Explainer | How to reduce irritable bowel syndrome, which celebrities Kirsten Dunst and Tyra Banks suffer from – advice from a nutritionist who battled IBS herself

Hong Kong-born, Seattle-based dietitian Jessie Wong uses her Instagram channel to suggest ways to reduce IBS symptoms, something she has experienced

There is no cure for IBS, which affects some 10 to 15 per cent of the population, but treatments to reduce it – including breathing techniques – are evolving

Reading Time:4 minutes

Actress Kirsten Dunst (left) and model Tyra Banks have spoken about their experiences of irritable bowel syndrome, which affects 10 to 15 per cent of people worldwide. A nutritionist who has the condition tells the Post her three steps to combating it. Photo: Getty Images

Published: 4:15pm, 8 Feb 2024Updated: 12:01pm, 9 Feb 2024

It can strike without warning, causing stomach pain, diarrhoea and gas that can severely disrupt daily life. And it is more common than you might realise. Between 10 and 15 per cent of the world’s population is estimated to have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

“Spider-Man” actress Kirsten Dunst, and supermodel Tyra Banks, who is known for following strict diet and workout routines, have spoken out about their experience with IBS. There is no cure and many are advised to “live with it”.

Jessie Wong, a Hong Kong-born, Seattle-based dietitian, knows this all too well. Both she and her husband suffered with IBS for more than a decade.

Wong’s husband was studying for a PhD in the United States when he experienced symptoms and saw a university doctor who told him: “It’s just IBS and you have to learn to live with it.”

Dietitian Jessie Wong had her first bout of IBS during her second pregnancy. Photo: ibsfreedom.org

His case was not typical: one study showed that it takes on average more than six years from the onset of symptoms, and seeing doctors and undergoing tests, to reach a definitive diagnosis of IBS.

Wong suffered from IBS when she was pregnant with her second child in 2016. She experienced constipation, cramps and bloating of the lower abdomen. “There was no guidance as to what to do,” she says.