That's Fit

I recently started watching an interesting documentary on NetFlix called "King Corn." In it, two guys from Boston relocate to Iowa to plant corn on a one-acre plot of land they purchase. I admit to only watching about half of the film (though I do intend on finishing it), but even from that much viewing I learned a great deal about this vegetable of the moment.

Despite corn's apparent meteoric rise to fame, due in large part to its use in the production of ethanol, it has actually been quite popular and widely-used for some time. Apart from it being eaten as-is, corn has sneakily become part of almost all of our diets. For example, in the documentary, one of the filmmakers asks that a scientist perform an analysis of his hair. To his surprise, the scientist found high traces of corn. How could that be, wondered the filmmaker, as this test was performed before he moved to Iowa to grow his crop. The answer: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

This sweetener is found in a number of items found in supermarkets; from soda to candy, breads to condiments. In short, the stuff is everywhere, and we've been eating it for far longer -- and in greater amounts -- that most of us realize. So, what does this mean for our health? Well, if a new study out of (ironically) the University of Iowa is correct, it means that high amounts of fructose may cause symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). This supports a great deal of evidence from other studies on fructose, as well as a lawsuit filed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) against Cadbury Schweppes for labeling 7-Up as "All Natural" or "100% Natural", despite containing high-fructose corn syrup.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a functional bowel disorder characterized by abdominal pain, discomfort or bloating, affects as many as 1 in 5 adults in the U.S.

That's certainly the bad news. But if a report in the current issue of Men's Health magazine is correct, things should be looking a whole lot better for people with IBS in the very near future. That's because a recent study review, published in American Family Physician, reveals that peppermint oil can help alleviate symptoms of IBS. According to the article, among the IBS sufferers who took a dose of peppermint oil three times a day, 79 percent experienced a marked decrease in abdominal discomfort.

Men's Health suggests trying Pepogest soft gels ($9 at mothernature.com), for each capsule contains the same dose of the oil used in the study.

Each week, we'll be naming a Super Food and offering unique ways to use those Super Foods that pack nutritional power. After all, you are what you eat -- make it count!

Peppermint is a flavour we see in abundance: In candies, ice cream, gum, even our Grande Mochas at Starbucks. But peppermint is more than just a sweet treat; It's an effective cure for a variety of ailments, and a healthy flavour to add to your everyday diet.

First and foremost, peppermint has long been believed to be good for your stomach woes, from gas to nausea to gallbladder disease and even stomach cancer. And today, it's more than a just a belief -- According to this article from the Harvard School of Medicine, peppermint is an effective natural treatment for the symptoms of Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS,) including pain, cramping, bloating and diarrhea. In fact, in studies, 75% of participants with IBS saw a major reduction in symptoms when they took peppermint capsules daily.Pretty impressive, huh?

Each week, we'll be naming a Super Food and offering unique ways to use those Super Foods that pack nutritional power. After all, you are what you eat -- make it count!

Are you getting your share of psyllium? Ok, let's start from the beginning -- do you know what psyllium is? Many don't. And those of you who have heard of it may not know much about it. Perhaps you've heard about psyllium from none other than Regis Philbin? He's been touting the benefits of psyllium fiber in All Bran Cereal on TV commercials that have appeared all over the airwaves. And it really is a part of a nutritious diet.

Here's a bit of history: Psyllium comes from the seeds of the Plantago ovata plant, which can be found in parts of Asia, Northern Africa and the Mediterranean. Typically, only the husks of the plant are used, and these days, they're cultivated around the globe. Traditionally, psyllium has been known as a great source of fiber -- it contains roughly 70% soluble fiber and 30% insoluble fiber.

Irritable bowel syndrome can be a pain to live with (literally). Scientists already know that switching off that pain in the brain is harder for people with IBS. And dieting for these symptoms can be a tricky element to deal with as well. Researchers are slowly starting to learn more about IBS and what causes it. For example, they have recently made a connection to irritable bowel syndrome and allergies.

Seasonal allergic rhinitis upped the likelihood of having IBS by nearly three times. Patients with allergic eczema (like skin inflammations) were almost four times as likely to have the syndrome. Interestingly enough, depression also factored in with 2.56 times the likelihood of having it, which contradicts an earlier study that discredits depression as indicating a higher risk for IBS.

Now these are correlations, not direct causes. They still don't know exactly why these symptoms crop up in certain individuals, but they can pinpoint connections among them to help identify risk factors. Hopefully more research will address specific causes in the future.

Irritable bowel syndrome can leave a person checking for the bathroom whenever going through a new environment. It's not a very convenient condition, but one that a lot of people have learned to live with. But a new study is shedding light on IBS, specifically regarding women and pain.

They've run tests which measure how women react to pain, and the anticipation of it. Using a functional MRI, scientists checked brain activity while trying to elicit a response. What they found was that women with IBS can't switch off a brain trigger which tells her body there's pain.

This explains why they are so sensitive to abdominal discomfort. The MRI showed active brain areas when the women anticipated pain. However, those with IBS couldn't reduce these areas of the brain. It's worth noting that both sets of women reacted to pain when it was actually present, to no surprise. You can read more about here if you're interested.

Gluten is the talk of the town. The six-letter word is no stranger here at That's Fit and now that Hollywood's Jenny McCarthy has revealed that removing gluten from her autistic son's diet is helping him emerge from his disease, gluten-free diets may become all the rage.

The whole gluten topic really has me thinking -- I admit, I was a bit in the dark about the whole topic prior to just now -- and what I'm thinking is this: Do I really need to be eating wheat?

Gluten -- the protein found in wheat products such as breads, pastas, pastries, rye, barley, and some oats -- isn't a problem for many people. But for those sensitive to it, gluten can cause a sickening reaction. In fact, experts believe an underlying allergy to gluten may be to blame for some neurological disorders. It may also be connected to problems like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Celiac sprue.

Irritable bowel syndrome may have something to do with your personality, a study shows. The condition, which is characterized by inflammation of the gut and embodies moderate to severe symptoms like diarrhea and constipation, may be linked to anxiety and stress.

I believe it -- mostly. I have IBS and I'm also an anxious person, despite my best attempts to be laid-back. I saw a naturopathic doctor who went as far as to tell me that it was really just all in my head and if I learned to calm down I could be rid of IBS. And while I think what he says has some sort of merit, I think that's over-simplifying the problem. 'Calming down' (read: changing my entire personality) isn't very easy, and I have severe symptoms whether I am in super-stressed-out mode or on relaxed-vacation mode.

What do you think about all this?

A healthy diet is consistently touted as an essential part of any healthy life. But can eating healthy make you sick? Perhaps. After all, anything in excess -- even water -- can have a detrimental effect on your health.

As it turns out, eating too many fruits and veggies can aggravate thyroid disease, particularly goitrogenic foods like cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, turnips and much more. These veggies can lead to a iodine deficiency, which can cause hypothyroid conditions get worse. Too many veggies have also shown to aggravate Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which I can attest to. Though in my case, I eat veggies regardless.

Unless you have one of these conditions, don't use this as an excuse to avoid your veggies. And if you do have one of these conditions, talk to your doctor.

When I think healthy eating, I think of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean protein sources. But when this guy thinks of healthy eating, he reaches for the frogs ... and rats. Ummm ....... gross! Apparently, he used to suffer from terrible stomach aches, which he says have disapeared with his new diet. I can relate (sort of) because as someone with constant stomach woes, I tend to eat some rather nasty concoctions suggested by various medical professionals to help alleviate the problems. But you know, a chalky smoothie is one thing -- a wriggling frog is quite another. Sorry, not buying it.

What do you think? Would you eat frogs and rats for your health?

For as long as I can remember, I've struggled with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and while I try not to let it control my life, I find myself avoiding foods I know are hard for me to digest because, even though I love them, it's not worth spending the day in pain for. But even if you don't have a digestive system condition, there are just some foods that are harder for your body to break down than others, leading to an array of problems from heartburn to bloating and everything in between. MSN has come up with this list of things that are hard on your digestive track. Things to avoid include beans, ice cream, chocolate, broccoli, citrus fruits and spicy foods, plus some surprising things like chicken nuggets and--who would've thunk it--mashed potatoes.

What do you think? Do these things leave you running for the bathroom?

Though the cause of irritable bowel syndrome isn't exactly clear, researchers think they may have found a clue in how the disease develops.

They studied over 600 participants who had no history of the condition, but who had all come down with gastroenteritis. Each was asked to fill out a questionnaire that assessed mood or personality issues and to fill out a follow up survey three and six months later. Forty nine of the participants had developed IBS at the follow up check ups, and higher levels of perceived stress, negative feelings, and anxiety were deemed to be a risk factor. Interestingly, perfectionism and depression were not found to put patients at a higher risk of developing the disease.

Experts have long thought that IBS -- which causes such symptoms as cramping, constipation, or diarrhea in patients -- may have a psychological or emotional component and this study seems to firm up that suspicion. Read more about irritable bowel syndrome here.

As someone who's been involved in a life-long struggle against an annoying, painful and frankly embarrassing condition called Irritable Bowel Syndrome, I am constantly keeping my eye out for new ideas on how to lessen the symptoms that sometimes seem to dominate my life. I recently came across the IBS diet, constructed by fellow sufferer Heather Van Vorous.

Most approaches to digestive problems that I've found have encouraged sufferers to find out what their trigger foods are by the process of elimination (cutting an item, such a wheat, out of your diet for a week or so,) and then take that food out of their diet altogether. This new approach, however, claims that all foods high in fat, insoluble fiber, caffeine, alcohol and carbonation are trigger foods. She doesn't believe in elimination of certain foods but encourages us to learn about these triggers and when or when not to eat them. Insoluble fiber, she says, is really hard on people with IBS and should only be consumed with caution and large amounts of soluble fiber.