Annatto (E160b)

I've suffered with almost continuous IBS symptoms for 10 years now. Intense stomach pain a few hours after eating (usually night times), followed by the feeling of glass passing through my bowels, wind, bloating, cramps and urgent, rather explosive trips to the toilet. I usually self starve for a couple of days until my bowels recover enough to face food again. An ultrasound scan at my Doctors practice confirmed my bowels were highly inflamed.

By the process of eliminating ingredients I have finally found the source of my problems, its often located at the very end of the ingredient list.

The culprit is a natural food colourant by the name of "Annatto" or the European name "E160b". Unfortunately it is used within a wide range of products, as shown here:

https://uk.openfoodfacts.org/additive/e160b-annatto

Eliminating this one ingredient has utterly transformed my life. My bowels are normal, and surprisingly my head is a lot clearer too.

I do not consider this a trigger for my IBS, I do not even believe I had IBS, I now firmly believe I just have an allergic reaction to "Annatto". In terms of my sensitivity, eating 1 pringle containing annatto is enough to trigger the pain.

Thankfully it's quite easy to eliminate this ingredient, certainly a lot easier than some of the other diets we endure, and the results should be fairly obvious within a few days.

I sincerely hope this has a positive impact on any sufferers in a similar position to myself. If so, please spread the word.