.
Including more probiotics and fiber-rich foods, such as fruits and vegetables, can also help reduce your chances of developing IBS. We recommend the Paleo diet for 30-60 days and then adding food groups back in to assess if they are a problem for you.
2. Regular Exercise
Routine physical activity lessens your chances of developing IBS and helps alleviate back pain. Aerobic exercise like running or cycling can help reduce abdominal discomfort and regulate your bowels.
Heat and ice therapy after a workout can help relieve back pain and inflammation. This can also boost your muscle recovery and reduce overall soreness and fatigue.
3. Avoid Large, Late Meals
Large meals later in the day is at odds with your optimal digestive power, leading to abdominal distension and to referred pain in the back and other nearby areas.
4. Don't Take Caffeinated Drinks
Caffeinated drinks increase the acidity in your stomach and can trigger the uptake of acid reflux, or GERD. Although it's not clearly understood, IBS and GERD are commonly associated. Many experts believe that IBS and GERD share the same disease mechanism.
Because of this, limiting foods that could trigger your IBS symptoms, including caffeinated beverages, could help reduce your chance of developing GERD.
5. Stress Management
Many experts believe that stress has a direct connection with IBS. Regularly practicing relaxation techniques, such as yoga and deep breathing, can help reduce your chances of developing IBS and other digestive ailments, including back pain. Relaxation techniques can help you improve your digestion via activating the parasympathetic nervous system which is involved with resting, digesting and detoxing the body. Regular yoga/breathing practices can also improve your tolerance to pain, which is why we tend to recommend Nerva to our clients.
It is also essential to get enough sleep every night. Poor sleeping habits increase the likelihood of developing IBS and make you prone to stress. Stress is a popular accelerator of many chronic pain symptoms, such as migraine, headaches, and other body pains.
6. Activated Charcoal
Activated charcoal is a staple alternative remedy to many diseases. This element has been used to absorb toxins in your body and release them through feces.
When taken in the form of a dietary supplement, it can help reduce flatulence, diarrhea, and abdominal cramps — all common symptoms of IBS. Minimizing or treating your existing IBS symptoms can prevent or reduce back pains. If you tend to rely on activated charcoal beyond a few weeks, we can help address the root cause of your IBS.
7. Natural Oils and Teas
Natural oils, such as peppermint, rosemary, and thyme, have been widely used to reduce digestive problems and relieve pain. You can use natural oils to remedy your IBS and back pain in many ways, such as orally or by massaging them into your skin.
It's also popular to use natural oils in aromatherapy to treat respiratory problems and relieve muscle pains and cramps.
You can also try calming teas, such as peppermint and chamomile tea, to reduce discomfort and stomach cramps caused by IBS. These teas have anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe your digestive tract and reduce bloating.
8. Spacing your Meals
Evenly spacing out your meal times 4-5 hours apart can help reduce the chances of IBS because the downtime you give your intestines allows for the migrating motor complex to cleanse themselves.
Other proper eating habits you can do to lessen the development of IBS include taking time when eating, chewing your food thoroughly, and paying attention to your meals instead of multitasking. Doing these can help ensure the digestion process runs smoothly and prevents the development of IBS.
9. Alternative Therapies
Natural remedies and alternative therapies, such as acupuncture, have been used to treat chronic pain and digestive problems. Although the mechanism is still unclear, these therapies are believed to help improve your nervous system functioning and reduce inflammation in your digestive tract.
Acupuncture may also help control IBS symptoms. This alternative treatment significantly reduces abdominal pain and increases bowel movements. Acupuncture can also help reduce stress levels and other conditions associated with IBS, including back pain.
10. Minimize Dairy Consumption
It is known that many people who regularly experience IBS symptoms have deficient levels of lactase. Lactase is an enzyme responsible for helping digest lactose, a sugar in dairy products.
Even if you're not known to be lactose intolerant, reducing your dairy consumption can help reduce IBS symptoms and prevent back pain.
You should try limiting dairy-derived foods such as cheese, yogurt, ice cream, and milk to help reduce IBS-related pain.
If dairy is something you can't give up, you can always switch to lactose-free dairy products. These are low in lactose and can help reduce your chances of experiencing IBS and other related symptoms.
Let's Wrap It Up
IBS is a painful and complex condition that requires a combination of treatments to manage it effectively. Despite being known by the medical society for a long time, we're yet to uncover the actual causes of this disease and how it causes body pains.
The key is understanding what triggers your IBS and looking for ways to reduce the pain and discomfort associated with this disorder.
There are countless natural ways to help you minimize the likelihood of IBS, including making healthy dietary and lifestyle changes. You can also try alternative therapies such as acupuncture and natural remedies to help relieve your pain.
Just because we don't usually know what caused it, doesn't mean we can't do anything about it. With the right combination of treatments, you can reduce your IBS symptoms and live a fulfilling, pain-free lifestyle!