Constipation
In 2025, the BDA has officially launched the first dietary guidelines for the management of chronic constipation, marking a significant shift in the advice dietitians and other healthcare professionals can offer to adults living with this common condition.
Although constipation is often managed initially through dietary modifications, until now there have been no diet-specific, evidence-based guidelines to inform practice.
Led by Dr Eirini Dimidi, the new guidelines focus on key foods, drinks and supplement interventions and have been developed following a comprehensive systematic review of the evidence.
A total of 59 recommendations are included, with ways to improve symptoms, like eating 2-3 kiwi fruits per day and drinking high mineral-content water. It also highlights approaches lacking adequate evidence, such as generic high fibre diets and senna supplements.
Read the guidelines in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics now (open access).
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
The updated and expanded BDA guidelines for dietitians in the management of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are nearing completion.
For the first time they will include practical guidance on non-dietary considerations dietitians should have a good awareness of to inform their practice.
Led by Dr Yvonne Jeanes, a team of highly experienced gastroenterology dietitians from across the UK and beyond have developed the new practice guidelines.
These are informed from systematic reviews of the evidence and consensus agreement on statements from dietitians and other healthcare professionals with expertise in IBS.
The topics for consideration within the non-dietary statements were informed by published literature, healthcare professionals and people with lived experience of IBS.