hard time with calories...

hi folks! well I'm happy to say that overall I've been doing pretty good- the usual bad day here & there (about 2 per week), the occasional accident, the typical gas & mucous, my daily 4-6 formed bm's... which doesn't sound like I'm doing too well, but I really am! I've been in this holding pattern for ages now. Not getting better, not getting worse. The thing is this- I have been eating about 1500 calories a day for a while now- any more & I have big problems the next day. My weight is fairly low- I'm at 110, I am 5'5". I cannot put weight on eating the way I do, however, I am loathe to eat more due to the increased bm's. What to do?!?! !I drank so much Ensure while flaring I can barely stomach the stuff now. I usually eat breakfast either at work, or at home. A small one, maybe toast or yogurt. I guess I could try the Carnation Instant Breakfast, but I find I get really full very quickly now- a whole shake made with milk plus toast or soemthing would make me feel ill for hours. I'm at a loss. People are always saying "Oh, you're so skinny!"... and not in a good way! I don't think I look bad, but thin, yes. How do you put on weight when everytime you eat more than 400 calories in a sitting makes you ill? I eat full-fat stuff, I have ice cream often, pnut butter, pasta, plenty of carbs.... I don't know. Any ideas??? I'm not watching my caloric intake, per se, it's just that I tend to eat about 6 mini-meals a day- an apple here, a piece of toast there, some graham ctackers, couple crackers & cheese, etc. I eat a decent dinner with my family pretty much every night. I feel like I eat enough, but when I really look at the actual amounts, it's not enough. Just suck it up & be skinny? I just don't like losing any more, & I go back & forth, up a few pounds then back down.

Eva Lou, I have the same problem. Drinking Ensure/Boost makes me gag and I can never finish one bottle in a day. I also eat many mini-meals per day but it doesn't seem to help.

I know that you're supposed to eat a lot of protein as well as carbs to gain weight. I try to eat at least 2 spoonfuls of peanut butter everyday along with lunch meat and eggs a few times per week.

eva--sounds like you are doing things the best you can to keep up your weight, do you excercise?  I started working out a bit more often, hoping that I could build a little muscle mass instead of just adding pounds and it seems to have helped, because the only way I ever gained weight before was from water weight from being on prednisone. 

------------------------------------------------

yuckygut

diagnosed 1998

now off prednisone and colazal

drink 1 Haldi daily

have you thought about cutting out dairy gluten and wheat just to see if this is contributing to amount of bm..its not too hard when you think about veges meat chick eggs salads are all naturally gluten and wheat free and certainly special products use a lot of sugars for taste and chocolate is added a lot even though dairy just a thought but i know how hard it is just to function when ya feel like this let alone trying new lifestyle changes but sometimes worth it.

Do you all think 5 ft and 85 lbs would look bad? People always think I'm in junior high b/c I'm so small and have childish features!

Eva Lou, I have the same issues of feeling stuffed easily and having stomach aches. Sometimes I also get a little nauseous, even if I didn't eat a huge meal at the time.

ucwarrior said...
Adding digestive enzymes can break down more of your meals so you get more nutrition out of the same amount of food. They also help with BM formation. It's not how much you eat-- its what you absorb that makes the difference. Also, protein-powder based smoothies made with lactaid can assist with nutritional requirements even when you are not hungry.

I would agree.  I take Enzymedica DIGEST enzymes... they have Digest Gold as well- jsut a more potent form.  I would say that it helps me.

In general does dairy upset your stomach?  If so then try replacing the milk with Rice Dream Rice Milk.  It has calories and is probably easier for your system to digest.  You can mix brown rice protien powder and a banana in it to make a smoothie.  Those are usually a little easier to get down.

I do know what you mean by being sick after you eat.  I used to feel like I ate a ton of food, and then look down at my plate and only half is gone.  It is like I was burning more calories while I was eating.  At my lowest I was 115lbs and I am 5'11.  Now I hover around 135 lbs but that is after 2-3 years of trying my best to gain weight.  I also take wellbutrin which doesnt help because it makes people lose more weight than they gain.

Eva Lou said...
thanks, everyone- I feel a bit better! According to the height/weight charts, I'm slightly underweight. I would rather be that way then overweight, but it makes it a little tough- if your weight goes down 5lbs, it's a big deal! Plus, god forbid I go into a major flare again & lose it all & then some. I think your body deals with illness & infections better when it ha a few extra pounds to work with. I have no intention of giving up gluten, dairy, sugar, etc. I have kept very detailed food diaries in the past, & have not been able to pinpoint any one food that caused me more trouble than another. Aside from the obvious- pepperoni pizza & a few beers, anyone!??!? I try not to eat too much sugar. I have been tested for celiac, with negative results. Maybe those digestive enzymes might help- I don't eat vast quantities of food, but like I said I am never really hungry. If I am, then I eat! I really think the body needs less calories to work with than we are led to believe. Again, this depends on how sedentary your lifestyle is. I don't exercise, per se, but I do get plenty of exercise daily- between housekeeping, work, & general running around, I am on the go. Well, I guess I gotta keep on trying, & just try to eat pretty high calorie meals- food that packs a punch in small amounts.  

I was tested negative for celiac as well but come to find out I cant eat gluten.  Sometimes it just doesnt show up on the tests and I know that is really really annoying.  I kept a food diary and it was until after I stopped eating gluten and dairy did I notice I felt better.  It is real tricky disease.  But at any rate if you have no intention of giving it up then I wont lecture you- we are all adults and I never liked when people used to lecture me saying that their way to remission is the only way!! 

This is a great support group here and together you will find your magic remission cocktail. 

hi, i'm a newbie, just joined. got diagnosed october 8, 2008. probably had uc at least two weeks prior but was scared to go to doctor.

am on Pentasa - 8 pills a day and two probiotics per day. feel much better but still have bloating, even first thing in a.m. and gas and later at night some pain - but bearable. find i am always hungry, nothing really satiates me. know i am eating too much in one sitting but can't help it. have started adding oods to my diet and only real problem i had was with cheese crackers and bagel, bad reactions. however, now have had milk in decaf. coffee had bit of parmesan cheese. lost a lot of weight - over 20lbs. am only 5 feet and since started eating again (which is about three weeks) have gained about 5-6lbs.

any suggestions to easing bloating and diet??

been on probiotics for about 4 weeks. will try to eliminate or at least reduce amount of bread, etc. though very difficult for me. what do you put tuna, egg salad, etc. on. haven't started eating raw veggies yet-at that point can use peppers instead of bread.

Terps19 said...

Eva Lou said...
thanks, everyone- I feel a bit better! According to the height/weight charts, I'm slightly underweight. I would rather be that way then overweight, but it makes it a little tough- if your weight goes down 5lbs, it's a big deal! Plus, god forbid I go into a major flare again & lose it all & then some. I think your body deals with illness & infections better when it ha a few extra pounds to work with. I have no intention of giving up gluten, dairy, sugar, etc. I have kept very detailed food diaries in the past, & have not been able to pinpoint any one food that caused me more trouble than another. Aside from the obvious- pepperoni pizza & a few beers, anyone!??!? I try not to eat too much sugar. I have been tested for celiac, with negative results. Maybe those digestive enzymes might help- I don't eat vast quantities of food, but like I said I am never really hungry. If I am, then I eat! I really think the body needs less calories to work with than we are led to believe. Again, this depends on how sedentary your lifestyle is. I don't exercise, per se, but I do get plenty of exercise daily- between housekeeping, work, & general running around, I am on the go. Well, I guess I gotta keep on trying, & just try to eat pretty high calorie meals- food that packs a punch in small amounts.  

I was tested negative for celiac as well but come to find out I cant eat gluten.  Sometimes it just doesnt show up on the tests and I know that is really really annoying.  I kept a food diary and it was until after I stopped eating gluten and dairy did I notice I felt better.  It is real tricky disease.  But at any rate if you have no intention of giving it up then I wont lecture you- we are all adults and I never liked when people used to lecture me saying that their way to remission is the only way!! 

This is a great support group here and together you will find your magic remission cocktail. 

Same here. Negative for celiac disease, but definitely feel better when I reduce or eliminate gluten. I also avoid dairy. The two are common offenders for people with gut issues.

 

Why do you have to put tuna salad IN something? Why not serve it in a bowl or on a lettuce leaf? You can also use large lettuce leaves as wraps. I'm not a tuna fan, but I eat chicken and turkey salads as a salad, not a sandwich.

I second the suggestion to add healthy oils - fish, flax, Udo's, olive - to your diet if you're trying to gain weight. Nut butters and avacado are also calorie dense. Heavy weight training and limited cardio will help put on healthy lean muscle mass, rather than fat.

yeah all probiotics cause gas at first whether you are intollerant to gluten or not. Its just the nature of them- it should subside soon though. If not maybe you just need a different strain. Ultimate Flora is a good probiotic though it might contain fructoluctodisharides (sp?) which is a sugar that causes gas sometimes. Unfortunately it is a guessing game.

out of curiosity i got my dr to do a halibactor-pyloris test on me as my mother had a bleeding ulcer caused by it, i would say the only real symptom i could find was belching all the time for years,well the test came back pos and i had to take anti biotics for a week to kill it oh yeah and at the same time commenced gluten and wheat free diet since killing the bug i no longer belch and now experience being hungry before a meal rather than eating for eating sake also have better digestion and nails etc are stronger without taking a supplement so either they both made a differrence or one did but im not willing to go back to gluten diet yet to check as i have a couple of plane trips coming up so dont want to irritate the bowel beforehand actually any tips for the flight and how not to want to go to the toilet when seat belt sign goes on???????????


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------uc diagnosed '89
100mg imuran commenced 2 wks ago
never a period of remission to speak of