> I suspect that IBS is sometimes used as a cop-out diagnosis.
>


i suspect the same thing, especially when, in the same breath, my doctor
said 'there's nothing wrong with you' and 'you have irritable bowel.'
huh?  it just didn't make any sense to me.  in addition, i worked for a
psychiatrist who was doing research on ibs, specifically on those doctors
who chose to make that diagnosis whenever they didn't have a better
answer.   i decided to take my health into my own hands, made some
changes to my diet, drank more water, ate much more veggies (which should
be a given, since i'm a vegetarian) and less starch, and i began to
notice differences.  i'm only 31 years old, and have always been able to
eat whatever and whenever i wanted to, and nothing my doctor  was saying
made much sense to me; as if he was just trying to get me out of the
office.

zen