Does diet not affect you in a non-flare?

[Rebreb]

This may seem odd....but I can eat whatever I want during good periods. But when I have a flare up I can't keep a single thing down...including water some days. And I have absolutely no appetite during a flare up. I think that is mainly due to the pain, severe pressure below my rib cage, and excessive vomiting and diahreah. Just wondering if other people can eat anything during a non-flare up

 

[TGVphoto]

Hi Rebreb, thats my question too . .. Ive just recently been diagnosed with Crohn's and was given a base diet to start from . . . I was also wondering about the purpose of the diet . . . do flare ups just cause discomfort or do they slowly cause damage to your intestine?

Basically my question is: If you eat something "not safe" and you feel fine, does that mean its ok for you or does it still "kill" you silently.

I used to love food and prided myself on being able to eat and enjoy anything . .. now suddenly Im told that I cant eat this, that and the next thing . .. If eating enjoyable food is only going to result in a bit of diarrhea with no long term health risks then "Bring it on"

So does a flare up get caused by what you eat, and do flare ups have a negative impact on your bowel?

 

[Clash]

The flare itself is inflammation in your GI tract, during that inflammatory period damage is being done.

Some people find that when not in a flare they can eat whatever they want others can't and some people even when in a flare don't find a correlation between pain and food. Everyone has different opinions on how diet affects CD. Some choose to follow a diet like SCD along with meds or forgo the meds altogether and just focus on diet.

Even if you are asymptomatic there can still be low level inflammation occuring in your GI tract and causing damage, that is why it is important to utilize blood work tests, fecal calprotectin stool test etc to keep an eye on what is going on inside.

If you are unsure of what foods may be affecting you the best way would probably start a food journal or elimination diet.

Good luck there is a lot of helpful info in this Diet section of the forum, you may want to read through different threads that relate to what you feel you are experiencing.

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

Personally, I'm in remission, and certain foods still really bother me. I cannot do coconut at all, it causes terrible symptoms for days. Dairy, red meat, nuts & seeds, etc also still bother me. And I still cannot eat salads. As long as I eat safe foods, I feel great. My theory is that even though the monster is sleeping right now, it's not gone completely and I may have scar tissue or whatever, so I don't expect my digestive tract to behave totally normally. My GI feels I have IBS in addition to IBD and that's what causes my symptoms when I'm in remission (I don't agree with that, I feel it's just a convenient excuse). Anyway, I'm rambling, but that's my experience.

 

[Rebreb]

Basically my question is: If you eat something "not safe" and you feel fine, does that mean its ok for you or does it still "kill" you silently.
If eating enjoyable food is only going to result in a bit of diarrhea with no long term health risks then "Bring it on". [/QUOTE]

Very good questions.......

 

[Crohn's gal since 1989]

Basically my question is: If you eat something "not safe" and you feel fine, does that mean its ok for you or does it still "kill" you silently.
If eating enjoyable food is only going to result in a bit of diarrhea with no long term health risks then "Bring it on".

Very good questions.......[/QUOTE]

What ever doesn't bother you is "safe" for you, it might bother a different Crohnie though. No foods cause inflammation, just some are not tolerated well when inflammation is present so are considered "unsafe"

 

[hugh]

Basically my question is: If you eat something "not safe" and you feel fine, does that mean its ok for you or does it still "kill" you silently.
If eating enjoyable food is only going to result in a bit of diarrhea with no long term health risks then "Bring it on".

crohns is inflammation and ulceration that builds up to the point where you 'flare'.
the damage is being done while you are not in a flare, eating the problem foods and not noticing.

the foods that you notice when you are not flaring are probably intolerances or problems digesting (gas, cramps etc) but may not be contributing to your crohns.

the foods many eat as 'safe' foods (pasta, bread, sugar etc) may be contributing hugely to the disease (plenty of research out there on grains, intestinal permeability and disbiosis)

It's a controversial topic so i'd say try it for yourself
http://www.crohnsforum.com/showthread.php?t=48559
-obviously transitioning to a paleo diet is difficult, and much easier when NOT flaring

Very good questions.....

What ever doesn't bother you is "safe" for you, it might bother a different Crohnie though. No foods cause inflammation, just some are not tolerated well when inflammation is present so are considered "unsafe"

Of course foods can be inflammatory,
Processed foods, sugar, processed vegetable oils (not olive oil) and grains are the most inflammatory.
the selfnutritiondata website lists the relative inflammatory index of foods and its worth a look,
http://nutritiondata.self.com/.
there are a few glitches, they put coconut oil as very inflammatory, but it's a start

1 cup sugar


1 cup olive oil

screenshot studio

1 cup lamb


Forget Cholesterol, Inflammation's the Real Enemy
so good to see the truth getting out into the light

[youtube]AwkBB2Z6914#t=37[/youtube]

In summary, a very low carbohydrate diet resulted in profound alterations in fatty acid composition and reduced inflammation compared to a low fat diet.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18046594

that's me done

ohh yeah, did i say PALEO?

 

[rollinstone]

agree w hugh, except I eat white rice everyday haha that's grains but for me its gentle grains, I avoid bread n stuff, even though I love it and it might not have an instant reaction, it builds up

 

[hugh]

i eat white rice too, not every day but it's the only one - low toxicity

 

[nogutsnoglory]

I disagree with Hugh, ended up losing 50 lbs as an already skinny guy on Paleo. It made me worse.

 

[Crohn's gal since 1989]

Guess the bottom line is Crohn's disease affects us all differently as we know from displayed symptoms, why would diet be any different?

I wouldn't advise eating a high fat/high sugar/high processed food diet to anyone, Crohn's or not, but these foods never bothered me in moderation. I'm a firm believer in everything in moderation.

The end is you need to reacquaint yourself with your body and over time you will learn what foods work for you and what you need to absolutely stay away from. You will also probably find some foods you love that you're will to suffer a little discomfort for every now and then.

 

[nogutsnoglory]

Couldn't have said it better myself crohns gal.

 

[kiny]

When I'm in remission I can eat anything.