Although brown rice and other fiber-rich grains promote healthy digestion for many people, white rice may be a more tolerable option for those who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS. If eating unprocessed rice triggers gas, bloating or diarrhea, you may find milled white rice easier to digest. White rice may slow the diarrhea associated with IBS, allowing your body to absorb nutrients and remain well-hydrated.
Symptoms
Although there is no cure for IBS, avoiding foods that irritate your digestive tract may reduce the bowel spasms, gas and diarrhea that characterize this syndrome. Identifying the foods that you can't tolerate is the first step in planning a food and beverage avoidance diet, notes Dr. Richard P. MacDermott, a gastroenterologist at Albany Medical College in Albany, New York. The next step is finding foods and beverages that you are able to digest comfortably. If your IBS symptoms include frequent diarrhea, eating white rice while you are having a flare-up may bind loose stools and reduce their frequency.
Benefits
White rice is a staple of low-residue diets designed to relieve gastrointestinal distress. Low-residue diets decrease the amount of fiber in your digestive tract, which may relieve the abdominal cramping and diarrhea associated with IBS. The starches in white rice bind loose and watery stools, slowing their passage through your colon. White rice lacks the fibrous bran that can irritate sensitive bowels. Although white rice does not offer all the vitamins and minerals of brown rice, this food may be an effective part of an eating plan to relieve diarrhea.
Prevention
Replacing high-fiber rice, breads and cereals with refined versions of these foods may prevent bowel spasms, diarrhea and gas. MacDermott advises eating white rice without sauces or additives. Eating small, frequent meals, avoiding fatty foods and dairy foods, and resting after meals may help control diarrhea, states the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Drinking liquids at room temperature between meals, including electrolyte replacement beverages, can help you maintain a healthy fluid balance. Hot foods and drinks and caffeinated beverages may worsen diarrhea.
Considerations
The increased bowel motility of IBS may cause constipation as well as diarrhea. If you have constipation-predominant IBS, your health care provider may advise you to eat a low-fat, high-fiber diet and replace processed foods, such as white rice with whole-grain foods. If you are constipated, the fiber in brown rice may stimulate colon activity and restore regular bowel patterns.
Suggestions
If your health care provider or dietitian has advised you to eat white rice as part of a low-residue diet, look for enriched versions of this product, which have added iron, folic acid and other nutrients that partially replace the grain's original nutritional content. When you are following a food-avoidance diet, you may need to supplement your diet with vitamins and minerals, such as calcium, vitamin D, folic acid and B vitamins. Consult your provider about dietary modifications and supplements that may help relieve your IBS symptoms while fulfilling your nutritional requirements.
References
- UPMC Health System: Irritable Bowel Syndrome Diet
- Inflammatory Bowel Diseases: Treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Outpatients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease Using a Food and Beverage Intolerance, Food and Beverage Avoidance Diet; Richard P. MacDermott, M.D., January 2007
- MayoClinic.com: Low-Residue Diet
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: A Healthier You -- Chapter 7. Breaking It Down
