Help please - Fish question

[Keezee]

Hello all!

My wife's doctor recommended that she start eating fish, but she is a vegetarian! She may have a blockage. My 2 minutes of research on Google leads me to believe that the only reason he would suggest fish is because fish oil is known to be good treatment for IBD, is there any other reason? She can't event have fish oil capsules as a vegetarian, but if the only reason she needs fish is for the fatty acids then could she just do flax seed oil?

Any help is appreciated!

 

[Isla]

If he is suggesting that due to partial obstructions, she could try a liquid diet for 24-48 hours. So popsicles, jello, lemonade, and coffee (but I think broth would be out for a veggie girl.) Then you can start adding soft foods like yogurt, ice cream, soup.. etc after the 24-48 hours. This helps me a lot and it lets me avoid having to be hospitalized. I go on the liquid diet maybe once a week, or once every 2 weeks.

Don't know about flax seed oil, never used it.. sorry

 

[BWS1982]

Flax isn't as effective as fish oil unfortunately, due to the DHA and EPA concentrations, but it's still very healthy and will suffice if her convictions on meat based foods stands.

 

[jed]

get the orange flavoured fish oil and sneak it into her food?

{{blushes}} sowwy......

 

[Isla]

Actually vegitarians after a while of their diet can have a really hard time digesting animal proteins. This happened to one of my friends after eating stuffed muchrooms. Guess it was stuffed with more than just cheese!

 

[DanSJVDavis]

I'd say go ahead and go with the flax if she can't do fish oil. Just go with the highest concentration of Omega 3 you can get. The difference in flax and fish oil is the method in which the body uses it. Flax is ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), which the body has to break down into DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) before it is absorbed. Lately, studies have shown that fish oil already has the oil in the component DHA and EPA forms so it'd be easier to process by the body. I prefer flax because I don't end up belching raw fish taste all day when I take it, as my stomach seems overly efficient at breaking down the outer coating of those gel-caps. I've even got ones that are enteric coated that are supposed to digest in the small bowel and I still end up belching fish.

As for broth, there are some good organic vegetarian vegetable broths on the market that could be used for liquid diet during bad bouts.

 

[Isla]

As for broth, there are some good organic vegetarian vegetable broths on the market that could be used for liquid diet during bad bouts.

Good to know

 

[DanSJVDavis]

I used to have to stock those shelves at my old job not long enough ago.

Or one could make a veggie broth, taking a carrot, green pepper, celery stalk, onion, and any other random veg you have laying around, chop it rough. Put it on a sheet pan. Put it on the middle oven rack under the broiler and stir it around every few minutes or so until it begins to brown a bit. Take it out when it's got some nice browning to it (but not black) and put in a pot with 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil and then simmer until the water has reduced a bit and the veggies are limp and mushy and have given their all. Strain through a sieve and drink. You could even put spinach or other greens in, but don't put those under the broiler, just directly in the water. You could forego the broiler and just boil the veggies directly, but the broth won't have that brown color. I made veggie broth a long while back when I had my ostomy.

 

[frozenkefir]

Hi there,

I'm new to these forums too but have had Crohn's for 10 years. I do take fish oil for the anti-inflammatory effect for IBD and also it is healthy for the heart. Luckily I dont have the fish burps so I can take quite a lot of them per day. However, I think the doctor is also recommending the fish for the protein because it seems easy to digest baked/grilled fish...easier than most proteins I have experimented with. A good fish to eat may be wild Alaskan salmon because it is low mercury and has the oil. However, since she is a vegetarian and you are looking for alternatives then like you said, it may have to be flax oil. I took flax oil for a while and didnt have any problems with it, but I think the fish oil just helps me more. I'd say either of them are worth taking, even without a bowel disease.

I do have some suggestions that you might want to consider for the omega-3s and protein. If she doesnt want to take pills or buy a flax oil supplement there are some peanut butters that add the flax in and the flavor is good actually. I eat a lot of the smart balance creamy peanut butter because it is very low sugar and has flax added. Tastes great on celery and fills me up. I also eat eggs with omega-3s...hard-boiled because fried foods get to me. Lots of eggs advertise the omega-3s these days actually. Hmm...I'm not sure if eggs are on her menu but I know some vegetarians who do eat them so I though I'd mention it. Honestly, I'd probably go vegetarian myself and have tried a few times but I have real problems eating the meat substitutes...seems like I just cant digest them very well....especially the soy products. So I just eat the proteins I can handle without problems, basic ones like the fish, eggs, and smooth peanut butter. Everyone is different and I'm sorry if she cant eat these foods but I thought I'd mention it. Goodluck. =)