diet tips for ulcerative colitis

Hi..welcome to the forum!

I'm assuming since you're on just the enemas and not oral 5ASA your UC is very limited. I would suggest you ask the doc for the oral 5ASA as well.

It's unfortunate you ended up in the hospital again...were you using the enemas tapered to a maintenance dosage over the past year? or did you go off them completely?

Regarding food....it's hit and miss, mostly for comfort. Food won't make your flare worse or have you healing any faster, ultimately....but the basics I'd suggest are get enough protein through meat sources including eggs. Eat smaller meals, chew well...you need nutrition. You'll be on the toilet anyway...you can't stop eating. The more fear you have, the longer it'll take for you to get over the aversion of food.

The first year, I basically limited any under done veggies preferring them very well cooked. I had more fruit sauces rather than whole fruits.

I have an egg and toast for breakfast. The first 2 years I ate rice bread toasted...then just went to rye bread.

I limited milk because of comfort and I am somewhat lactose intolerant.

Salads...softer leafed sources would be easier to deal with....I like mixed baby greens. They're good sources of vitamins. If you don't want to eat salads, you could consider juicing them possibly.

Take supplements to balance out for limited eating....make sure you are taking enough vitamin D, calcium/mag, C, multi b, whatever.

Probiotics would be something you definitely need considering antibiotics kicked off another flare.

Fibre supplements could help, especially if you're limiting fibre sources to help some of the symptoms/bms, etc. Start slow. I like the metamucil capsules.

Drink enough fluids, but not so much as to cause more diarrhea.

You could consider to ask the doc for Bentylol (dicyclomine) to help with the cramping.  I started out with 10 mg. 

Are you in Canada or UK?

There are others who adhere to specific diets like the SCD, maker's diet..etc.

Diet and UC will have conflicting opinions....the basic thing is, if it bothers you...don't eat it.   Or don't eat it during a flare, save it for when you're not flaring.

q

Hi Mari -
Welcome to the forum!
You will get many different responses to your question about diet.... here we find that we have many different experiences. I fall into Quincy's camp - in a flare, some food make me feel worse, but when not flaring, I can pretty much eat what I want.
I find gassy things hurt while flaring, also - I steer pretty clear of Mexican-type foods... and scratchy things, like corn. (My son's GI says the only food she outlaws is popcorn.)
Please, do ask about an oral 5-ASA.... staying on a dose of that as a maintenance keeps many of us in remission longer. And you might look into a probiotic, especially if this last flare was brought on by antibiotics - some of us find them helpful. (Again, nothing is sure-fire "remedy" for us all.... we all respond differently.)

Keeping a food journal and noting what the result is the day after any given food is a helpful tool for many of us.

Again, welcome!

Hi mari

yes there is a lot of conflicting ideas about diet and UC, both on the internet and this forum also. Some people think food has no effect on their UC and others like me have had their horrible symptoms reduced to nothing (remission in other words). The medical community does not support diet modification except for a few enlightened doctors.

Even those who believe diet modification is the answer have different diets. I think the largest number of diet mod. people fall into the "Specific Carbohydrate Diet" and I am one of them even though it didn't work for me the first time I tried it.
My life has returned to normal after 10 horrible years, unlike you my UC was never mild.

SCD is a healthy way to eat even for those without UC or Crohn's although it requires a lot of willpower in the beginning to eliminate many everyday food types. There is a lot of information about it on the internet as well as this forum.
Good luck on your efforts. It won't hurt to try diet modification and you may be fortunate enough to reduce your UC symptoms. It worked for me.

I don't have the willpower to follow the entire SCD, but I find that staying to the outside of the grocery store really helps.  I'm trying to get as close as I can to gluten- and sugar-free; it is helping a lot.  I eat fruits, veggies, meats, and dairy but try to steer clear of all processed foods. 

Also, for me, popcorn and nuts are the DEVIL.

I don't know why it works, but it does.  Junk food = me in the bathroom.  When I cheat, I notice that night or the next day.

Keep a food journal. Pay attention to the following as they are known to bother some people:

milk and cheese (lactose)
wheat
gluten
yeast
certain fruits (as they are high in sorbitol and/or fructose)
high fructose corn syrup and fructose crystalline (again high in fructose)
honey (again high in fructose)
sugar substitutes (usually those that end in "itol")
junk food
fried food
processed food
saturated meats (e.g. ham, bacon, hot dogs)

Foods that may help are:
ginger
mild curries (turmeric)

Both ginger and turmeric are natural anti-inflammatories.

Yes. Some people have trouble with popcorn, nuts, and seeds. They could irritate the colon for some.

Hi NOLA...Food that can cause discomfort, loose stool, cramping, etc...very subjective. It won't make your flare worse, but can make some symptoms more exacerbated. During flares, I'll adjust some food intake, but I'll pretty much be having bms more often when flaring anyway.

If you eat something and you have a bm for the next few hours, it's not what you just ate. If you're flaring, whatever is already in the colon will be moved along fairly quickly because eating triggers peristalsis. As well, while flaring, anything in the colon will be hurried through just by the signals from the rectum trying to get everything out regardless...so discomfort, spasming, etc can be purely related to flaring and not necessarily food. Anything in the gut being processed into poo will eventually have to go through.

I could usually see what came out the next day of what I ate the day before....some bms can go through in about 8 - 12 hours if one is having diarrhea or multiple bms.

You might find great help in fibre supplements and probiotics.

Curious what you eat on a daily basis anyway....some can give you suggestions to make changes to help ease some discomfort.

Hope the Rowasa helps your flare soon.

q

I answer them because I have experience with it, just a different opinion....and I do I suggest diet modification...not saying it will make a flare better, however...but some symptoms..definitely. You're on the other side not getting what I'm saying either.

Regarding food not causing some diarrhea...I should clarify...it's not what's coming out for hours afterward. It could, however, trigger a reaction of increased peristalsis or objection, however. Eventually the offender will be out, but I don't think within a few hours.

Many people misinterpret food symptoms for UC symptoms....that's my stand on it. Not that modifying diet won't help. Of course...again...help is subjective. Some people stop eating totally...it doesn't help except to give one's butt a rest and limit some bms.

If it bothers you, don't eat it...pretty simple. I don't eat lots of foods because of discomfort, it has NO bearing on whether my UC improves or gets worse, however.

q