Two Food Intolerances. What Can We Eat?

Hello! I'm Emily.

I have had IBS since I was a child which eventually spawned into Crohn's disease at 17.

I have always dated people who have had no intolerances/food issues like myself, so finding where to eat together has never been an issue until now...

I've recently started dating this amazing man who unfortunately shares the same struggle I do with nutrition/food except he has Lactose Intolerance with some gluten issues, not Crohn's.

It is so hard to figure out where we can go out to eat together/what we can cook/meals we can BOTH have and I'm getting discouraged.

(Obviously if we had to always eat separate meals I wouldn't care too much and it wouldn't ever make me reconsider him.)

But I'm just mostly looking for meal suggestions we can both eat! Any help is so appreciated. Thank you!

I wouldn't be discouraged at all. There so many great food under the sun that you can eat. Think about vegetables, grass feed meat, eggs, gluten free goodies like soba noodles. You both can benefit. Nothing better than a homemade meal, made from scratch with lots of love The only way to understand what you can eat is to try, and try, and never give up. I already don't eat gluten, diary products (only grass feed butter and ghee), and sugar. Nothing wrong with that. If you look for something to begin with, check paleo and vegetarian recipes. I usually have to modify almost every recipe, since there is always something that I cannot eat. Still, that wouldn't stop me from making a great meal. You can do it too.

I find your post a bit confusing. I get what your boyfriend can't eat, but what can't you eat? There are loads of dairy-free and gluten-free recipes on the internet. If it's just lactose that is the problem for both of you, then lactose-free milk, yoghurt and cheese may be a possibility: where I live you can get these in all large supermarkets. As for gluten, most large supermarkets have a gluten-free section these days. And, of course, rice and potatoes are naturally gluten-free; I'm not on a GF diet, but I just naturally have potatoes or rice for dinner most of the time anyway, as I'm not a pasta person.

Eating out is probably going to be harder than eating at home. If you can, check the menu online first: most restaurants have a website. Some places will list potential allergens and offer gluten-free, etc. options.