Diet cause and affect

[Tofu]

Hello,

I've had Crohn's for 8 years but luckily it didn't cause me any problems for 6 years. But over the past couple of years it's been causing me some problems.

I'm currently on MTX but that hasn't sorted things out completely. The results of a colonoscopy showed that things were generally not to bad in there but that's little consolation as I'm not feeling great. The Gastro seemed very dismissive almost said "what are you moaning about it looks OK in there. Come back in a couple of months".

After a bit of complaining he suggested that I try a low residual diet but didn't give me any idea of what one was, he just referred me through to the dietitian, who I'm seeing in a couple of weeks. So I'm left with google for ideas on what I can eat and what I shouldn't.

So I've cut out all food that's got a fibre content of greater than 1% and things that will stimulate the bowel like caffeine (OMG the withdraw headaches!). I'm also trying to keep my fat intake down. I'm currently staying away from all fruit and veg.

So at the moment I've got a very dull diet, but does seem to be helping. I'm back at work after 4 weeks off and generally feeling a lot better than I have down for a ages

Sorry for the long ramble, I'm getting to the point.

At the moment, my general day looks something along the lines of:
6am - Getup have Special K and milk for breakfast
9am - 2nd Breakfast of white toast
12pm - Lunch ham or Chicken sandwich on white bread & something sweet biscuit or pastry (no nuts etc....)
1pm to 4pm - lots of trips to the toilet 4+ times
7pm low fibre dinner

Apart from the afternoon spell of going to the toilet I'm feeling pretty good.
I'm going to try to cut out the milk for breakfast to see if that makes any difference.

Is it likely that the milk could be causing my afternoon problems?

Any thoughts on anything else to try would be much appreciated.

 

[Astra]

Hiya Tofu

It could be the milk, eliminate it and see, document everything in a food journal.
It could be the Special K, make sure it's soggy when you eat it.
Do you eat any fish? Fish has anti inflammatory properties and loaded with Omega3,
whereas red meat, ham etc has Omega6 which can exacerbate inflammation.
I've not eaten red meat for 16 months now and feel so much better.
Are you taking a multi vitamin with iron, or maybe a cod liver oil supplement? Cos you're not eating fruit and veg, try to eat a banana every day for your potassium. Experiment with fruit and veg, broccoli is anti inflammatory and advocados are rich in Omega3.
A low res diet should only be for the short term really, cos you won't get all the nutrients your body needs.
Good luck
xxx

 

[Cookie]

I agree with Astra. Milk could be a culprit. Soy, rice or almond milks are nice alternatives with cereal. Worth a shot.

 

[itsMeFred]

If I were you, I'd investigate one of the diets that people with IBDs seem to have a lot of luck with-- Specific Carb, Paleo, low-carb (Life Without Bread), the yeast diets, etc.. In each case, you cut out cereal grains and liquid milk.

 

[Crohn'sFor Life]

Try cutting out the bread/wheat. Eat rice instead. I have been loosely following the macrobiotic diet and I've been feeling less bloated.

 

[Tofu]

Hi all,
Just a quick update how I'm getting on. Well all in all things are going pretty well. I seemed a lot better after cutting out milk. I'm not saying it is down to cutting out milk but it's looking likely!

I think that coconut milk is the best ever!

Ive been out on the bike a fair bit which has been great. I pushed it a lot yesterday and that seems to have gone down well. Fingers crossed it settles down over night.

 

[Verdeyes]

Try the blood type diet, I was always running to the bathroom and adding and removing foods, never couldget it right. Now I never am sick, please try and let me know if it helps, I am curious.

 

[Beach]

I agree with the paleo diet idea. It's done my gut a world of good avoiding grains and dairy items. There are many informative sights about low carb/ paleo eating ~ thought Dr. Eenfeldt had a nice listing of some of them at:

http://www.dietdoctor.com/new

 

[Jennifer]

You don't need to go on a special diet. Everyone is different. When you're in a flare be it mild to severe then you cut out foods that give you unwanted symptoms. If you can't eat a salad without loads of diarrhea after then don't eat a salad. Low residue diets mean nothing fried so you go for baked, grilled etc. It also means low on fiber so peel the skin off of veggies and take the seeds out but don't cut them out completely and always steam them as they tend to be easier to digest that way. Low spice so don't go swallowing a ton of hot peppers on a dare or anything. Lighter meats like white pork meat, chicken breast, white fish etc. because they contain less fat and are easier to digest.

Honestly though when you mentioned what you were eating I'd assume that you're including too much sugar in your diet. Carbs are nothing but sugar and too much sugar can lead to diarrhea. Substitute some of that bread with protein and veggies that you can tolerate.