Beactivia, probiotics for digestive health

In Spain, more than 70% seek medical attention⁽⁶⁾. However, in general, "it is estimated that only 25 percent of persons with this condition seek medical care for it⁽⁷⁾". "The irritable bowel syndrome is the most common diagnosis made by gastroenterologists in the United States and accounts for 12 percent of visits to primary care providers⁽⁷⁾."

The diagnosis of IBS is a diagnosis of exclusion, after reasonable diagnostic testing has been performed, such as colonoscopy, computed tomographic scanning of the abdomen and pelvis, and radiographic evaluation of the small intestine. Alarm symptoms include evidence of gastrointestinal bleeding such as occult blood in the stool, rectal bleeding, or anemia; anorexia or weight loss; fever; persistent diarrhea causing dehydration; severe constipation or fecal impaction; a family history of gastrointestinal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, or celiac sprue; and the onset of symptoms at the age of at least 50 years.⁽⁷⁾

Organic disorders that cause symptoms similar to those of IBS include lactase deficiency, cancer of the colon, diverticulitis, mechanical obstruction of the colon or small intestine, inflammatory bowel disease, enteric infection, ischemia, maldigestion or malabsorption, and endometriosis⁽⁷⁾. In the absence of alarm symptoms, the presence of one of these structural or metabolic disorders is very unlikely.⁽⁷⁾

Surveys on world populations have revealed IBS in 10 to 20% of adolescents and adults, with a higher prevalence in women⁽¹⁾; the prevalence is up to the 20% in some populations, such as the Western world⁽⁸⁾. Physiological differences between men and women impact gastrointestinal transit time, visceral sensitivity, central nervous system processing, and specific effects of estrogen and progesterone on gut function⁽¹⁾.