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Posted 5/28/2009 12:43 AM (GMT 0)
What does everyone mean by careful with their diet?

I have colitis.  They are not sure why, either crohns or ulcerative colitis. 

I have not found any food or type of food that either helps or hurts my stomach.

So I'm trying to figure out what every one elses diet is like?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

 

Posted 5/28/2009 2:06 AM (GMT 0)
It's just trial and error really. It helps to keep a food diary and write down how what you eat affects you.
I generally try to avoid sugar, gluten, high lactose dairy, and junk food in general.
I use the Specific Carbohydrate Diet as kind of a rough guideline but don't follow it strictly.
I've been adhering predominantly to a Mediterranean style diet lately with a lot of extra virgin cold pressed olive oil, soft fruits, well cooked vegetables, imitation crab, tuna, chicken, boiled eggs, various nuts (almonds, walnuts, etc.). And I really love Blue Diamonds pecan crackers with havarti...

I've noticed that digestive enzymes taken before a meal help.
As for anything else, I am on align probiotics which have made a world of difference, and have recently started taking omega fish oil in addition to my normal prenatal multivitamin (no, I am not pregnant).

In the end though it really is different for each person so you have to try and find what is best for you.
Posted 5/28/2009 2:07 AM (GMT 0)
That's just it...if you haven't found one either way then that is the way you are. Some people have foods that pisses everything off, some don't. Everyone have different foods and tolerances.
Posted 5/28/2009 3:58 AM (GMT 0)
For several years after my diagnosis I ate anything I wanted with little thought about changing my eating habits. Then after several medications that either made me miserable or didn't work, I began to follow the specific carbohydrate diet. I firmly believe that the SCD got me through a difficult period where nothing seemed to help. I notice when i stray from scd too much that my bm's get worse so I try to choose my comfort/junk foods carefully and take in moderate portions.
Posted 5/28/2009 6:03 AM (GMT 0)
Add me to the list of SCDers. Since I started eating that way, my acid reflux disappeared (no more Protonix, yeah!!!), 3 fistulas healed, constipation is mostly gone (my 4 day transit is now a 2 day transit), my skin doesn't itch for no reason anymore, my blood tests come back in the normal range (that's certainly a change), my seasonal allergies have improved, and my recent colonoscopy was really good (except for my scarred ileocal valve). The only thing bad is that my cholesterol has gotten worse, but a lot of people have told me that's normal, and that it should go back down once my body has healed more.

I definitely think diet can help. A lot of people say they feel better just by eliminating gluten from their diet.

You could try doing an elimination diet. Start with just a few simple foods that you're very certain you tolerate, perhaps something like meat, eggs, yogurt, & applesauce. Then add one new food every 2 to 4 days, and note any reaction.

A food diary is a must. For instance, my dad (also Crohn's) thinks he can remember everything that he eats and doesn't need a food diary, and he also doesn't think popcorn bothers him. But I've noted that every time he eats it, his crohn's bothers him a couple days later. He never made the connection until I pointed it out to him. He probably would have if he had a diary.
Posted 5/28/2009 1:02 PM (GMT 0)
Well sometimes things you eat can make you bleed or extremely irritate your guts. Corn, salads, spicy foods, greasy foods, popcorn, etc are some of the things that people who have IBD have some issues with.  But it is not the same for everyone.  It also depends if you have constapation or d.

Corn was one of the first things I noticed.
I stick with "soft" foods for right now.
Posted 5/29/2009 1:23 AM (GMT 0)
I don't believe randomly eliminating foods can provide evidence of cause/effect of symptoms, especially since it may take longer than a few days to know for sure if certain foods are bothersome. For me, an antifungal diet (which somewhat mirrors the SCD, less strict) helped me get well again. (CD and colitis has been known to have a fungal etiology).It took at least 2 weeks of very strict allegiance to the diet before I saw any results. If you have ever taken antibiotics, steroids, birth control pills, drink alcohol, been exposed to mold/mildew or lived in water-damaged places, as well as have fungal-related symptoms (psoriasis, high cholesterol, diabetes, arthritis, asthma, foggy brain, FM, depression, food allergies, infertility, sugar/grain cravings), you may have a fungal problem.

If you want to know for sure, try a change of diet, and see what happens.
Posted 5/29/2009 6:47 AM (GMT 0)
If you are worried about yeast, you can do the "spit test." It's supposed to be a fairly good indicator on whether or not you have a yeast problem. Instructions are outlined here:

http://www.adhdrelief.com/CandidaTest.html
Posted 5/29/2009 2:14 PM (GMT 0)
I stick with a low residue diet. Easy to chew, easy to digest. That seems to work best for "ME". I do not eat any red meat, only fish, chicken or turkey. I try to stay away from processed foods as those seem to irritate us alot.

My best suggestion is to keep a food diary and keep track of foods that agree or disagree with you. Good luck!
Posted 5/29/2009 8:39 PM (GMT 0)

I have a no-no list no matter what level of flare I have..I know when I was really bad liquids to babyfood was all I could tolerate..I then progressed to low residue but I still could not handle heavy protein..If I am on the up swing I just eat everything but my no-no list which I think my no-no list reads similiar to alot of those that post.  I have seen those that post that say that they are not necessarily affected by diet..

 

Cindy

Posted 5/30/2009 8:29 PM (GMT 0)

Spookyhurst, is it possible the Humira caused the improvements, rather than the diet?

Posted 5/30/2009 10:52 PM (GMT 0)
The Humira definitely caused some improvements prior to SCD (significantly less pain, hemoglobin & ferritin returned to normal). But it wasn't until I started eating SCD that I saw the other improvements (acid reflux disappeared, 3 fistulas healed, constipation is mostly gone (my 4 day transit is now a 2 day transit), skin doesn't itch for no reason anymore, seasonal allergies are vastly improved, much improved appetite). The one thing I still really need improvement on is fatigue. It got a little bit better by the 4th month of the diet, but I still have a long ways to go.

My fairly decent looking colon is probably a result of both Humira & SCD. Some people don't like taking meds on SCD, but I'd rather not chance upsetting the applecart and will keep taking Humira for as long as I can. I'd like to try LDN after that.
Posted 6/1/2009 1:35 AM (GMT 0)
Hi there,
I also use the Specific Carbohydrate Diet for my Crohn's, combined with LDN. It has take a long time to get to the improved state I'm at now, and my gut is still not perfect, but I have noticed tremendous improvement. After not having a single firm BM for over 3 years before getting the crohn's diagnosis, I now have firm BM's about 75% of the time. I also only have BM's every other day as opposed to 3-6/ day. I used to pass blood as well, but since starting SCD 10 months ago I have only seen blood in the toilet once. SCD has been difficult and has taken a lot of trial and error, but it has, over time, show good improvements for me.
Ryan
Posted 6/2/2009 2:42 PM (GMT 0)

Hi Ryan,

What do you mean by "trial and error"? Did you make changes to the SCD diet?

Posted 6/29/2009 12:35 AM (GMT 0)
I don't eat anything that is not SCD legal, but even within the strict guidelines of what is allowed on SCD I have had to do a lot of trial and error to find what works for me. I currently have an VERY limited diet that is mostly meat, eggs and some basic veggies. I hope that, as time goes on, my diet will expand.
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