Re: Cascara sagrada, stimulant laxative

 Intestinal bloating is the main symptom that I have had for 22 years now in regards to digestion. Sometimes it isn't that bad, other times it is very uncomfortable. IBS is the diagnosis. I only have slight constipation lately, so that is why I take a laxative...sometimes just half a tablet. Some days I can eat something and not have much bloating from it and other days the opposite. It always starts in the stomach, but it is throughout my whole intestinal system. The less food I eat, the happier my digestion is.

Bloating in the stomach most often results from a lack of stomach acid, which leads to fermentation. In the intestines it is from a lack of intestinal flora, which also leads to the IBS.

For the stomach I recommend the bitters, B vitamins and zinc.  For the intestines and IBS kefir or other cultured foods and fiber such as rice bran and oat bran.

Yucca root is also great for reducing fermentation and building up the flora.