Welcome to a weekly feature on my blog – Ben’s Zone. Written by husband… Ben. A foodie, coffee obsessed, ex-smoking, ex-drinking and Ridgeback loving Dad. Who is also seriously into his fitness. You can find him on the blog (mostly) on Sundays. Enjoy!
ncapsulate® Gut Maintenance Program Review
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I have IBS. I tend not to like talking about it as the symptoms are quite embarrassing but it’s something I’ve lived with and coped with for a long time now. But it’s no fun at all. Ok, I’m not going to die from it but it’s frequently very uncomfortable. It manifests for me as bloated feelings in my stomach which then progress to cramps and, often severe wind. It is not unusual for me to literally sprint to the toilet when I come in from my morning run as this seems to trigger an attack. Not only is this very, very uncomfortable, it can also really ruin certain activities. When I start to feel the tell tale cramps while out running it can be sufficiently painful that I have to walk back. Not only is it a physical issue, I also feel like everyone can see what is going on and it makes me feel less than.
There are a number of foods I avoid, anything dairy other than really tiny amounts of cheese is the biggest one for me. I do occasionally have things like ice cream when I’m out but I know I am going to pay for it later.
So I was quite happy to get a chance to review the ncapsulate Gut Maintenance program when the opportunity arose. ncapsulate are a supplements company that provide individual supplements or courses of supplements designed to be taken together. Normally, when I review something I try and gain a technical understanding of how it works so that I can communicate that in the review and measure performance against it. I’m not going to do that here for the simple reason that my knowledge of nutrition is very limited and it’s an extremely complex topic. Instead I’ll explain what the course contains and the effect it has had over the last couple of weeks I have been taking it.
The course consists of 3 supplements, Multi Flora 20 Bil and Digestive Enzymes, both of which are taken with every meal and a Multi Fibre Nutritional Complex which is taken with the evening meal. All come in capsule form and are tasteless with no discernible smell, taste or aftertaste. The supplements are also Vegan friendly which is a nice touch.
Initially I was really concerned as for the first 24 hours the symptoms seemed to have got slightly worse (but not lots worse). I do tend to find that my cramps are worse in the evening and the loose stomach is worst in the morning. Within a couple of days this had got very noticeably better. In the evenings, at bed time I am much less bloated, a lot more comfortable and I’m far less windy than I have been for some time. I’m embarrassed even talking about this to be honest but I figure anyone who has read this far is, more than likely in the same boat.
So the results got quite positive quite quickly. Morning run performance has been really good as well. I am not having bad cramps or having to sprint to the toilet when I get in and I have to say that is a huge relief. That alone makes things worth while. I tend to cook the same meals most weeks and so I am usually aware if the next morning is going to be tricky and I have not changed my diet while testing these supplements so I know it’s not just coincidence, there is an appreciable gain in my levels of comfort.
The question now is, would I recommend this? For me it hinges on whether these need to be taken all the time or whether they can be taken periodically throughout the year. The reason for this is that the particular course I reviewed cost about £113. I do not, for a second, think this is bad value for money as they did exactly what they promised to do but that equates to about a 30 day supply and that’s expensive for me with my other outgoings. I did some brief comparison and it’s not unfairly priced. High end gut supplements are in that price bracket, so I don’t think these are expensive for what they are. What I would definitely do though is to buy a course a couple of times a year to reset my system so to speak. So, something I would buy one or two times a year but not a monthly expenditure thing. That being said, I’m saying this when still taking the supplements so this could all change when they run out if the cramps come back. Because it has made a significant difference to my IBS.
If you suffer from IBS then I would suggest giving this a try if you can as it definitely does work. You can then make a call as to whether you can / will find money for it in your monthly budget.