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SCD Diet?

Desperado Dan - I agree, I think the diet can be done along with the drugs... It will definitely be hard to tell what's the diet and what's the drugs, there's no doubt. Prednisone itself will tackle your symptoms in a big way almost overnight, though I can't speak to Imuran's effects, as I got Pancreatitis from it! Though I'm sure you won't! Most people who have tried it find it works well for them! I think there are other effects from the diet that Prednisone and other drugs can't address, like energy levels, clarity of mind and a general sense of health.

It's definitely hard to know what to do, when you have a GI telling you one thing, telling you that you can't be healthy without the drugs. Luckily, and I think I am in the minority here, but my GI is VERY open to alternative treatments and has always been supportive to let me find my own way to health. He still wants me to be on medications and talks a lot about surgery when I'm not doing very well. But overall, when I tell i'm trying some new alternative treatment he's supportive. I told him after my colonoscopy in April (while I was still doped up on Demerol, no less!) that I wanted to give SCD a try and he looked excited and said "I think that's a great idea!". Taken aback, I asked if he had had other patients try it and he said yes, that there are some that have been successful with it but they have overall found it too difficult to stick to. Then I spouted off about how I'm a web design student and that I am building a food and recipe website and am super determined to try... He kind of chuckled at me because I was pretty high on sedatives, still! But nonetheless, he was supportive. That being said - my eventual plan with SCD is to slowly come off Methotrexate and try to sustain my health without it. Maybe you could, at some point down the line when you feel really well and have gotten used to the diet and gotten good at reading your body's signals, experiment with coming off the drugs.

However, as someone who experimented with stopping taking meds without doctor supervision and without a solid plan or stable health, I definitely don't advise coming off the meds until you are certain about your health! I got very very sick at the beginning of 2010 and I never fully recovered.

Partly Cloudy - I'm quite intrigued about the DL-Phenylanine, but I'm nervous to try something new again after my experience with S. Boulardii. Plus, I've read a lot that DL-Phenylanine is primarily used as an antidepressant... Is it a natural supplement? Did you have it recommended to you for diarrhea? Or for something else and it happened to work for diarrhea?

I'm going to be making your squash button recipe tomorrow afternoon (though I think I will be making it more as a muffin!), and omitting banana and honey as much as i can. I'm also worried that my DCCC isn't legal and could be contributing to my flare... I'm so confused about this brand! I've been told by other SCDers that it's legal, but I'm still so confused about it, because it says Carbohydrate 2g - 1%; Sugar 2g on the label. Any ideas?!
 
I'm also worried that my DCCC isn't legal and could be contributing to my flare... I'm so confused about this brand! I've been told by other SCDers that it's legal, but I'm still so confused about it, because it says Carbohydrate 2g - 1%; Sugar 2g on the label. Any ideas?!
My dear Vancouverite :), if you are not sure about DCCC, I would suggest you to drop it for now and try hard cheese such as Grueyer, Swiss, Manchengo, Cheddar or any other legal cheese , of course if you like them. You should be able to find all of them made in raw milk version. I recently bought raw milk Cheddar at Famous Foods on Kingsway.
 
Desperado Dan, The prednisone will mask your symptoms so you'll probably feel a lot better than you would on the diet alone at this stage. And you really won't know if it's the diet or the drug. However, healing will still be going on with the diet so I'd consider staying on it if you can. However, if you have to restart that's perfectly fine. A LOT of people restart the diet for different reasons. :)

If you're like me you'll be feeling so good on prednisone that you can do a lot of cooking. :D Aside from some bloating and the ability to eat several times my own body weight per 24-hour period, I've never had a bad prednisone experience but I've also only been on it for at most 4 weeks.

I have no experience with the other drug.

The author of the book on SCD encouraged us to continue with our meds. The only reason I ever considered SCD was because my meds weren't working well enough, but I'm still on them as I have a long, long way to go before my digestion is healed enough to consider weaning off them.

Good luck!



So, I'm a little confused and scared. I'm on day 5 of the intro diet and I went to see my GI doc (who's never heard of the diet, incidentally.) Because the sulfasalazine and Canasa haven't changed my diarrhea and I've developed a minor anal absess, he's additionally put me on Imuran (ugh) and Predsinone (double ugh.)

Is there a point to staying on the diet now? Will I even able to stay on it? If I stay on, how will I know it's the diet and not the drugs? Not to mention, I've heard horror stories for these drugs! I don't know what to do!
 
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Bubbasmi, DLPA is an amino acid. I got mine at the health food store, which was the only place I could find a legal version. I'm not sure if this answers your question about it being a natural supplement.

I know how you feel about being afraid to take something else. I felt the same way. It's recommended a lot on the BTVC group due to those of us with IBD tending to have low serotonin levels. It's also supposed to help with low level pain. I have back problems and decided to try it for the pain and only accidentally discovered it's helping my diarrhea.

Since you're having some issues you can always wait on trying anything new until you figure out what's going on and fix it.

I'm far from an expert, only having been on the diet for 2 months so don't feel qualified to help you with the DCCC. I've actually never found any locally and use dripped yogurt instead so don't know much about it. I agree with the other poster who said to try taking it out and see how you feel.

I'd also consider joining the BTVC Yahoo group and posting your dietary regimen there and see if some of the experts can help you figure out what's going on. SCD is all about tweaking for your own situation so there's really no one-size-fits all approach. If you want to share the brand I can do a quick search there to see if anyone else has asked about it. The sugars in it seem like they'd indicate it's illegal to me, but again, I'm no expert.

EDIT: I read on the Yahoo group that carbs should be 1 gram or less per 28 grams of product to make your DCCC legal. Does that help?

Take care and I hope you like the buttons. :D

Partly Cloudy - I'm quite intrigued about the DL-Phenylanine, but I'm nervous to try something new again after my experience with S. Boulardii. Plus, I've read a lot that DL-Phenylanine is primarily used as an antidepressant... Is it a natural supplement? Did you have it recommended to you for diarrhea? Or for something else and it happened to work for diarrhea?

I'm going to be making your squash button recipe tomorrow afternoon (though I think I will be making it more as a muffin!), and omitting banana and honey as much as i can. I'm also worried that my DCCC isn't legal and could be contributing to my flare... I'm so confused about this brand! I've been told by other SCDers that it's legal, but I'm still so confused about it, because it says Carbohydrate 2g - 1%; Sugar 2g on the label. Any ideas?!
 
Good to hear people have shown noticeable improvement.

I'm curious about peoples' bloods? Are they reflecting your thoughts?
Do you mean blood work? I haven't had any done but am due in a couple of months. Mine is usually fine anyway though, but I am interested to see if any changes have occurred.
 
I do and I love it. I was making yogurt using the heating pad method, and the Yogourmet yogurt maker is SO much easier. So far I haven't had to use my dimmer switch (I kept reading they tend to run a bit hot).
 
So far I haven't had to use my dimmer switch (I kept reading they tend to run a bit hot).
That`s exactly what happens with mine that I got yesterday. Last night I made my first batch and when I checked the temperature one hour later it was 113F , I wasn`t concerned about it but this morning I checked it again and it was 119F! Way too hot I guess.

I just visited some other forums regarding making home made yogurt (some use the same dimmer switch technique) and some people say that they managed to make great yogurt even with 124F reading , but I read somewhere that over 120F will kill bacteria culture. I am a bit confused.

This morning yogurt seemed to be ok as far as consistency but I am not sure about the final result , we`ll see tonight ........
 
Mine was running slightly high, normal but on the high end with no room to spare. I then moved it out away from the wall (on the counter still) and it runs normally now, well within the safe range.

I remember reading about the higher temps/probiotics on the Yahoo BTVC group but don't remember what they said. You might ask or do a search there if you haven't already.
 
I just got an excellent book “Listen to your gut” by Jini Patel (she was diagnose with Crohn`s in 1986, in full remission for many years) , lots of very important information, I highly recommend it! www.listen2yourgut.com

In a nutshell, there has been some controversy about Aloe vera and bifidus bacteria, Elaine in her book BTVC do not recommend these supplements but Jini states that it was very helpful for hundreds of CD and Colitis patients, she recommends full spectrum of bacteria in probiotics and Aloe vera juice without carrageenan and aloin.

I have been taking probiotics with bifidus for about a week and I have no problems so far.

Also, for those who still have diarrhea several times a day, Jini`s Probiotic Retention Enema seems to be working very well, some people on other forums reported that they got almost instant relieve after this procedure. Also, L-glutamine, psyllium seeds are recommended …..

This book is a bit pricey but you can get a good deal ordering it directly from her website. Or you can just find it at your local library ………
 
That book sounds interesting, thanks!

I have good news and bad news to report! I think the bad news is a direct result of the good news, which I do find quite ironic.

It's been about a week now and I am diarrhea free! It sort of disappeared over a 2 day span... Which is awesome, but it was also really sudden! I'm not complaining, though! My theory is that I was having die-off from the S. Boulardii I took and it worked its way through my system and I all of a sudden felt better. Anyway, I'm down to 2-4 BMs a day. They are sometimes almost formed, sometimes still loose. But never liquid anymore! I'm also feeling little pain in the day and have a pretty good appetite. yay!

However, I know that I have a stricture in my gut from a colonoscopy i had 2 months ago. So since my diarrhea turned into more formed stool, I think the bulkier stool is having trouble getting through the narrowing. I don't know fully where the stricture is because I was really dopey on sedatives when my GI told me I had one, so I don't remember where he said it is! But I'm going to assume it's on my right lower abdomen because this area always feels really tight and tender. I also do feel bloated sometimes. I'm not going to the bathroom nearly as much as I was, like I said before. My lack of going to the bathroom a lot doesn't feel unhealthy, but I'm sort of worried that it's because of the stricture. The most worrisome symptom, however, is that this area of my abdomen is often an elevated, noticeable lump! Like, a big lump that sticks out of my side. It it worse at night (maybe because there isn't as much movement) and I often wake up to big lumps, where, if I touch it or massage it it gurgles and dissipates away. It often does it... gurgles and dissipates, but it always comes back. I'm pretty worried about it... And I don't think I've ever had a stricture before, so I don't know what to expect.

Luckily, I'm seeing my GI tomorrow, so he will hopefully order me some tests to see how bad it is or if I should be concerned or not. But i wanted to know if anyone has experienced anything like this before?
 
Wow, Bubbasmi, that's awful (the bump). I'm glad to hear your diarrhea has cleared up though. Let us know what the doc says, okay?

I have pain in that same area where I know I have narrowing, but I've never had a bump. I hope it's nothing to worry about and just gas or something.
 
I just finished reading the book that I mentioned in my previous post, important information about probiotics …….. it`s very important to get right strains of probiotisc as most of 200 known L. acidophilus strains are useless, only 12 of them do the work for IBD, but the most potent one is DDS-1 strain, also bulgaricus lb-51 strain, bifidum Malyoth super strain. Jini in her book only recommends Natren products (natren.com) as top notch brand , I did some research on the internet and there seems to be consensus about it, it`s simply the best on the market but at the same time very expensive.

It is also very important to take some of natural antibiotics to kill all pathogens , two most potent supplements in this category are Oil of Oregano and Olive leaf extract. As these kill also good bacteria large dose of probiotics (at least 10 bill) should be taken at the same time , be careful no chlorine, it kills good bacteria, so do no assume that bottled water is pure, mostly it`s just tap water ………

Details are in the book, it`s worth buying it ………..
 
Update

Peleburrows - do you mean what do your relatives think?

Desperado Dan - I'd say the benefit to SCD would be supercharging the effects of your meds and making the symptoms go away quicker. Then hopefully your doc would try to back you off the meds slowly and see how you feel. My doc always tried to lessen the dosages when I was feeling great for months on end. Prednisone especially - he may try to back that one off when you're feeling really good.

I'm on day 35 and am learning the routine. Getting much better at cooking efficiently and quickly - using a pressure cooker has saved me HOURS of time each week, as well as pre-packaging food in pre-measured individual tupperwares. The bloodloss has almost gone away whereas I was losing so much blood in April & May that I was taking iron supplements. I am having a colonoscopy in early July. Last time my doc saw me I was in extreme discomfort and pretty worried about never getting better. After 2-3 weeks on SCD I was having days where I felt normal for 95% of the entire day. I've had a few "semi normal" BM's in the past week for the first time in a year. Although the bloodloss has nearly stopped, I still have mostly watery BM's but again, many are 5's and 4's on the Bristol scale. Just with water...

I've had to cheat 3x so far with Larabars and I did get some wet gas throughout the nights and days afterwards, so I guess I'm learning to not cheat and wait until my body is ready for those treats. I'm using FITDAY.com daily to ensure enough caloric intake...it's hard to get 2,000+ calories but it's possible. I'm shooting for 2,500/day soon so I can start biking and going for very long walks again.

For anyone thinking of trying it, I highly suggest listening to all the podcasts on iTunes from the SCDLifestyle guys. They help explain the methods developed from BTVC and pecanbread.com to integrate foods in a structured manner. When I tried SCD in December I just ate anything SCD and saw no improvement.

I'm keeping the faith going, day 36 starts tomorrow...
 
Is there anyone thats done this diet and then had a colonoscopy to see if their crohn's gotten worse or better. How long were you on it?
 
I had a colonoscopy yesterday and the inflammation was a lot less than at my last flex-sigmoidoscopy in January and at a colonoscopy in September 2010. I am 100% convinced that my starting SCD around May 20 has decreased the inflmmation, pain, urgency, and cramping that plagued me during a flareup from May 2010 to May 2011. I am following up with my doctor in 2 weeks to discuss yesterday's colonoscopy and have not yet had a conversation with him regarding SCD and changes in my symptoms. Luckily for me, SCD seemed to vastly reduce my symptoms starting after around day 25.
 
Pgh, congratulations on your much improved colonoscopy! It's a great motivation to see scientific results like that, huh?

I'm celebrating my official 3 months Monday, July 10, and doing and feeling great. Still having diarrhea, have tweaked my diet, and am just chalking it up to the diet taking time. You know, like Elaine said it would. :D I'm impatient.

Here in this 3rd month things have finally settled down in terms of my adjusting to the diet's workload with cooking, shopping, and cleaning. I've got a nice basic food plan that's satisfying and filled with foods I love.

I finally cheated for the first time by eating out a couple of weeks ago. I ate all kinds of carby things and thoroughly enjoyed it. I had pretty bad D for 3 days then mild pain for the next week after. I paid enough of a price to help me not do that too often but I'll definitely treat myself to another carby meal in a few months and just accept the price.

Here's a yummy recipe I got off the web and tweaked for SCD if y'all are interested:

Very sweet. You may like it with less honey.

Gingerbread Souffle

About 2 pounds baked acorn squash removed from peels and deseeded (I just looked at 2 lbs of carrots to guesstimate how much acorn squash to use)
3 eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
1 1/2 Tbs coconut flour
1 tsp baking powder (1/4 tsp baking soda mixed with 1 tsp lime juice - will
fizz)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ginger
1-1/2 tsp cinnamon

* Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

*In a food processor mix eggs then add rest of ingredients and mix well. Pour
into a buttered 8x8 casserole dish.

* I had to bake for 1-1/2 hours but my oven is acting up so I'm honestly not
sure how long to bake in a normal oven.
 
Hi
I have been doing SCD for about the last 18 months. I have made tons of mistakes that slowed my healing. However I went from asking my doc for a handicap sticker to just completing my first 100 km bicycle ride and training now for 100 miles,
I am a SCD lifer for sure.
Still learing all the time but hope I might be able to share some stuff also
David
 
Peleburrows - do you mean what do your relatives think?
No I meant blood tests; CRP, iron levels etc....I'm not cool enough to call my relatives blood :lol:

All this does sound promising, it just seems so difficult to get enough calories in each day...
 
I am so glad to see that people are discussing the SCD Diet. This diet has changed my life for the better! I weaned myself off of the pharmaceuticals and fired my doctor three years ago. Life is great now! I found this diet on my own, then I asked my doctor about it and he had never heard about it. So, I bought the book "Breaking the Vicious Cycle" and read it. It convinced me to give the diet a chance, I did and it worked to put my crohn's into remission. I took the book to my doctor so he could read it and tell others about it. He took it and read it I guess, because the next time I saw him he told me that it was a hoax, and that the author was a fraud. I don't think so. The diet works for me, I don't take their drugs anymore. I think those drugs might be the real hoax. They only treat the symptoms and not the underlying cause, bacterial overgrowth.

I wish doctors would get their head out of their asses and prescribe this diet to people with crohn's, but i'm sure they won't. They don't want to see people healthy because they make less money that way. Plus, the whole idea of treating a disease with food challenges their intellect too greatly.
 
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A hoax? That'd be funnier if it wasn't so sad. How many people has he discouraged from trying SCD, people who could be better now? Sad.

In all fairness to some docs, most people are unwilling to change their eating as radically as this diet requires. And a lot of that restriction isn't due to the diet itself as much as it is the manufacturers who fill our foods with additives. I'm always telling people that most of the time the food itself isn't the problem but the additives in it that are. SCD is very similiar to the Paleo diet, which a lot of people are on, but they don't have to watch additives like we do. I've really grown to hate food manufacturers. I recently had to go to a totally different grocery store because out of several brands of ground beef not a single one didn't contain additives!

Anyway, we live in a "take a pill to fix it" society, unfortunately. It took a year of getting sicker on drugs plus facing more powerful drugs to finally propel me into the SCD. Now I can't believe I waited, but you have to be ready and a lot of people simply aren't and I understand that.

Not that anyone doesn't already know this. I know I'm preaching to the choir here. :D
 
After spending countless hours on Scholar Google and reading Breaking the Vicious Cycle and Gut and Psychology Syndrome, etc, the Specific Carbohydrate Diet makes complete sense as to why it works.

In the ileum, where complex carbs are broken down into monosaccharides, the di- and polysaccharides are not fully broken down and the carbs end up fermenting, (causing gas) and feeding pathogenic bacteria (i.e. candida, etc.) Dysbiosis, or an imbalance of pathogenic bacteria in the intestines, causes intestinal permeability, or leaky gut, in which toxins enter the bloodstream, where they were never meant to be..

The specific carbohydrates, monosaccharides, require no breaking down, and are absorbed immediately. Fruits, most veggies, eggs, nuts, fish, chicken, beef, honey all contain monosaccharides. They are also nutrient-dense. Grains, however, i.e. oatmeal, rice, wheat, spelt, etc. are either poly or disaccharides.

After severe abdominal pain for months, my daughter was Dx w/severe Crohn's w/fistulas. She spent a week in hospital, had anaphylactic reactions to Remicade and started SCDiet Nov 1, 2010. She has had no pain or symptoms since that day. She feels full of energy. She has followed the diet with adherance. (Not easy for an 11 yr. old when everyone else is eating junk.) But my goal has been for her not to feel deprived, so we eat delicious food and sweeten her desserts w/honey.

At first, not knowing what to do was overwhelming, but then I realized it's not as confusing or hard as I thought it would be. Pretty simple. Just takes more time and planning. (I have ADD and am terrible at planning.)

I buy almond flour at digestivewellness.com or honeyville.com. Digestive wellness also has scd snacks like fudge snackeroons which she loves. (no fudge, just tastes like it.) Peach frozen yogurt is delish.

Our doctors say they're "laughing at her labs." They want her on Humira right away, due to her initial fistulas, ulcers and genetic testing, saying she should flare any day. But since she has felt well for 10 mos, we think it's reasonable to wait until a symptom shows.

She also just started LDN 4 weeks ago. For more testimonies or encouragement, read some of the 280+ comments on amazon.com for Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Would love to hear any thoughts or comments on any of this.
 
Hey there SCD-LDN, that's wonderful about your daughter. Congratulations! Do you want to share your peach frozen yogurt recipe? That sounds delicious in this hot weather.

How's she doing on the LDN? I'm hoping to start it next month.
 
Fresh Peach Frozen Yogurt
3 cups SCD legal yogurt (fermented for 24 hrs) We use 3 pints cream & 1 pint whole unhomogenized milk to make 2 quarts of yogurt in Yogourmet Yogurt Maker
3/4 cups raw honey
1 tsp vanilla w/no sugar
2 fresh peaches cut in to small bits

Blend together w/hand-mixer. Chill for 4 hrs or freeze for 20 min.
Pour in Cuisinart 2 quart ice cream maker.
Ready in 20 minutes.

Partly Cloudy-She has been on LDN for 5 weeks. Still doing as well as she was when she started. I've read it takes 12 weeks to see results. Her only symptom since she starting SCDiet is very soft stool and occasional diarrhea. All labs are perfect except Calprotectin, marking inflammation, which has ranged btwn 67 and 260. Her Drs. say under 200 is great for Crohn's patients. A normal person would be 50 or below. Above 60 indicates IBD. We're hoping to see her stool and Calprotectin look more normal after 12 wks of LDN.

I'm wondering if it's typical that my daughter has had no pain or symptoms for over 8 months, since she was first diagnosed. Do most people go into remission for that long before it presents again?
 
Yum, thanks for that recipe!

That's wonderful about her labs too. I don't know the answer to your question regarding remission. You might join the BTVC Yahoo group and ask there. There are lots of experienced SCD people there that could help you. Everyone is different though. Since her labs are good for the most part I'd definitely count your blessings that she's doing so well. Not that I'm implying you don't. :)
 
I started this diet when I was diagnosed with CD in early July. I feel great and honestly don't feel it is so restrictive.

I've learned to bake with almond flour so that I can have my "bready" things for breakfast. Waffles were a bit of a bust, but the muffins and a wonderful Dutch pancake are delicious. I'm keeping it simple and proceeding slowly as recommended.

I feel I have to plan in advance and make sure you have appropriate foods on hand, particularly if the rest of the family continues to eat their normal diet.

I have always made my own yogurt using a Donvier yogurt maker and now just ferment it the required 24 hours. It does not overheat. I like that I can make it in individual containers and take them to work.

One thing I would suggest is that you stick to it 100% to give the diet a fair chance. So far it's working for me.
 
I had to break out of the SCD around July 22 weekend - I was traveling three weekends in a row in July and after working 9 hours a day and being home only Mon-Thur, I just couldn't keep up with the food prep demands. I started out by sticking to beef patties from burger king and raw veggies from the supermarket that weekend but what really did it for me was weighing myself for the first time in 2 months and finding I was 147 lb down from 164! I knew I lost weight, as none of my belts fit and I had to punch new holes in them, but I had no idea I had lost 17 lbs. I started cheating more that weekend trying to find healthy semi-SCD fatty dishes and really didn't have much of a setback at all. Then from missing bread so much I tried pizza on my first Monday back from that weekend of some cheating and honestly, the bread in my stomach made me feel sick - as much as I love(d) pizza, the feeling I had after not having bread for 60 days turned me off to it. I also tried ColdStone ice cream for the first time in 60 days and it didn't taste as good as I remembered either. I also had a deli sandwich at my favorite Italian deli near work and the italian bread and proscuitto just didn't taste good at all, and I had that bloated feeling all day from the bread like I did with the pizza. What changed with my taste buds in the past 2 months!!?

So I strayed from the SCD since mid-July and only now am re-starting the 4 day intro diet to get back on track. Honestly, eating the same/similar food for 60 days was taking its toll. It's not easy. I was following a very strict routine of introducing a new phase 1 food every 4 days, and I hadn't had yogurt or honey or nuts or any dessert other than pureed cooked pears for 60 days and I was actually starting to not be interested in eating since the meals were so boring. I was having a hard time putting down 1800 calories a day when I should be putting down 3,000 and I know I was eating around 4,500 calories a day pre-SCD by verifying thru fitday.com. Then seeing on the scale how much weight I lost was the last straw and I had to "revert" back to some fatty non-SCD foods. Suddenly putting some weight back on seemed important. After 3 weeks of straying, I've regained a little blood and gas but/and my symptoms are less than 1/4 of what they were in May when I started the SCD.

However, I'm going back. I felt its benefits in May & June for sure. I'm going to stick to the intro diet for 4 days and then begin a regimented 4-day intro to new phase 1/phase 2 foods. I've also found some SCD-legal desserts (frozen ripe bananas blended with avocado and cinammon) that taste like ice cream, so that will help keep my motivation, with some variety.

I also read "Crohns into Success" by Josh Gilder, who suggests a dietary routine that allows non-SCD food in stages, like a candy bar once a month, milk twice a month, or something similar to that. Based on the fact that I was able to completely get off SCD for 3 weeks yet have my symptoms be 1/4 of what they were in May suggests there's potential for me to have some balance in there one day. Also starting July 6 I began taking Imuran, which may have helped calm some of the inflammation/flare that I had from May 2010 - May 2011 and which was not helped with prednisone, humira, or 6MP.

At any rate, I felt I had to get off the wagon, and after 3 weeks of eating whatever I wanted, I think suddenly that bread just does not sit well with me at all and even tastes blah, and I'm ready to give it a go again. It's a marathon, not a race.
 
I'm in my 16th week on SCD.

I just saw my GI yesterday and my blood work is perfectly normal, specifically my elevated liver enzymes are normal now and my anemia has cleared up. Someone previously asked about blood work on SCD.

He was amazed and couldn't stop talking about how well I'm doing. He said it was so amazing because in his experience people with Crohn's rarely get better and only worsen. Yeesh. He wanted to do a CAT scan or colonoscopy just out of curiosity to see how my disease looked. I was curious too but not THAT curious.

I've lost 35 pounds officially, which is great for me as I'm a fat Crohnie.

Scl, welcome and congratulations on how well you're doing on SCD. I'm just now beginning to experiment with almond flour. I made a pancake the other day with banana and YUM.

Pgh, SCD is so difficult if you have to travel. My hubby and I went out of town for the day and you'd think I was leaving for a week! I'm sorry to hear you've lost weight. I find I don't eat nearly as much due to being satiated, which is good for me. I'd have a difficult time eating more.

I found your cheating experience interesting, especially that it didn't taste as good as you remember. I cheated once on a high-carb meal and it was delicious but made me sick for a week. I was also sleepy all day from all the carbs. I plan on having a planned cheat at a restaurant a couple of times a year but don't see myself ever going back to my old ways of eating.

That "icecream" recipe sounds good. I've been missing icecream too so I think I'll try it.

Good luck everyone!
 
For those who want to introduce illegal foods later , be careful with all kind of wheat especially (bread/pasta/pizza/…) as it contains nasty type of lectins, according to many researches one of the main causes of all IBD and other health problems.

According to Dr. Lutz (“Life without bread”) who has studied hundreds of Crohn/Colitis patients over many years of his 4 decade practice, 80% of his patients got to full remission between 6-12 months on a low carb diet, but he allows up to 72g of carbs per day (http://www.carbohydrate-counter.org/). Stay out of processed carbs, get them from fruits and vegetables so you can utilize them easily.

Also, eat fat freely once your BM are normal, stool is formed. Saturated fat is good, forget about mainstream media brain-washing-cholesterol crap …….. eat coconut oil, lard, …….. all animal saturated fat, included coconut oil, have anti-inflammatory effect . From my experience, after 2,5 months on the diet, I eat smoked home made bacon twice a week, use lard for frying meet, no problems whatsoever.

Get Udo`s choice 3-6-9 blend oil, great stuff! Pharmaceutical grade fish oil , flax oil too.

Cheers
 
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Yeah, I too eat a lot of fat in the form of oils and animal fats. I immediately noticed a big difference in how satiated I felt when I upped my fat intake too. I eat about 5 avocados per week. Mmmmm. :D
 
Hi
I have been doing SCD for about the last 18 months. I have made tons of mistakes that slowed my healing. However I went from asking my doc for a handicap sticker to just completing my first 100 km bicycle ride and training now for 100 miles,
I am a SCD lifer for sure.
Still learing all the time but hope I might be able to share some stuff also
David
David-Thank you for posting your wonderful news about the great progress you've made! Do you mind my asking how your labs are after 18 mos. on SCD? Do you get regular Calprotectin tests?

Also, have you read that SCD is meant to "heal and seal" your gut in approx. 2 years?
 
I have started the diet a few weeks ago but I don't have the book yet. I'm not sure what foods to start adding after the intro days?? Which ones does the book recommend?? I have been already baking almond flower bread (I miss bread mostly), eating cheese, fish, eggs boiled vegetables, soups and lots of honey. I have ordered a yoghurt maker but it hasn't arrived yet. Also I don't have a light in my oven so I don't know how to get the required temperature for the yoghurt if I was making it without the yoghurt maker. Any ideas? So far I love the diet even though I'm still eating very limited foods-lack of imagination and don't have the book for recipes.
 
breakingtheviciouscycle.info/beginners_guide/the_intro_diet on the web.

Also you can find a lot of info - gapsdiet dotcom/introdiet

You'll be so happy to get your yogurt maker. We have yogurt ev. day in smoothies, recipes, squash casserole, popsicles, etc. Some people use a heating pad around the glass yogurt jar. I tried it in my oven, and although it worked, checking the temperature so often was to much. The yogurt maker is so easy. You're doing great, just try not to eat too much honey. You'll start finding out how many more options there are as you go along. You really should get the book if you can. I'm sure there are used ones on amazon. There is a good recipe for SCD bread on youtube, where a lady makes it on her skillet. Just try to fill up on soups, veggies, protein, etc. All the best!
 
hi everyone. i've been on the SCD diet for 11 months now, but just joined the crohn's forum, and was very encouraged to find this discussion thread! i really feel that the SCD diet has made a huge difference in my life, and i'm pleased to see that others have had success with it as well.

although this was not an easy diet to take on, especially in light of the skepticism i faced from both my doctors and family members, i have stuck with it (though not without a lot of frustration and tears!) and seen a significant improvement in my condition. the first few months were absolutely hellacious, and after a bad flare at about the 6 month mark i had my doubts that things were actually improving.

however, i am now virtually free of all abdominal pain (unless i cheat and give in to temptation, which i am glad to hear others have occasionally succumbed to as well!), i no longer have any diarrhea, my energy level has increased, and i feel much more clear-headed. i have not been on any medications since i started the diet, but at the 6 month mark i did introduce a strong probiotic, VSL#3, which i feel definitely had a positive impact. and from the start i have been taking a good regiment of vitamin and mineral supplements (i order almost everything from freeda vitamins).

i am now at the point where making meals that comply with the SCD diet is not so much of a hassle - it just took a little while to learn how to plan out meals and make certain staples in advance. i've even started adapting "normal" recipes to be SCD compliant, which makes eating a lot more interesting! i have not yet had a colonoscopy since starting the diet, but my recent bloodwork shows no vitamin or mineral deficiencies, and my C-reactive protien level continues to decrease. so, i am hopeful that i can achieve remission on this diet!

i'd love to hear from people who have been on the SCD diet for longer about whether or not they have ever been able to reintroduce any illegal foods, such as more starchy vegetables (yams? potatoes?), rice or oats. essentially i'm wondering if i will need to be an SCDer for life, or if i can look forward to at some point eating some of my favorite foods again?
 
Heather - awesome - I too have had good luck but not without many cheats and setbacks from it. I'm determined to get back aboard, I actually re-started the intro diet this weekend. I'd be curious to hear if you followed any guidance in the 1st 6 months other than Elane's book? I followed just her book in Dec 2010 and had no luck with the diet, but then I followed guidance from the SCD Lifestyle podcast in May 2011 and saw major improvement in just a few weeks, but with a severely restricted diet, which was really tough at first. So I'd like to hear what method you followed and also am looking forward to any comments from others about reintroducing illegal foods.

One hopeful nice bit of news regarding potential for some food variety came from this WSJ article last month:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204554204577023880581820726.html#articleTabs=article

Another weblink with some links:

http://www.gratefulfoodie.com/2011/...plains-why-everyday-foods-are-hard-to-digest/
 
PgHAND - thanks for your reply :) i started out just following elaine's book, but as i was uncertain about the "timeline" for how i should progress after the intro diet, i consulted some other sources (including the scd lifestyle podcasts you mentioned), and decided to introduced foods in stages as described on the pecanbread.com website. i also flirted with the GAPS diet for a few weeks after i had a setback with some sort of flu-like virus earlier this fall, and felt like i couldn't tolerate the SCD yogurt or legal cheeses. all-in-all, i've gone back to the intro diet twice now, but the second time only had to do it for a few days, following a really stressful family vacation!

thanks so much for the links - will definitely check them out!
 
I am considering starting the SCD diet. There is a book out there based on this diet. I will let you know how it works for me. You are the first person I have seen mention this diet. I also don't eat any beef. I stick to mostly proteins of chicken, fish, or very lean pork. I have problems with fat content in food so I look at that before it hits my lips. Hope this helps you as well.
Cindy
I have been on the diet for 2 months now and I love it!! It was very dificult in the beginning getting used to what you can and can't eat but now I found a wed site that has all kinds of different reciepts to try. It is the scd reciepts and it should just come up. Good luck and I hope it works for you as well.
 
Super to hear this diet works for you. I love it as well. It definitely has made a difference. Portion control is a must. Some days I eat my meal in stages...I eat the protein first, wait about 30 minutes and then eat the rest. I have found too it keeps my cravings down for those things I would love to have and can't. Now when I see folks eating pizza and etc who don't have problems, I don't get any craving. Thanks for letting me know. Its easy to make your own recipes once you have been on the diet.
 
Has anyone else had problems with low ferrin levels? Mine is down to 7 and they are talking about giving me iron infusions.
 
my iron is also at 7 and I just had 5 iron infusions. I am now on an iron supplument to try and get it up. My hemoglobin was down to 65 and that is what started all this. had blood transfusion and than the iron infusion. Good luck!!
 
Thanks for letting me know. I wasn't sure I wanted an infusion or not but that helps to remove some of my anxiety...lol...as if I haven't had enough infusions of everything else...lol
 
Super to hear this diet works for you. I love it as well. It definitely has made a difference. Portion control is a must. Some days I eat my meal in stages...I eat the protein first, wait about 30 minutes and then eat the rest. I have found too it keeps my cravings down for those things I would love to have and can't. Now when I see folks eating pizza and etc who don't have problems, I don't get any craving. Thanks for letting me know. Its easy to make your own recipes once you have been on the diet.
that is good to know, I am finding that I still have those cravings when I see them. I have two small children who do still eat that stuff and somedays when I am feeling really good I really want to have some. I will have to try the stages and see if that helps for me as well. Thanks
 
Location
London,
Hi everyone!

I started the diet in the beginning of December 2011. My CRP was 21 and I was pushed by doctors to start immunosuppression medication what I did not want to because of the side effects. After 3 weeks my CRP was <5 and still the same. It was a nice surprise!
Unfortunately I still could not tolerate any milk products except butter. I tried even 48 hours fermenting of goat milk yogurt but unfortunately it did not work also. So I have to make yogurt from the nut milk at the moment what I do myself from the grounded nuts. I do not want to eat much nut yogurt, just a table spoon of “soft cheese” made from this yogurt, as I bake bread from grounded nuts and eat nuts as a snack. I do not have diarrhoea most of the time. I am very much impressed as I had it for 14 years. I do still have it rare but probably because I not aware of the ingredients. For example I cannot eat sundried California raisins even it says that nothing is added so I believe it has something what I could not tolerate. I was dark chocolate addicted and surprisingly I do not miss chocolate so much but bread. All gluten-free bread has starch in it so it is not suitable for us. I cook “jam” from the apples, berries and honey to have something sweet. I did bake cookies from the nut flour in the beginning but now I only bake bread. I buy my nut flour from this company http://www.naturalchoice.co.uk/
 
Cindy

So I figured it out. I was started on an antibiotic for crohn's that I need to eat a lot with to take it. That was causing all my problems. The diet was very difficult for me to stay full on because there was so many restrictions. So while I'm on meds I'm off the diet, maybe to revisit it later. I've read the book you are speaking of, “The Specific Carb Diet.” I have a friend who has a very severe case of crohn's and she says it worked wonders for her. I could hang with cutting out lactose and all sugars; it was cutting out carbs that really threw me. Good luck, it's very difficult but if it helps it's worth it.
I cut out all sugar and white flour carbs. I eat brown rice pasta etc.... I lost 11 lbs in a month which is good. I needed too. I am taking probiotic multi enzyme formula everytime I eat a meal and it has worked for me. Yesterday and today with no meds, I didn't have any diarrehea. I also drink a small glass of organic aloe vera juice -inner gel only. Earthbound brand from Walmart. It gives you amino acids you are lacking.I may beat this thing yet. Just use stevia as a sweetener, no alcohol, no caffiene. No premade box meals etc... Eat natural whole foods. Love, Teresa
 
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Location
London,
Hi guys I can see you doing quite well. I am very well myself. Still on the diet ( from December 2011). My blood results are absolutely fine, even my doctor asked whose blood I bring for the tests :) I just done MRI on 3.08 but will know resulsts on 24.09 when see the doctor next time. I am envy that you can eat yogurt from the milk and cheese, i do main yougurt from the almonds milk what i do also muself. I have to say that i put quite on weight with this high in calories diet as i eat quite a lot of honey and nuts. 68kg is definatelly way too much :) have to be at least 66 :)

My best wishes to all of you!
 
Hi guys I can see you doing quite well. I am very well myself. Still on the diet ( from December 2011). My blood results are absolutely fine, even my doctor asked whose blood I bring for the tests :) I just done MRI on 3.08 but will know resulsts on 24.09 when see the doctor next time. I am envy that you can eat yogurt from the milk and cheese, i do main yougurt from the almonds milk what i do also muself. I have to say that i put quite on weight with this high in calories diet as i eat quite a lot of honey and nuts. 68kg is definatelly way too much :) have to be at least 66 :)

My best wishes to all of you!
Honey is just like eating sugar and makes you gain weight.
Use stevia sweetener. It doesn't raise your blood sugar at all.
 
Why is stevia not allowed? It is the safest sweetener out there I thought? No
chemicals etc... Please reply. Teresa
Read the link that the above poster referred to: http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/knowledge_base/detail/stevia/

Elaine, the author of Breaking the Vicious Cycle, classified stevia as SCD illegal because of the similiarity of the molecule structure to a steroid (which may have unknown physiological effects) and because of lack of safety data. My opinion is that honey, not stevia, is the safety sweetner available. Although the stevia leaf is an herb, most stevia that you can find in stores has been processed in some way and may contain other additives. Also, the extraction process may involve chemicals or additives.
 
Read the link that the above poster referred to: http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/knowledge_base/detail/stevia/

Elaine, the author of Breaking the Vicious Cycle, classified stevia as SCD illegal because of the similiarity of the molecule structure to a steroid (which may have unknown physiological effects) and because of lack of safety data. My opinion is that honey, not stevia, is the safety sweetner available. Although the stevia leaf is an herb, most stevia that you can find in stores has been processed in some way and may contain other additives. Also, the extraction process may involve chemicals or additives.
I will Katie buckeye,
Thanx for the info. I do love natural honey, so I guess i'm back to it now.
Teresa
 
Hi there.
So, I am currently still on medication: Prednisone and Apriso, just started tapering from 40mg of pred for 2 weeks, now on 30mg/ day. I also just stopped a liquid diet and started the SCD Diet. The first two days now. I feel pretty good on it and hope I am doing everything correct. I've read some posts that you shouldn't start this diet while on meds and I have to be honest, I never thought about that. It didn't enter my brain that the meds might interfere with this diet? (I'll blame that on the prednisone, it makes me scatter brained) I didn't see anything on that in the BTVC book, so I assume it's all good...
BTW. If you have a Whole Foods near you, they usually carry the Dry Curd Cottage Cheese or if they don't you can ask them, they can order it for you :)
 
Location
London,
Hi guys! Tried to make yogurt from the lactose free milk and love it. But now I am in doubts.
Elaine book says: “…The rate of flow of galactose to the liver when one drinks lactose hydrolyzed milk is high. With lactose hydrolyzed milk, you are ingesting the two sugars: glucose and galactose at the same time….” And so it’s prohibited on SCD.
It says about drinking lactose free milk but I could not find any information if can you make yogurt from lactose free milk. I tried to make yogurt from the cow and goat milk even fermenting it for 24-48 hours but still had the reaction like from lactose. So I ended up making my yogurt from almonds milk what I was doing also myself. But with the yogurt from lactose free milk I do not have any reaction.
Can anybody help me, please?

Thank you.
 
Hi guys! Tried to make yogurt from the lactose free milk and love it. But now I am in doubts.
Elaine book says: “…The rate of flow of galactose to the liver when one drinks lactose hydrolyzed milk is high. With lactose hydrolyzed milk, you are ingesting the two sugars: glucose and galactose at the same time….” And so it’s prohibited on SCD.
It says about drinking lactose free milk but I could not find any information if can you make yogurt from lactose free milk. I tried to make yogurt from the cow and goat milk even fermenting it for 24-48 hours but still had the reaction like from lactose. So I ended up making my yogurt from almonds milk what I was doing also myself. But with the yogurt from lactose free milk I do not have any reaction.
Can anybody help me, please?

Thank you.
What are you using to make the fermented yogurt? A problem could be that you aren't fermenting at exactly the right temperature, in which case all of the lactose may not be digested by the bacteria. If the temperature is too high, the bacteria can be killed off, too low and the right reactions won't happen. Do you have a Yogourmet? The reviews on that yogurt-maker say that the temperature does go too high. Many people buy a dimming switch (you can get it at a hardware store), so that they can lower the temperature.
 
Location
London,
Thanks!
I did bought the switch from Amazon but it did not arrived yet. Yes, you probably right as temperature over night goes to 47C. Will try with the switch again.
 
I want to try the SCD diet, as it seems so helpful for so many and the theory makes a lot of sense.

My only concern is this: With Crohn's, I have noticed that taking a fiber supplement had helped me in the bathroom greatly. I take either psyllium husks or acacia powder almost everyday and they help me have regular, formed BM's. Well, both psyllium and acacia are "illegal" on SCD because the contains starch.

My question is this: Fiber is not digested by the body. Fiber is undigestable by nature. So why is it illegal on SCD? The body does break it down, it just passes through, so why does it matter if there is starch in it?

I hope someone can help me out with this!
 
I want to try the SCD diet, as it seems so helpful for so many and the theory makes a lot of sense.

My only concern is this: With Crohn's, I have noticed that taking a fiber supplement had helped me in the bathroom greatly. I take either psyllium husks or acacia powder almost everyday and they help me have regular, formed BM's. Well, both psyllium and acacia are "illegal" on SCD because the contains starch.

My question is this: Fiber is not digested by the body. Fiber is undigestable by nature. So why is it illegal on SCD? The body does break it down, it just passes through, so why does it matter if there is starch in it?

I hope someone can help me out with this!
I don't think it would hurt but it may still cause problems. Have you tried citrical? It's not made from husks. You can get the store barnd and get the sugarfree. It works just as well.
 
My question is about honey and SCD. From the research I've done online today, it seems that honey is a disaccharide. Why is it SCD legal if it is not a monosaccharide?
 
Location
London,
Hi! Honey contains two monosaccharides: fructose and glucose but this does not make honey disacharide. Could you send a link to that article, please?
 
SCD didn't work for me, unfrotunately. I did not find it all taht difficult to stick too, once you get the hang of it it's not bad really. But it was confusing... Was on it very strict for 3 months. Just met with a Dietician that works with lots of IBS and IBD patients. Now I am customizing the SCD with cutting out all Salicylates and Amines...hoping that might help releave my symptoms somewhat, then plan on transfering over to elimination diet, testing out one food at a time.
 
Mattannika, what are Salicylates and Amines? I've been doing a combo of SCD and GAPS for the last month and so far, so good!
 
I'm not even going to try and explain in my own words....here's a wesbite that explains it really good and has good information:

http://salicylatesensitivity.com/info1/

Salicylates are chemicals that occur naturally in many plants, including many fruits vegetables, and herbs. Salicylates in plants act as a natural immune hormone and preservative, protecting the plants against diseases, insects, fungi, and harmful bacteria. Salicylates are also created synthetically and can be found in many medicines, perfumes and preservatives.

There is a page with symptoms, if you hvae a lot of those, you might want to stay away from foods that are high in them and see if after 2 weeks without them you feel better. That's what I was told. There is also some info on amines. HOpe that helps :)
 
OK - I have what to say about this diet. I have been on it and yes, the pain I have lessens, but I feel so weak that it presents another problem. It is a full time job, especially in the beginning, to cook food for yourself. I too, like Leslie, am working and find it impossible to be organized enough to manage the food prep, and working. Also I get hungry at work and they sell sandwiches there (bread is a big NO NO on the SCD) which are so convenient. Any other thoughts on this diet?
 
I've started the Specific Carb Diet five days ago. I've known people who had great results with it and no longer have flare ups. Is anyone trying it? My trigger foods tend to be high fiber which makes me question the sanity of all this. I've felt very sick the last two days and my gut is going crazy. However, looking around on the internet this would be considered a "die off" period where the bad bacteria are being staved out. Anyone been there?
Hi Leslie - I so relate to your post. I too, am working and have realized that I cannot do this diet while working. It is too hard to be organized enough for one, and also I find that I need the energy from carbs if I am a working mom. It is one thing to be able to be home and rest when needed (especially in the beginning of the diet when one feels weak) but I cannnot do that. I do find though, that being at work puts me in a good frame of mind, which is also important to recovery. What do you think?
 
Location
London,
Hi! I am full time working person. I am on this diet already 1 year. I bake nut bread, I make SCD yogurt, I cook "jam" and cook lunch to take to work. But I am not a mom. So it's easier for me :)
 
Hi! I am full time working person. I am on this diet already 1 year. I bake nut bread, I make SCD yogurt, I cook "jam" and cook lunch to take to work. But I am not a mom. So it's easier for me :)
Yes, Tantija. It really does make a difference. I always have the dilemma - do I cook for myself or my family? I can't make my kids eat the way I do and I have to feed them. Also, when I get back from work I am busy with them from the word 'go'.

Still, good for you. It's not easy working full time and doing all you need to for your health. Keep it up, and I'll try work out a plan too.
 
Location
London,
I am so happy that I finally found something what makes me to feel better that I do not want to jeopardise it in any way.
I am absolutely fine with people eating around me chocolate, bread, cakes and ect. Sometimes I even ask my mother or sister to eat piece of cake as I feel happy for them that they can enjoy it. Probably it sounds crazy :)
 
You are inspiring me to get back on track. I'm glad you feel better. I think I have never done the diet long enough to give it a proper chance. I just find it hard to be hungry, which I often am on the diet. But I suppose that passes.
 
Location
London,
Yes, it’s hard to be hungry. I can’t stand feeling hungry, especially between the breakfast and the lunch if I do not eat I can’t concentrate and it’s even like getting dark in my eyes. I have my breakfast at 6:45am during working days (2 scrambled eggs, cup of SCD yogurt with “jam”, 2 slices of nut bread (they are not large, probably ¼ of the regular bread slice) with butter and cucumber and tea with honey. I have 2 satsumas at 10am, lunch at 12:30pm (roasted veal or chicken, fried fish) with the fresh salad and tomatoes (I am fine with lettuce but have D. from spinach, other types of salad). I have dried dates or nuts at about 15:00pm and then at home at about 19:00pm I have 2 pears and again 2 slices of nut bread with cucumber, tea and honey. Believe me I am not skinny :) ( 65 kg at the height 164cm) as honey, nuts and dates are high in calories. My menu looks repetitive but I don’t care as I am happy that I finally can control my being. I am happy that my blood tests are normal and do not show any inflammation. I do consider the food as a fuel but not a pleasure now :)
 
You mean you saw results, you felt better after 3 weeks?

My problem is that I cannot have the almond bread. For some reason it hurts when I eat it, and as you say that is a very good thing to fill up on. Any ideas on that?
Also, I am not convinced about the diet because don't really understand the reasoning behind it. I woudl love to read her book. I suppose that would help.
Curious - what is a satsuma?
Yes, I also wouldn't mind a repetitive diet if I felt good. I have a lower rib pain right now that is worrying me and doesn't feel good and other pain so I really need to give it, or some diet a proper go. I also just don't want that w-e-a-k feeling that comes from the diet - or does that go away? I know that some people suggest exercise to help with that. The problem is that I don't have time for exercise so much. I suppose I could walk to and from work and that would be a little (it's a 15 min walk).
 
Location
London,
1. Yes, I saw the results in 3 weeks. And my blood test was absolutely fine after 3 weeks (maybe it was fine earlier but I did have test after 3 weeks).
2. I prefer to bake bread from grounded pecan nuts it even tastes little bit as rye bread. I personally mix almond (2 table spoons), pecan (4 table spoons) and hazelnuts (1 table spoon)nuts. I do not like pure almond nut bread as it tastes more like sponge not bread. By the way, do you use almonds with the skin? Skin could upset your stomach, try blanched almonds instead.
3. I would suggest to read the book before starting the diet, I read twice.
4. Satsuma http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satsuma_(fruit) all kind of mandarins, tangerines. For some reason here in UK Satsuma is most popular but to be honest I do not see any difference in between them.
5. I have to admit that I did lose quite a lot of weight in the first month, I guess it was some kind of shock for my body. But later I gain weight and even had to control myself on nuts, honey and dates as I said they are high in calories.
6. “…. I have a lower rib pain right now that is worrying me…” is it on the right or left side? Have you had an ultrasound or any other test? It could be pancreatic or liver. Are you sure you have Crohn’s?
7. I also do not like exercise, I have to admit that I am lazy but I do like walking. At some point I did yoga and Tai Chi classes.
 
Location
London,
You mean you saw results, you felt better after 3 weeks?

My problem is that I cannot have the almond bread. For some reason it hurts when I eat it, and as you say that is a very good thing to fill up on. Any ideas on that?
Also, I am not convinced about the diet because don't really understand the reasoning behind it. I woudl love to read her book. I suppose that would help.
Curious - what is a satsuma?
Yes, I also wouldn't mind a repetitive diet if I felt good. I have a lower rib pain right now that is worrying me and doesn't feel good and other pain so I really need to give it, or some diet a proper go. I also just don't want that w-e-a-k feeling that comes from the diet - or does that go away? I know that some people suggest exercise to help with that. The problem is that I don't have time for exercise so much. I suppose I could walk to and from work and that would be a little (it's a 15 min walk).
May I reffer you to my post here, please? It shows all my results: http://www.crohnsforum.com/showthread.php?p=510906#post510906 post #14
 
Location
London,
Read the link that the above poster referred to: http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/knowledge_base/detail/stevia/

Elaine, the author of Breaking the Vicious Cycle, classified stevia as SCD illegal because of the similiarity of the molecule structure to a steroid (which may have unknown physiological effects) and because of lack of safety data. My opinion is that honey, not stevia, is the safety sweetner available. Although the stevia leaf is an herb, most stevia that you can find in stores has been processed in some way and may contain other additives. Also, the extraction process may involve chemicals or additives.
Hi Katy! Could not understand how you put your diagnosis, treatment in the end of your message. Could you advise, please? Thank you.
 
Location
London,
After reading every single posting in this thread, I`d like to share my experience and add a couple of things that might be helpful. BTW, I was diagnosed with early stage of Crohn in May 2007 (Salofalk 3000mg per day). My condition was pretty much the same since then with sporadic really good and bad periods, BM just once a day, no D in a long time. I started SCD almost a week ago and I already noticed significant improvement, pain is 70% less!

Great good anti inflammatory supplement is oil of oregano. Make sure it contains at least 70% Carvacrol and it`s mixed with olive oil . Also it`s a great immune system booster. I am still not sure about recommended dosage and long term usage side effects but I use 5 drops in the morning and evening for 4-5 days, then make a break for about a week and so on. Give it a try!
Also, very good anti inflammatory supplement is pharmaceutical grade fish oil, but be careful , only PHARMACEUTICAL grade, not regular fish oil.

YOGA made wonders to me!!! A couple of years ago when I first joined local yoga club, I didn`t know about SCD , I was still on Salofalk 3000mg per day, my condition was ok, slight pain on and off, but after 2-3 months practicing yoga combined with some breathing exercises I was almost pain free (didn`t use any medications at all) not to mention that I gained weight, I was not on any specific diet back then. As soon as I stopped doing yoga my condition worsened and got back to previous stage. I am back to yoga and I would highly recommend it! Join a club, learn postures for a couple of months, after that you can do it at home.
You can find lots of breathing exercises on the internet or find a book called “The Yoga Breathing” by Scott Shaw, great book.

Cheers
Hi, how are you doing now? Could you share your expirience, please?
 
Hi Katy! Could not understand how you put your diagnosis, treatment in the end of your message. Could you advise, please? Thank you.
Hi Tantija- I think you mean the signature? You can edit your own signature from the settings page or check with an admin if you are having trouble. Hope that helps!
 
Location
London,
[/QUOTE][/Tantija - how are you feeling?[/QUOTE]

Hi. Sorry for not replying earlier, was so busy. Thanks for asking, I feel quite alright. But I have a concern to share. About 2 months ago I discovered a goat cheese what I was able to eat without the reaction ( unfortunately I cannot have any kind of cheese, I tried a lot from the SCD legal list and after trying giving away as still had a reaction to lactose). Quite an expensive trial :) I have a feeling that our days cheese is aged chemically not by time. So one I have found this goat cheese I was eating it a lot and was happy to have some dairy product since 1997. Then after I have bought the switch as was kindly recommended I finally was able to have SCD milk yogurt. I started from goat milk but unfortunately here in UK we have it only homogenised goat milk in the supermarkets so I moved to cow milk. After few weeks I have noticed that I start to hear some running noises in my intestines in the morning after breakfast and feeling that my intestines are getting narrow in some places again. I was very upset about that as I love my milk yogurt so much! So I decided to stop eating this goat cheese, especially as it has white mould on the surface. I have to say that at that time I was also much stressed so might be this had an effect also. So to be honest I still do not know what affected me most and if I have to move back to almond yogurt what I don’t want to as not only I love my milk yogurt but it also very much improved my D. I didn’t have such results from the almond yogurt. I am planning to check my blood in January, little bit later as I am ill now, almost lost my voice so no doubts C reactive protein will be higher and I want to see it without being affected by other illness. I also want to check blood for sugar lever just in case as I have eaten quite a lot of honey and dates last year and want to make sure it doesn’t affect my blood.
So this is all so far.

Got ill in 1997
Diagnosed in 2006 Crohn's of ileum and small intestines
Operation: September 2006 removed ileum and part of small intestine 35sm in total
SCD Diet since December 2011
B12 one injection in 3 month
Medication free
 
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Tantija - I think you should try the goat's cheese again. If you enjoy it and it was agreeing with you in the beginning, then it sounds like it could have been that you were under stress. Try it at a more peaceful time. It's so important to have food you like.
 
Is there anyone thats done this diet and then had a colonoscopy to see if their crohn's gotten worse or better. How long were you on it?
I was diagnosed with moderate Crohn's early Sept 2012. A started the diet Sept 17th and have been really strict on it. I did the intro diet and gradually introduced foods but still have D. I went to a naturopath a little over a month ago and was told to eliminate the honey and fruit, yogurt and cheese for a Candida cleanse due to possible yeast overgrowth. I've been on the SCD diet for almost 4 months and have eliminated the natural sugar for about 3 wks. I still have some D but I have been having a lot more normal bowel movements which is exciting!

I was of course told my specialist that I course diet has nothing to do with it. She wants me to go on 2 months if prednisone as well as on Imran and humira indefinitely. I wanted to see of I could treat my Crohn's naturally whiteout any meds. She agreed to do a colonoscopy mid Feb so I could see if the diet has helped heal or of it got worse. At that point I would have been strictly doing the SCD diet for 5 months. I can keep you posted on my results if you like.
 
Location
London,
I was diagnosed with moderate Crohn's early Sept 2012. A started the diet Sept 17th and have been really strict on it. I did the intro diet and gradually introduced foods but still have D. I went to a naturopath a little over a month ago and was told to eliminate the honey and fruit, yogurt and cheese for a Candida cleanse due to possible yeast overgrowth. I've been on the SCD diet for almost 4 months and have eliminated the natural sugar for about 3 wks. I still have some D but I have been having a lot more normal bowel movements which is exciting!

I was of course told my specialist that I course diet has nothing to do with it. She wants me to go on 2 months if prednisone as well as on Imran and humira indefinitely. I wanted to see of I could treat my Crohn's naturally whiteout any meds. She agreed to do a colonoscopy mid Feb so I could see if the diet has helped heal or of it got worse. At that point I would have been strictly doing the SCD diet for 5 months. I can keep you posted on my results if you like.
Hi Mica, you said that you have eliminated natural sugar for abour 3 weeks. You mean honey and fructose? Thanks.
P.S. Do you eat SCD yogurt? I have to say that since I eat SCD milk yogurt my D. is much better. There are days with absolutely normal stool what I did not have for years! :)
 
I have never eaten Scd yogurt. I have the yogurt maker that I purchased when I first started the diet but I never had it cause I was told not start eating it until I no longer had D. I take 5 probiotics a day as per suggested by my naturopath

I had to eliminated the honey, fructose, mushrooms and vinegar during the cleanse. I'll be able to introduce them back soon I hope. I really miss hot water with honey and lemon :(
 
Location
London,
I have never eaten Scd yogurt. I have the yogurt maker that I purchased when I first started the diet but I never had it cause I was told not start eating it until I no longer had D. I take 5 probiotics a day as per suggested by my naturopath

I had to eliminated the honey, fructose, mushrooms and vinegar during the cleanse. I'll be able to introduce them back soon I hope. I really miss hot water with honey and lemon :(
Hi Mica,
I read somewhere that sugars are necessary for your body so if have eliminated all sugars, including monosaccharides, it’s not very good also. By the way mushrooms are not good for your bowels even they are legal on SCD diet. I suggest you try to make yogurt and you will see the difference. Have you read the book? I do not remember anything about not starting yogurt while you have D. Please be aware that yogurt maker makes temperature too high over night ( it has to be 38-42C) so please purchase dimmer switch ( sorry I am not English and do not remember the correct name of it, it a plug between the electricity plug and your device and you can control the temperature in this case or the light of the lamp in other case). I had this problem earlier but was kindly suggested by the members of the forum.
 
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KWalker

Moderator
I am currently on the SCD diet and do not make yogurt, nor do I plan too and I know of read from quite a few others that don't as well. A lot of crohns patients have problems handling the yogurt and even some probiotics/multivitamins.
 

KWalker

Moderator
I could definitely see the yogurt being really helpful, I was just trying to say that the diet can still be done without it so people don't get discouraged with the diet if they find the yogurt doesn't work for them. I actually wanted to try the yogurt because as far as I know I don't have any problems with dairy-related but I always worried that I'd get the stuff and do the work and then not like it and it would go to waste.

I also read that you can make it using a heating pad as you would for your stomach. They have the multiple settings and are flat sources of heat.
 
Location
London,
Yes, it takes time. I started from the almond milk yogurt what I was making from scratch but have to say that I didn’t have such a result as from milk yogurt. It’s a huge difference. I was not able to have any dairy products except butter from 1997 so I am really glad to have at least yogurt.
I am happy to try anything as long as it works, but it’s just me 

Yes, you can use the heating pad but I think it might be more difficult to keep the right temperature. I do have a heating pad what I use winter time to warm the bed. But I was playing with yogurt maker, switching off and on even night time until I learned about the dimmer switch (have never known about it before).
 
My 14 year old son was diagnosed with moderate to severe crohn's back in March 2012. His Dr was doing a study on the SCD diet, so he participated. He swallowed a camera pill at the begining of the diet, and again after 4 months on the diet. The Dr. that read his camera results after the 4 months noted there was no inflammation and minor evidence of past sores throughout his intestinal tract. His blood work had greatly improved as well.
He has been gaining weight and feeling much better. Still able to play travel ice hockey!
We are now wanting to try the VSL #3 DS to see if we can push his health to an even better direction. Does anybody out there know anybody that has tried this probiotic? I know it's pricey, but I'm willing to try it to get my son to 100%.
 
Yes, it takes time. I started from the almond milk yogurt what I was making from scratch but have to say that I didn’t have such a result as from milk yogurt. It’s a huge difference. I was not able to have any dairy products except butter from 1997 so I am really glad to have at least yogurt.
I am happy to try anything as long as it works, but it’s just me 

Yes, you can use the heating pad but I think it might be more difficult to keep the right temperature. I do have a heating pad what I use winter time to warm the bed. But I was playing with yogurt maker, switching off and on even night time until I learned about the dimmer switch (have never known about it before).
Lucky me, where I live there is a pharmacy that sells the yoghurt, so I don't have to make it.
 
I could definitely see the yogurt being really helpful, I was just trying to say that the diet can still be done without it so people don't get discouraged with the diet if they find the yogurt doesn't work for them. I actually wanted to try the yogurt because as far as I know I don't have any problems with dairy-related but I always worried that I'd get the stuff and do the work and then not like it and it would go to waste.

I also read that you can make it using a heating pad as you would for your stomach. They have the multiple settings and are flat sources of heat.
Kwalker- I heard you can make it using a pot. You'd have to ask around, but someone told me she makes it and then wraps it in a towel overnight. Where I live I can buy it, maybe there is a health food store around where you live that sells it? Because it cooks so long, it's got lots and lots of natural acidopholus.
 

KWalker

Moderator
You can buy the yogurt pre-made? What do you look for? I have a store near me and it's pretty much a specialty grocery store for people on restricted diets. I wonder if they would sell it?
 
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