In Ayurveda, IBS is related to Grahani, which refers to the small intestine and its ability to absorb and assimilate nutrients.

Grahani is responsible for the regulation of digestion and metabolism, and when it is impaired, it can lead to imbalanced digestion and irregular bowel movements—much like IBS.

The cause of Grahani/ IBS is linked to Agni (digestive fire), which is essential for proper digestion.

When Agni is weakened or disturbed—due to improper diet, stress, or lifestyle factors—it results in irregular digestion seen in IBS. Depending on which dosha is predominant in the individual, the manifestation of IBS will vary:

• Vata-type Grahani (IBS-C): constipation, bloating, abdominal discomfort, and irregular digestion. potentially accompanied by dry skin, mouth, throat, thirst, cold hands and feet, weight loss, debility, insomnia, and anxiety. The erratic and dry nature of Vata disturbs the normal digestive process, resulting in spasms and irregular elimination.

• Pitta-type Grahani (IBS-D): diarrhea, burning sensations, and inflammation, heartburn, thirst, feeling hot/ low grade fever, irritable, angry, sweating, foul/ sour smelling stool. The excess heat of Pitta leads to hyperacidity, loose stools, and a sense of burning or irritation in the digestive tract.

• Kapha-type Grahani (IBS-C / Dysentery): sluggish digestion, nausea, feelings of heaviness, excess mucus production, mucus in the stools, indigestion (food stays in stomach/ doesn’t go down), heaviness in chest. The slow and sticky nature of Kapha obstructs proper digestion and absorption, leading to symptoms of indigestion and lethargy.

• Tridosha-type Grahani (IBS-M): IBS-M is also sometimes known as IBS-U (unidentified). This is a blanket categorization. The symptoms of Tridosha Grahani can be a mixture of any/ all of the above listed symptoms, happening at different times and in varying degrees. This is the most complex and challenging IBS to treat, often taking a long time (as all doshas need to be balanced at the same time) and if this is chronic - can eventually turn into incurable IBS.

Ayurveda’s approach to treating IBS is to restore the balance of Agni, reduce/ eliminate Ama (toxins) and bring the doshas back into harmony. This is achieved through:

• Personalized diet based on the your dosha, focusing on strengthening Agni while avoiding foods that aggravate the imbalanced dosha.

• Lifestyle modifications that align with the natural rhythms of the body, incorporating practices like yoga, pranayama and meditation to support digestive health and reduce stress, which is a major contributor to IBS.

• Medicinal Herbs and spices to restore balance, soothe the digestive tract, and regulate bowel movements without the side effects of pharmaceutical interventions.

Ayurveda takes a comprehensive approach in treating IBS and leads to effective long lasting results because there is no sole focus on chasing symptoms. The entire focus of healing is in restoring the integrity of the digestive system from tongue-to-tail so that it is running like a well oiled machine.

Recognizing the interplay of mind, body, and digestion in the healing process. This holistic focus on rebalancing your entire system is what enables Ayurveda to provide a sustainable, long-term solution to IBS, treating both the symptoms and the root cause.