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1 meat, 2 meat, 3 meat, none? 1 veggie, 2 veggie, 3 veggie, none?

Yep, tried to sound all Dr. Seuss here. ANYWAYS, there is a point to the title...

Those who know me know that I've had MAJOR issues with red meat, and that red meat triggers up my flares of IBD (and remember, I have no specific diagnoses of which IBD I have).

So i started eating red meat only once a month, and that helped me go almost 5 1/2 months without a flare (the longest I've ever gone). Typical antiobiotics cured it up: Flagyl and Cipro for one week.

This month though I've decided to eat meat THREE times a month, just as a trial...if that makes me flare, then after the flare is cured I will try 2 times a month...if that doesn't make me go a long time without flaring I will try eat red meat only once every TWO months. And if that significantly improves it I will just have to cut out red meat entirely which would drive me NUTS!

I have figured out this much when eating meat...Pork is no problem. I can eat tons of pork for a few straight days with no negative reaction. It is beef that's murderous. And, even though chicken is a WHITE meat, that I can't tolerate much of. Same with fish.

Then there is the fruit and veggies...I am doing the exact same trial as meat. I can eat peas, lettuce, cucumbers, asparagus, coloured peppers, red delicious apples, and granny smith apples all I want. Any other fruit and veggie I restrict heavily to 1 or 3 times a month now.

I also plan next month to go get allergy tests done again for food. I'm curious to see if receiving shots up until last fall helped 'cure' any food allergies. (for those who didn't know, I tested positive for allergies to all food except for beans).

Has anyone else done a trial like this and succeeded???
 
Has anyone else done a trial like this and succeeded???
Yes. It is an ongoing progress.

When I was diagnosed with UC the specialist also tested me and said I was lactose intolerant. A real bummer because I have always loved cheese. But it gives me terrible pains now. Wheat is another problem, it also gives me terrible pain.

I have also discovered that meat flares me up very badly. Prior to UC, I was a real carnivore. A humongous meat lover. I would eat meat at least once a day, every single day of the week.

For the past few years I have only been eating it once a month. But the last couple of times I have had meat have proved that I must now follow a strict vegetarian or vegan diet.

A fortnight ago I had my last chicken. The results were hideous. I experienced pain like I have never felt in my life. Terrible UC flare up. Loads of blood in stools. Terrible agonising wind. Stomach swelled to the point where it resembled a beach ball. Strangers kept asking me when the baby was due! It took me days to recover. Still not quite right.

I never ever want to experience that again. So I plan on switching to a proper vegetarian/ vegan diet permanently.

The most successful and beneficial thing I have discovered for UC is vegetable juicing and juice fasting. Thank god for that, otherwise I fear I would have cracked up by now.

Hope you find your triggers too. It can be a long process but hang in there, it is worth the effort in the end.
 
Yes. It is an ongoing progress.

I have also discovered that meat flares me up very badly. Prior to UC, I was a real carnivore. A humongous meat lover. I would eat meat at least once a day, every single day of the week.
....
A fortnight ago I had my last chicken. The results were hideous. I experienced pain like I have never felt in my life. Terrible UC flare up. Loads of blood in stools. Terrible agonising wind. Stomach swelled to the point where it resembled a beach ball.
Wow you sound just like me. I used to eat beef on a very regular basis and could eat it every day of the week.

And beef is what makes me do what chicken did for you. I have a lot of painful and bloody diarrhea, very upset stomach, and bloating. And severe flareup pain.

BUT I unfortunately to do not a diagnosis as I mentioned. All of my family doctors but ONE calls what I have UC.
 
Have you tried preparing the beef in different ways? Including: ground, bbqd, pan roasted, oven roasted, broiled, braised, slow cooked in a crockpot, or slow cooked in a dutch oven? I would think that maybe slow cooking the beef in a crockpot or dutch oven might help with digestion and ensuring any bacterial or antibiotic products in the beef are gone. It also happens to be a delicious and convenient way to cook beef, even of bad quality, and get something tender and awesome.

Also along that line of thought, have you tried antibiotic, grass fed, organic beef? Most supermarkets carry a line of this beef (you can choose to believe it or not), and it might be worth trying this higher quality beef if you think it is a trigger. Maybe something about the normal beef is causing it and this higher quality stuff will be safer? Just a few thoughts that could help you out in your search for the beef answer. I am assuming you really enjoy beef based on the fact you are so set on finding a safe level to eat (I don't blame you at all because beef is DELICIOUS!!!!).
 
Yes I have tried beef is pretty much all forms... burgers from ground beef, steaks, bbq'ed, slow cooked, lean, you name it...
and yeah i used to be someone who ate it tons, i could have it every day and not get sick of it.
I ate burgers yesterday and my stomach is NOT at all happy. I even had bloody D after eating... Even though it's been like 2 weeks since I last ate beef! And for some reason I'm craving it majorly right now :/
 
Have you tried preparing the beef in different ways? Including: ground, bbqd, pan roasted, oven roasted, broiled, braised, slow cooked in a crockpot, or slow cooked in a dutch oven? Also along that line of thought, have you tried antibiotic, grass fed, organic beef?
For me, beef is beef is beef is beef, no matter how cooked or prepared or raised. Last time I had it, I was on the verge of being rushed to hospital. Very scary experience. It is really not worth going through that again just to eat beef. And last month when I had chicken, I was in so much agony afterwards, I swore never again.

I have only been following a strict vegan diet for a few weeks, but felt better within literally days of starting it. For example, this morning instead of waking up at 3am or 4am and running to the loo as per my normal morning. I slept into 5.30 and then leisurely like a normal person walked to the toilet. And I only went once.
 
Have you tried preparing the beef in different ways? Including: ground, bbqd, pan roasted, oven roasted, broiled, braised, slow cooked in a crockpot, or slow cooked in a dutch oven? I would think that maybe slow cooking the beef in a crockpot or dutch oven might help with digestion and ensuring any bacterial or antibiotic products in the beef are gone. It also happens to be a delicious and convenient way to cook beef, even of bad quality, and get something tender and awesome.

Also along that line of thought, have you tried antibiotic, grass fed, organic beef? Most supermarkets carry a line of this beef (you can choose to believe it or not), and it might be worth trying this higher quality beef if you think it is a trigger. Maybe something about the normal beef is causing it and this higher quality stuff will be safer? Just a few thoughts that could help you out in your search for the beef answer. I am assuming you really enjoy beef based on the fact you are so set on finding a safe level to eat (I don't blame you at all because beef is DELICIOUS!!!!).
It's actually kind of nasty when you think about it.

If you look at your body like a juicer (which is what it is) when you eat fruits and vegetables, your body works to separate the fibre from the juice inside which contains the nutrients, and you crap out the fibre while the juice gets absorbed.

If you look at your body like a juicer, when you eat meat, your body works hard to separate the solids from the liquid, and you end up absorbing the bodily fluids of the animal and crapping out the rest of the animal. Delicious.

I still think it's perfectly normal for the human body to eat some quantities of meat, and if you look at it from a survival standpoint the more food sources an animal has, the better chance of survival they have. However I believe it's a last resort food, and in large quantities over a long term has detrimental effects vs a vegetarian diet.

There really isn't a need to eat meat as part of a normal diet, not even for protein like most people believe.

For a normal person eating enough calroies to sustain their level of activity, it's impossible to be protein deficient, even if all you are eating are fruits and vegetables.

Given most people eat enough protein and your body doesn't need any more, what ends up happening is your body tries to convert the meat into energy so it can store it as fat, which is a nasty process in the body, is hard on the body, and affects what should be proper digestion.
 
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Grass-fed is an important distinction. Most animals now are fed corn diets, which causes inflammation and promotes omega 6 oils (the bad kind); but grass-fed animals create omega 3 oils (especially fish) and that helps reduce inflammation.

I've had bad luck with a lot of beef because it's corn-fed; and the grass-fed stuff is really hard to get in my area, so I've been trying to reduce my meat intake for that reason.
 
Grass-fed is an important distinction. Most animals now are fed corn diets, which causes inflammation and promotes omega 6 oils (the bad kind); but grass-fed animals create omega 3 oils (especially fish) and that helps reduce inflammation.

I've had bad luck with a lot of beef because it's corn-fed; and the grass-fed stuff is really hard to get in my area, so I've been trying to reduce my meat intake for that reason.
Never thought of that...
 
I have discovered that during this flare it doesn't matter what I do or don't eat, my stomach doesn't tolerate anything. I tried avoiding meat or veggies of ANY form and it still goes right through me.
I wonder if there is anything good to eat during a severe flare?
 

ameslouise

Moderator
Low res... white foods, boring foods. Plain chicken or fish, mashed potatoes, rice, pasta etc etc... I have been doing that for months now. It's very boring but it really helps!

- Amy
 
Low res... white foods, boring foods. Plain chicken or fish, mashed potatoes, rice, pasta etc etc... I have been doing that for months now. It's very boring but it really helps!

- Amy
I will slowly ween myself into that! I did eat nothing but rice pasta today...
 
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