The Pros and Cons of Resistant Starches for IBS

Does it seem like carb-rich foods, including grains and beans, cause more IBS symptoms for you? There can be many reasons for this, including the type of carbs that are present in these foods.

Carbs are essential for gut health, but they can also be a cause of symptoms for many. One characteristic of some carb-rich foods that is complex for IBS is resistant starch.

Most starches, or dense carbohydrates, are broken down by enzymes, called amylases, in the small intestine. As they are broken down, the body uses the smallest carbohydrate molecule, glucose, for energy.

Resistant starches are unique forms of starches because they “resist” digestion in the small intestine. Instead, they travel to the colon (large intestine) to be fermented by bacteria and produce end products, including short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and gas. This is a very good thing, because these byproducts are used to promote positive effects in the body.

Are resistant starches bad for IBS?

For irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), resistant starches have a poor reputation and are oftentimes termed “bad.” The reality is that these starches are misunderstood.

They can have both a positive effect and negative effect for those with IBS, and intake will be personalized based on each individual’s symptoms and microbiome health.

The goal of this article is to empower you with the information you can use to personalize your resistant starch intake in a way that will work best for you.

Pros of resistant starches

Resistant starches are considered prebiotic fibers, which are defined as “non-digestible food ingredients that beneficially affect the host by selectively stimulating the growth and/or activity of one or a limited number of bacteria in the colon, thus improving host health.”

The break down: prebiotic fibers improve the health of our microbiome, which then improves the strength of our gut permeability (the leakiness of the gut), digestion, immune system, mental health, hormone balance, and more.

To further break it down: prebiotics are really good and really necessary for gut health.

In addition to improving the microbiome, resistant starch intake has been shown to reduce hydrogen sulfide gas production in the intestine. In case you missed it, hydrogen sulfide has been linked to the onset of ulcerative colitis, a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and is an odorous gas.

Resistant starch intake is also linked to increasing butyrate, one of our SCFAs that is linked to positive colonic health. The break down: resistant starches improve digestion and reduce risk of diseases of the colon. 

Beyond the health of the microbiome and digestion, resistant starch intake has been shown to reduce blood sugar levels and improving insulin response in humans, which shows a benefit to preventing and managing type 2 diabetes. Intake as also be shown to reduce blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, which shows a heart health benefit.

More specifically, B-glucan from oats, barley, and psyllium is shown to reduce risk of coronary heart disease, and inulin-type fructans are shown to decrease serum triglycerides.

The break down: resistant starches can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease, thus super important. 

If that wasn’t enough, resistant starch intake is also shown to improve satiety and reduce fat storage, which can help with stabilizing hunger/fullness cues and weight management. 

Cons of resistant starches

For those without IBS, there aren’t many cons, but with an irritable gut there are a few things to consider. Resistant starches are highly fermented by gut bacteria (remember, this is a good thing!), so they produce more gas.

For those with IBS, this gas could get trapped due to slower motility (slower movement of the gut), which can lead to more pain due to hypersensitivity (gut-brain miscommunication). The extra gas can also mean more bloating and distention, especially if the gut is already irritated. 

Because those with IBS do struggle with hypersensitivity in the gut, excess gas can often be painful and even cause spasms in the gut that lead to more severe symptoms.

The break down: large portions of resistant starch may contribute to IBS symptoms. Each person will have their own tolerable intakes, which should increase as symptoms are better managed and the gut microbiome is strengthened.

Hint: if your plan for managing symptoms doesn’t include a clear strategy for improving your microbiome, you’re missing a big piece of the puzzle and it may be time to seek guidance. Schedule a consult here to learn more.

What To Do

Simply put, you want resistant starches in your diet. How they fit really depends on your own tolerance. You can start testing and building your tolerance by understanding the different resistant starches that are available to you.

The 4 types of resistant starches: 

  • RSI, type 1: whole or partially milled grains, seeds, and legumes. For these, the thicker outer walls of the plants prohibit water from filtering into the starch, which prevents gelatinization and swelling, making the starch hard to break down by enzymes in the small intestine. 

  • RSII, type 2: high-amylose maize starch, raw potato, raw banana starch, green bananas. Raw versions of these starches become like type 1s, but cooking alters starch content and allows for gelatinization, which makes them easier to break down.

  • RSIII, type 3: cooked and cooled starchy foods like rice and potatoes. For these, retrograded amylose has high gelatinization temperatures and cannot be dissociated by cooking, aka they are harder to break down. 

  • RSIV, type 4: starch with high level of cross-linking that loses the ability to swell during cooking. 

  • RSV, type 5: stearic acid-complexed high-amylose starch.

When it comes to finding resistant starch in your diet, you’ll most likely come across types 1-3 the most often. Research recommends getting 15-20 grams of these starches per day for the benefits we talked about above.

Remember, while these foods are harder to break down, that doesn’t mean they’re “bad.” They’re actually pretty awesome and deserve a place in the diet, but may need to be controlled a bit with IBS. Keep reading on for your strategy.

Free IBS Fundamentals course will tell you what IBS is, the drivers and root cause of IBS, the diagnosis process, and treatments available.

What’s your poop personality? Find out here!

 

Strategy you can use

  1. Before you do anything, start with an assessment of your current food intake and your current symptoms. This journal can be helpful if you have no idea how to do this. If you feel like you’re eating very few plants (grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds) and/or your symptoms are all over the place, find a dietitian (like me!) to help you navigate where to begin with symptom management. Once you feel like symptoms are fairly stable and not as severe, you can move forward.

  2. Identify your current intake of resistant starch in your journal (see full list below). If your intake is very low, start adding in 1 small serving per day. If you tolerate it okay without any uncomfortable symptoms, go for 2 servings per day. Still tolerated? Go for 3… and so on. 

  3. If you experience a lot of gas after your intake of resistant starch, either due to higher intake of these foods or due to poor tolerance, reduce your intake 1 serving at a time until you find an amount per day that works for your body. Find other substitutions for these (listed below) so that you are still getting in sources of fiber. As symptoms feel better controlled with time, challenge yourself to increase your intake of these 1 serving at a time.

Food sources rich in resistant starch:

  • cooked and cooled brown rice and brown rice pasta (think: pasta salad, leftovers)

  • cooked and cooled potatoes (potato salad)

  • green bananas

  • raw oats

  • cooked plantains

  • pearled barley

Moderate sources of resistant starch:

  • legumes (lentils, chickpeas, beans, peas)

  • cooked and cooled sweet potato

  • breads

The Final Bite

To wrap this up, here’s what I want you to leave with:

  • Resistant starches are really good for our gut health and for preventing symptoms.

  • Large intakes of resistant starches MAY increase some IBS symptoms, including gas, pain, and bloating.

  • It is still a good idea to include resistant starches in the diet if you have IBS. 

  • If this is all confusing and you have no idea what to do, find a dietitian to help you navigate it. 

If you found this post helpful, leave a comment with your biggest takeaway and how you plan to implement the strategy outlined above! 

And if you’re looking for more personalized care for your IBS so you can feel confident in your body again, consider the MASTER Method Membership to get you there!

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Hi, I'm Erin, founder and lead dietitian at Gutivate. Myself and my team are here, across the US to help you get control of your IBS!
 
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