Gastro-intestinal Issues (autism)

Yeh sadly woman have poor access to support for autism and any difficulties they may have. They often go undiagnosed for long periods which can cause all kinds of damage. They never used to think women and girls really got autism. They always thought it was just boys and men because women show it differently that to men and boys.

I used to think anxiety caused my bowel issues but I have now realised that it’s the other way about. Because my bowel issues actually make me anxious and that nervous feeling I get in my tummy is actually my stomach just going haywire I think.

It seems quite common for autistic people to get diagnosed with IBS. I think sometimes they just diagnose that without doing any tests to rule out other things like inflammation in the bowel. 

That’s good fibre is good for your health. 

That’s good hopefully this diet works for you. I can’t touch loperamide. If I do I just won’t go to the toilet for over a day and that’s not healthy lol.

Yes I heard autistic people tend to prefer more ‘beige’ foods, that is definerpy true for me too. I love burgers, chips, potatoes, meat, bread, rolls. But I find it hard to eat sweet things like fruit and veg. 

That’s good that he tries things to feel better. I drink kefir, I would t say it gets rid of my problems but it doesn’t do any harm either so I drink that everyday.

Yep, I have IBS. It's generally triggered by anxiety and certain foods- I did the FODMAP exclusion diet which resulted in me identifying wheat and some fruit as trigger foods. I've been able to eat more or less what I did before by using gluten-free replacements and that's helped a lot, but of course the anxiety-related aspect of the IBS hasn't gone away.

I also have endometriosis on my bowel, which has a lot of GI symptoms that overlap with IBS and as such took a long time to diagnose. There's very little research on whether there's a link between autism and conditions like endo, possibly because of the issues women have with access to both autism assessment and specialist gynaecological care, but I did read that the rate of menstrual difficulties reported by autistic women is very high. So that's another aspect of this for anyone who's having periods to consider!

too fast digestive system, kinda sounds like diverticulosis maybe.

my aunt had that, it got so bad that anything she ate or drank just passed straight through and she was like that for days which was pretty bad.

i think itd actually due to anxiety, and anxiety comes with autism.

when you get anxious your stomach feels weird, for me personally if i get too anxious it makes me want to poop, and when i poor i feel less anxious as if it pooped out all the nerves.

this is why anxiety causes bowel issues because it directly effects that area.

Got no tips I'm afraid, but seems to be parr for the course. I have IBS.

I know there is a lot out there suggesting you can "treat" autism by treating gut flora.

Hmmm... personally, I'm minded to think it might work the other way round. Gut problems often arise from anxiety and we get a lot of that.

Also, food sensitivities might preclude the best diets for a healthy gut.

Hi this is interesting reading. Not had any issues until my 40's though. Now get acid problems and was hospitalised with a stomach infection last year. Has a long name I can't remember but a bit of my bowl was infected, all fine now. Am waiting to have the camera down to look at my acid issue. On a high fibre diet after the infection.

My digestive system runs too fast. It's been that way since birth. My autistic father is exactly the same. After many many years of trying to train my body to digest a healthy, high fiber diet with no success, and confirming via elimination diets that it's not solely a reaction to any specific food (although there are some triggers which I now avoid) I've designed myself a nutritionally adequate but very bland, starchy, low fiber and low fat diet and eat that every day. It helps a lot, allowing me to only have to use the bathroom about three times a day  I still have to take loperamide a few hours before long car journeys, hiking, etc to be on the safe side 

I have bowel problems. I get nervous stomach when say someone visits my home and usually have to go to the toilet before they arrive so it's like anxiety related

Intermittent fasting helps and sticking to the same foods more or less 

My Dad (self-diagnosed autist) has IBS and insomnia. I find my guts are very off if I don't get my 8 hours, so I reckon the two are linked, but he can't cure the insomnia to see if it helped the IBS. And sometimes it is the IBS that keeps him up late and wakes him up early!

He is careful of his diet, and takes pills to block him up as his shows as a too rapid gut transit. He has also found Symprove helps, which is a good bacteria drink he has to have first thing before any food or water so it can pass safely through the stomach without being killed by the acid there.

Yeh I heard IBD is more common in autistic people than non-autistic people. Who knows why? Maybe autistic people have worse diets or something I’m not really sure though. But then again IBD isn’t caused by diet.

Sorry to hear you have diverticular disease that must be painful. It’s good that there is information on how to improve the condition though.

Thanks for the advice. Yeh all kinds of different things work for different people I suppose.

Thanks

Autism and gastrointestinal conditions are very common, there is a link, many people suffer in one way or another, myself included. IBS is one of those common ailments we autistics have to put up with, as is Crohns Disease and many, many more. I have IBS and am undergoing tests to find something else. Oh joy. I've found sticking to a good diet helps, like bland foods, no fizzy drinks, it doesn't cure my issues but it does help. Good sleep helps as well - lack of sleep worsens gastrointestinal problems.