The effect of gluten-free diet on clinical symptoms of patients with irritable bowel syndrome: Randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND & AIMS: There is debate over the effectiveness of Gluten-Free Diet (GFD) in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Therefore this study set out to evaluate the effects of gluten on IBS symptoms.Materials and Methods: In this trial, ۴۴ patients with irritable bowel syndrome referred to Urmia Imam Khomeini Hospital were randomly divided into two groups based on Rome IV criteria. Twenty-two patients received a gluten‑free diet, and other patients received a regular diet as a control group for four weeks.Results: There was no significant difference between the control group (۳.۵ ± ۳۹.۹ years) and the group with GFD (۷.۸ ± ۴۰.۳۲ years) in terms of mean age (P=۰.۹۴۴). The effect of a gluten‑free diet on abdominal pain, bloating, fecal consistency, reduced frequency of bowel movements, and nausea/vomiting were higher than in the control group (P = ۰.۰۰۱). In the case of constipation, GFD did not improve significantly (p = ۰.۲۰۸) and even in three patients also worsened their constipationConclusion: According to the present results, GFD could improve quality of life and control symptoms of IBS, especially in diarrhea-predominant IBS. However, with a longer duration of follow-up and larger sample size, GFD may be more effective in reducing IBS symptoms. Also, administration of GFD for patients with constipation-predominant is not recommended.