Lomentum - Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Relief

• Overview
• Ingredients
• Reviews
• Q & A's

Product Description

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Defined:

Technically, IBS is a syndrome rather than disease, due to the fact that it exists as a group of symptoms rather than just one major influence. The top scientists in the world classify this condition as a diffuse (spread about the GI tract) process. However, the standard and most accepted definition of IBS remains within the arena of functional bowel disorders. IBS is characterised by abdominal pain, changes in bowel habits, and abnormal contractions of intestinal muscles being either faster or slower than normal.

There are two forms of IBS:

• Spastic colon is marked by post-meal diarrhea, constipation, or both, as well as pain.
• Painless diarrhea IBS involves the abrupt onset of diarrhea either during or after eating. It may also occur immediately upon waking.

What Causes IBS?

Despite advancements in research, the underlying cause of Irritable Bowel remains unknown. IBS prevalence in Western societies has lead many scientists to speculate that certain environmental, dietary, and cultural factors may be to blame. Yet others look to psychological causes, such as stress, as the primary mechanism for IBS. In addition, research has indicated that socially stressful situations may indeed play a role in the symptom incidence. However, stress's link to Irritable Bowel's underlying cause remains undefined. IBS has even been shown to occur after episodes of enteritis. Although all of these theories are promising, again, no clear cause has been established.

Diagnosis, SIgns & Symptoms of IBS:

Today, your GP can receive a definitive diagnosis by assessing one's symptoms and excluding other medical conditions that may have similar clinical presentations. Diagnostic criteria has been refined (i.e. Manning and Rome II Diagnostic Criteria) on the basis of disease presentation, personal history, physical exam, and specific tests; all procedures that result in a high (95%) success of outcome/diagnosis.

Symptoms resulting from IBS vary from individual to individual, and can include:

• Upper GI disturbance and Heartburn (25% to 50% of patients)
• Early feeling of fullness (satiety)
• Nausea
• Abdominal fullness and bloating
• Intermittent upper abdominal discomfort or pain (dyspepsia)
• Feelings of urgency, and a feeling of "incomplete" emptying of the bowels may also be experienced
  

Other non-gastrointestinal symptoms reported by IBS sufferers include; fatigue, muscle pain, sleep disturbances, and sexual dysfunction. However, the consensus among physicians is that these symptoms may be due to the coexistence, or overlap, of IBS with another condition (e.g. fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, or interstitial cystitis). Lower back pains or headache may also occur and are thought to be correlated with the severity of the IBS. Additionally, some symptoms may seem contradictory to patients, such as alternating diarrhea and constipation.

Lastly, a "deregulation" between the brain, the gut, and the central nervous system (usually caused by stress) causes the bowel to become irritated, or overly sensitive to external stimuli. Irritation has also been shown to occur as a result of normal life events.

Lomentum May be an Effective Alternative Therapy for the Management of Symptoms and Discomfort Caused By Your IBS:

How Lomentum Works

Lomentum has been developed to ease the frustration of standard treatments. The ingredients found in Lomentum have been studied in various trials and lend support to their use. The Lomentum ingredient list includes:

• Probiotics (Lactobacillus acidophilus and bacillus): Administration of probiotics may help resolve flora-imbalance related digestive problems, like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In fact, in patients with IBS, fecal bacteria are altered as compared to normal controls. Another clinical study showed that Lactobacillus acidophilus and L. plantarum are effective in improving severity scores of IBS symptoms.
• Chamomile (Matricaria recutita): Chamomile acts as an anti-spasmodic agent in the digestive tract which can be quite helpful in patients with IBS. An herbal preparation containing chamomile, peppermint, and caraway demonstrated the ability to significantly improve symptoms of upset stomach (dyspepsia) in a double-blind study of 120 patients when compared to placebo.
• Glutamine: The preferred fuel for cells of the GI tract, glutamine is an amino acid that also exerts a protective effect on the intestinal lining and plays a role in immune defenses. It is abundant in many foods but is easily broken down in the cooking process. The protective barrier may be compromised in some patients with IBS.
• Peppermint oil (enterically coated): Enteric-coated peppermint oil has been used for treating IBS in Europe for several years. An analysis of 16 clinical trials of enteric coated peppermint oil concluded that it may be the drug of first choice in IBS patients with non-serious constipation or diarrhea to alleviate general symptoms and to improve quality of life. A particular controlled trial showed that after 2 weeks of peppermint oil treatment, 75% of children experienced significant improvement in the severity of pain associated with IBS.
• Caraway oil (enterically coated): When used in combination with peppermint oil, caraway may relieve indigestion symptoms of pain, pressure, heaviness and fullness. When compared to cisparide (a pharmaceutical), caraway and peppermint oil have been shown to be comparable in efficacy for treating dyspepsia and intestinal symptoms.
• Gamma-oryzanol: Gamma-oryzanol is a natural compound isolated from rice bran oil. Animal studies show that gamma-oryzanol can suppress emotionally-induced propulsive activity in the gastrointestinal tract, which is thought to be associated with IBS.

Progressive Health (the manufacturers) has employed the use of enteric coating for ingredient delivery. This enteric coating acts as a barrier to the ingredients within the capsule and controls the location within the digestive system where it is absorbed; thereby maximising the efficacy of Lomentum. Due to the high-absorption percentage and clinically reviewed success of nutrients contained in Progressive Health's unique IBS formula, the symptoms, discomfort, and potential nutrient inadequacies caused by your condition may be lessened; while a promotion of health and overall integrity of the gastrointestinal tract is maintained.

Product Reviews

Questions and Answers

Ingredients

Lomentum Research

• Probiotics - Lactobacillus acidophilus and bacillus- Probiotics are beneficial bacteria (or flora) that reside in the digestive tract and create a healthy gastrointestinal environment. Administration of probiotics may help resolve flora-imbalance related digestive problems, like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In fact, in patients with IBS, fecal bacteria are altered as compared to normal controls (1). In a study of 77 patients with IBS, those taking the Bifidobacteria (a probiotic) experienced significant improvements in their symptoms, and normalized an anti-inflammatory mediator (2). Another clinical study showed that Lactobacillus acidophilus and L. plantarum are effective in improving severity scores of IBS symptoms (3). Probioitcs have also been shown to be of benefit in patients with diarrhea and constipation (4-7).
• Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) - Chamomile acts as an anti-spasmodic agent in the digestive tract which can be quite helpful in patients with IBS. An herbal preparation containing chamomile, peppermint and caraway demonstrated the ability to significantly improve symptoms of upset stomach (dyspepsia) in a double blind study of 120 patients when compared to placebo (8).
• Glutamine - The preferred fuel for cells of the GI tract, glutamine is an amino acid that also exerts a protective effect on the intestinal lining and plays a role in immune defenses. It is abundant in many foods but is easily broken down in the cooking process. The protective barrier may be compromised in some patients with IBS. Administration of glutamine can maintain the physiologic intestinal barrier and reduce the frequency of resultant systemic infections (9). Similarly, glutamine supplemented formulas given to malnourished children can help maintain this barrier (10). In a double-blind, placebo controlled study, glutamine reduced the duration of diarrhea in children who were supplemented with this amino acid (11). Glutamine has also demonstrated efficacy in healing ulceration of the digestive tract, increases the resistance of the colonic tissue to inflammatory injury and even reduces mortality and hospital stays in critically ill patients (12-14).
• Peppermint oil (enterically coated) - Enteric-coated peppermint oil has been used for treating IBS in Europe for several years. An analysis of 16 clinical trials of enteric coated peppermint oil concluded that it may be the drug of first choice in IBS patients with non-serious constipation or diarrhea to alleviate general symptoms and to improve quality of life (15). One of the controlled trials showed that after 2 weeks of peppermint oil treatment, 75% of children experienced significant improvement in the severity of pain associated with IBS (16). As well, an herbal preparation containing peppermint, chamomile and caraway demonstrated the ability to significantly improve symptoms of upset stomach (dyspepsia) in a double blind study of 120 patients when compared to placebo (8). One mechanism by which peppermint oil may exert its effects is through regulation of microbial growth in the small intestine (17).
• Caraway oil (enterically coated) - When used in combination with peppermint oil, caraway can relieve indigestion symptoms of pain, pressure, heaviness and fullness (18). When compared to cisparide (a pharmaceutical), caraway and peppermint oil are comparable in efficacy of treating dyspepsia and intestinal symptoms (19). An herbal preparation containing caraway, chamomile and peppermint demonstrated the ability to significantly improve symptoms of upset stomach (dyspepsia) in a double blind study of 120 patients when compared to placebo (8).
• Gamma-oryzanol - Gamma-oryzanol is a natural compound isolated from rice bran oil. Animal studies show that gamma-oryzanol can suppress emotionally induced propulsive activity in the gastrointestinal tract, which is thought to be associated with IBS (20). It also protects the mucus lining of the gastrointestinal tract thereby reducing ulcer formation, inhibits gastric acid secretion and exerts anti-oxidant activity (21).

Lomentum Research

1. Malinen E et al. Analysis of the fecal microbiota of irritable bowel syndrome patients and healthy controls with real-time PCR. Am J Gastroenterol 2005 Feb;100(2):373-82.
2. O’Mahoney L et al. Lactobacillus and bifidobacterium in irritable bowel syndrome: symptom responses and relationship to cytokine profiles. Gastroenterology 2005 Mar;128(3):541-51.
3. Saggioro A. Probiotics in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. J Clin Gastroenterol 2004 Jul;38(6 Suppl):S104-6.
4. Weizman Z, Asli G, Alsheikh A. Effect of a probiotic infant formula on infections in child care centers: comparison of two probiotic agents. Pediatrics 2005 Jan;115(1):5-9.
5. Picard C et al. Review article: bifidobacteria as probiotic agents -- physiological effects and clinical benefits. Ailment Pharmacol Ther 2005 Sep 15;22(6):495-512.
6. Hongisto SM et al. A combination of fibre-rich rye bread and yoghurt containing Lactobacillus GG improves bowel function in women with self-reported constipation. Eur J Clin Nutr 2005 Oct 26; [Epub ahead of print]
7. Salminen S, Salminen E. Lactulose, lactic acid bacteria, intestinal microecology and mucosal protection. Scand J Gastroenterol Suppl 1997;222:45-8.
8. Madisch A et al. Treatment of functional dyspepsia with a herbal preparation. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial. Digestion 2004;69(1):45-52. Epub 2004 Jan 30.
9. De-Souza DA, Intestinal permeability and systemic infections in critically ill patients: effect of glutamine.Greene LJ. Crit Care Med 2005 May;33(5):1125-35.
10. Lima AA et al. Intestinal barrier function and weight gain in malnourished children taking glutamine supplemented enteral formula. J Pediatric Gastroenterol Nutr 2005 Jan;40(1):28-35.
11. Yalcin SS et al. Effect of glutamine supplementation on diarrhea, interleukin-8 and secretory immunoglobulin A in children with acute diarrhea. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr 2004 May;38(5):494-501.
12. Anderson PM, Ramsay NK, Shu XO, et al. Effect of low-dose oral glutamine on painful stomatitis during bone marrow transplantation. Bone Marrow Transplant 1998;22:339-44.
13. Israeli E et al. Prophylactic administration of topical glutamine enhances the capability of the rat colon to resist inflammatory damage. Dig Dis Sci 2004 Oct;49(10):1705-12.
14. Mellis GC et al. Glutamine: recent developments in research on the clinical significance of glutamine. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2004 Jan;7(1):59-70.
15. Grigoleit HG, Grigoleit P. Peppermint oil in irritable bowel syndrome. Phytomedicine 2005 Aug;12(8):601-6.
16. Kline RM et al. Enteric-coated, pH-dependent peppermint oil capsules for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome in children. J Pediatr 2001 Jan;138(1):125-8.
17. Logan AC, Beaulbe TN. The treatment of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth with enteric-coated peppermint oil: a case report. Altern Med Rev 2002 Oct;7(5):410-7.
18. May B, Kohler S, Schnieder B. Efficacy and tolerability of a fixed combination of peppermint oil and caraway oil in patients suffering from functional dyspepsia. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2000 Dec;14(12):1671-7.
19. Madisch A et al. Treatment of functional dyspepsia with a fixed peppermint oil and caraway oil combination preparation as compared to cisapride. A multicenter, reference-controlled double-blind equivalence study. Arzneimittelforschung 1999 Nov;49(11):925-32.
20. Ichimaru Y et al. [Effects of gamma-oryzanol on gastric lesions and small intestinal propulsive activity in mice] Nippon Yakurigaku Zasshi 1984 Dec;84(6):537-42.
21. Cicero AF, Gaddi A. Rice bran oil and gamma-oryzanol in the treatment of hyperlipoproteinaemias and other conditions. Phytother Res 2001 Jun;15(4):277-89.