Probably gets asked a lot, but...

[Caleb9849]

How terrible IS a less-than-perfect diet on the Crohn's-ravaged gut? I don't demand a lot, but there are a few things I really enjoy that are potential no-no's:

-Spicy stuff, like a good Indian or Thai meal now and then. Nothing overboard.
-Some things that are greasy (although I'm not a fan of the grease itself), like pizza and fried/breaded things.
-A beer in the evening once every few days. I never drink more than 1-2 drinks per day, rarely more than 3-4 per week, and almost never anything more alcoholic than beer or maybe a glass of wine. Liquor is extremely seldom for me...like once a year seldom.

I've never noticed any of these things causing me obvious/major problems, and I sometimes wonder, if I feed my soul a little bit of happiness with these things, am I doing a lot of long-term damage to my intestines or whatever that I may not be noticing? :S What do you guys think?

 

[AndiGirl]

Before I was diagnosed with Crohns, Thai food wreaked havoc on my digestion for several days. I can handle some Chinese food though.

 

[Guest]

i guess spicy food, fried food, and alcohol should be avoided if you're able to follow the perfect diet for Crohn's... but in reality, how many of us do everything perfectly, every single day? i know i don't - we still have to have our little treats every so often, if we're able to cope with them...

i'd say that unless you're flaring, and unless you show an obvious bad reaction after having any of these things, then don't worry too much, but don't overdo it..

a lot of Crohnies know instinctively not to put a certain food or drink in their mouths because of experience, like i will sit and pick every piece of sweetcorn out of a sandwich, or pineapple out of a sweet n sour dish, but i will have the occasional baileys or portion of fries..

food when we're flaring has to be altered - or else we'll just feel worse, and that's the time to completely cut out anything on the culprit list, including spicy, fried food & alcohol...

 

[Lydia]

If it doesnt cause you immediate distress then moderation is fine. You can feel good about moderate consumption of these things, when you take good care of your self by eating healthy foods. In my experience anyway. I am in remission, but I eat healthy almost everyday, but it feels good to treat myself to the things you listed.

I also consider spicy things healthy, while in remission, because lots of those spices have anti inflammatory properties, like turmeric, garlic, and ginger for instance.

 

[ameslouise]

I also consider spicy things healthy, while in remission, because lots of those spices have anti inflammatory properties, like turmeric, garlic, and ginger for instance.

I concur! I have been in a flare forever, but Indian food is one of my "safe" foods - I always feel good after having it. It's probably due to the spices. I don't order anything too hot and spicy, but a good biryani or chicken tikka masala or tandoor chicken is good for me.

Everything in moderation...

- Amy

 

[Rebecca85]

Indian food is fine for me too, and is a better option for me than most other takeaways- my local Indian has good quality meat and vegetables, no artificial additives.

 

[partlycloudy]

like i will sit and pick every piece of sweetcorn out of a sandwich

What kind of sandwiches have corn in them? Unless sweetcorn isn't corn but something else? I'm really curious here.

 

[vonfunk]

What kind of sandwiches have corn in them? Unless sweetcorn isn't corn but something else? I'm really curious here.

The Brits put corn on everything. Sandwiches, on pizza, pretty much everywhere where corn shouldn't be.

 

[sawdust]

How terrible IS a less-than-perfect diet on the Crohn's-ravaged gut? I don't demand a lot, but there are a few things I really enjoy that are potential no-no's

I love to eat and didn't realize it until I had some flares to make me appreciate that. The answer to that question probably falls along personal lines, but for me, the question is more aptly "is it worth it?" And that answer (given much experimentation) is a resounding "no." Ten minutes of "yum" never outweighs the hours or days of pain I feel from it in a flare, but maybe it is to you?

Of course, this is the old chicken and egg, does food cause a flare or does it aggravate symptoms while flaring? I believe it makes my symptoms worse while flaring, so I do what I need to do while flaring to minimize the pain. And, I carefully try to eat the yumminess I miss when I'm in remission.

In my most recent flare, I stopped drinking coffee at the drop of a hat. I enjoy coffee alot, and alot of it at that. But everyone who knows me couldn't believe that I stopped drinking it, and I can only really reply that I had little choice in the matter. Of course I miss it, but it still comes down to the fact that it just wasn't worth it to me.

 

[Caleb9849]

Ten minutes of "yum" never outweighs the hours or days of pain I feel from it in a flare, but maybe it is to you?

Oh right, I completely understand that. Maybe I didn't ask my question quite right...what I'm getting at is whether or not there's long-term damage to worry about, if I'm not noticing anything short-term. If I have a beer or a Thai meal or a pizza and it doesn't cause me any immediate noticeable trouble, should I worry that beer or Thai meal or pizza could be making it a little bit easier for me to develop irreversible damage in my bowels, or something along those lines?

 

[rygon]

Im not sure about this. Maybe theres a possibility that you will get sensitised to certain foods (ie eating something often that causes a little upset now, may cause greater upset over a long period of time)

And yes Vonfunk we dont lol. Tuna and sweetcorn sandwiches, sweetcorn with rice, pasta, soup. Its a bugger to get a way from

 

[sawdust]

Oh right, I completely understand that. Maybe I didn't ask my question quite right...what I'm getting at is whether or not there's long-term damage to worry about, if I'm not noticing anything short-term. If I have a beer or a Thai meal or a pizza and it doesn't cause me any immediate noticeable trouble, should I worry that beer or Thai meal or pizza could be making it a little bit easier for me to develop irreversible damage in my bowels, or something along those lines?

Well, at least for me, that one's alot tougher to answer, as I'm not sure of the extent that we cause long-term damage to our own guts. I've read and heard everything from "it's something I've done" to "there's nothing really that I can do to control when a flare happens." I'm not really that happy with either of those extremes, so I live in the middle and try to take things in moderation.

Do you keep a food journal? I do, but even with it all documented and reviewable, I've always found it difficult to later go back and say it was this thing that made things worse or it was that food that I should skip. I always end up saying it could have been one of a few things, because it's likely that I've had those things before without consequence. I'm not sure how normal that is, but it is part of the learning process I suppose. I think it also depend on whether you believe that food causes flares or food causes symptoms to worsen.

I'm convinced that it at least causes worse symptoms for me, and that when I'm flaring, I really try to listen to my cravings to give my body what it needs... don't get me wrong, I might crave things that aren't smart, but somehow body seems to "know" what it needs within the parameters of what's a good idea to be eating. I wish I could explain that better, but I hope you understand what I mean.

 

[partlycloudy]

You learn something new every day it seems. I had no idea about the Brits and corn. Interesting!

I adore corn so would probably eat it in anything but it causes me a ton of pain so can definitely sympathize with having to pick it out of so much.

 

[ALI_101]

Oh right, I completely understand that. Maybe I didn't ask my question quite right...what I'm getting at is whether or not there's long-term damage to worry about, if I'm not noticing anything short-term. If I have a beer or a Thai meal or a pizza and it doesn't cause me any immediate noticeable trouble, should I worry that beer or Thai meal or pizza could be making it a little bit easier for me to develop irreversible damage in my bowels, or something along those lines?

I've been wondering exactly the same thing, if there are foods/drinks that, even when not causing any distress/discomfort after consumption, should be avoided as they are likely to be doing long term damage inside.

I'm figuring there is probably no clear answer to this question. I dont think i could ever bring myself to stop having a few beers and a pizza now and again if there's a good chance its not doing me any harm at all!

Unless someone can tell me otherwise, i'll just keep stumblin on i guess, what else is there for it?

 

[Ian]

It definitely varies from person to person. Personally I haven't noticed my diet have any impact on my disease - might be because all of my disease is contained to the large intestine so everything's already been digested? Anyone else find this?

The only recent development has been the effect of alcohol - after my worst flare last year, I found heavy drinking resulted in D the following day (the hangover poo is never pleasant but it did used to be at least semi-formed lol) and could trigger symptoms slightly. But I mean like after a student binge (not just a few pints down the pub) so it's something I shouldn't really be doing anyway