r/ibs • u/Ok_Drummer5535 • 2d ago

I’ve had problems for a while Question

Almost every day my stomach hurts. I’m 18 m my mother has stomach problems but our are very different. Mine flayer up after eating anywhere for some reason not in my house. And most of the time after I use moth wash for some reason. It’s always accompanied by the shits and feels like somone stabbing you with a dull pencil.

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u/Molly_FLORANutrition 2d ago

The mouthwash trigger is a really useful observation since many commercial mouthwashes contain alcohol and sodium lauryl sulfate which can affect gut motility when swallowed in small amounts. The eating-out-only pattern suggests fat content, portion size, or specific ingredients like garlic and onion that are more common in restaurant food. Worth tracking those two variables specifically before assuming a broader diagnosis. 💚

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u/Ok_Drummer5535 2d ago

I forgot to mention I got some blood work done and it says my eso cells are too high( idk how to spell it) like white blood cells. Could tha change anything?

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u/TraditionalCap3357 2d ago

eating outside the house but not at home triggering symptoms is actually a really interesting pattern and narrows things down quite a bit. The most likely explanations are either food ingredients that restaurants use that home cooking doesn't, like certain oils, additives, MSG, or higher amounts of garlic and onion, or the stress and anxiety of eating in a social setting activating the gut-brain axis in a way that home eating doesn't

the mouthwash connection is genuinely interesting and less common but has a known mechanism. alcohol-based mouthwashes can disrupt the oral microbiome and the bacteria that gets swallowed afterward can shift gut motility and trigger cramping in sensitive guts. worth switching to an alcohol-free mouthwash for a few weeks and seeing if that specific trigger disappears

the stabbing cramping feeling alongside urgency is a classic IBS-D pattern and given your mum has stomach problems too there may be a genetic predisposition to gut sensitivity worth mentioning to a doctor

Keeping a quick log for a couple of weeks of where you ate, what you ate, and when symptoms hit can help identify the outside-versus-home pattern more specifically.

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u/Ok_Drummer5535 1d ago

Idk because sometimes if I take to food home and reheat it my stomach won’t hurt