SCD/Paleo/GAPS Support Group

Crohn's Disease Forum

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KWalker

KWalker

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With the growing number of members on here interested in taking part with the SCD and Paleo I thought it would be a good idea to carry on Charleigh's monthly support groups and just create one continuous one so we can keep everything together
 
Thanks for starting this! I'll definitely be following along. I'm an SCD newbie and can use all the info I can get. :)
 
Thanks for doing this. With a whole forum devoted to SCD now, I simply forgot to start the thread. I have been insanely busy. Thanks so much.
 
Would love to join this thread. Started the SCD 11 days ago. My only cheat is a Diet Sundrop more than once a week. Trying not to get discouraged but losing weight and having a hard time with the food OR my crohns is just worse when I decided to start diet. Believe I am not tolerating any fiber. Even chicken soap is reacting and causing lots of D (maybe puree carrots.) Would love to join and hear others response or what worked for them. Will not give up!! Need this to work. :rof:
 
So, I updated E's thread but I had to say something here too....

We had our appointment today. The doctor is very pleased. E is up 5 pounds since his last appointment and he has grown 3/4 inch
And
drumroll........
This was our first stool test with no blood in E's stool!

:dance::dance::dance::dance::dance:
 
Hi everybody!

I'm fairly new to the forums, but have already found so much great information and support.

I started the SCD last June and have been doing pretty well and plan to stick with it for the long haul.

Those of you that are new to the diet -- you have my respect! :applause: It's not easy, but it may be just what you need to feel better and stay as healthy as possible. I don't believe it will cure it, though that would be great, and of course, the "best case scenario".

I have gotten a bit "stuck in a rut" with the foods I eat and I don't do much baking, so I really miss baked goods, but I get by without the horrendous cravings I had early on.

My goal right now is to rededicate myself to the diet and a healthy lifestyle; trying more new recipes and becoming more knowledgeable about Crohn's, how diet effects it and "specifically" the Specific Carbohydrate Diet.

I'm also very interested to hear other's experiences with SCD, Paleo and GAPS and am very happy to share from my own trial and errors.
 
jbpharmd said:
Would love to join this thread. Started the SCD 11 days ago. My only cheat is a Diet Sundrop more than once a week. Trying not to get discouraged but losing weight and having a hard time with the food OR my crohns is just worse when I decided to start diet. Believe I am not tolerating any fiber. Even chicken soap is reacting and causing lots of D (maybe puree carrots.) Would love to join and hear others response or what worked for them. Will not give up!! Need this to work. :rof:
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Hey there. Congratulations for making it this far! You're in a tough stretch, those first few weeks are probably the most difficult, but you've already done so well.

I lost weight also, but I was happy to. I was actually about 20-25# over ideal last Spring when I had my big flare and then began the diet.

I agree the cooked carrots are possibly to blame for the D. I still have trouble with those. (But they're so yummy! A few bites is usually "ok").

Tell me what you've been eating so far and I can give you more ideas for what to try next or what maybe to avoid for now. There are a lot of things you can experiment with before you get into all the higher fiber stuff. I still can't eat a big garden salad.

For what it's worth, I began the diet while in a bad flare, and I was on Entocort. I know it says you'll know in about a month if the diet will work for you, but as far as I was concerned, I was sticking with it for a minimum of 6 months before I made a proclamation of efficacy for myself. After only one month it would have been too difficult to assess if it was the diet or the steroid that was helping me to feel better.
 
three crows said:
Yow! :eek2:

That had to be autocorrect or the cat bumped "send'? Just teasing! :)
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WOW! Can you tell I posted that late at night? lol. I didn't even notice that! I'm not even going to edit it because it's so ridiculous lol.

It should have said "Good, I'd love to have you"
 
jbpharmd said:
Would love to join this thread. Started the SCD 11 days ago. My only cheat is a Diet Sundrop more than once a week. Trying not to get discouraged but losing weight and having a hard time with the food OR my crohns is just worse when I decided to start diet. Believe I am not tolerating any fiber. Even chicken soap is reacting and causing lots of D (maybe puree carrots.) Would love to join and hear others response or what worked for them. Will not give up!! Need this to work. :rof:
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For the first few weeks we had Elijah on a very altered SCD. He couldn't tolerate the carrots or beef (or much fiber at all). The great thing about SCD is that you should be healing on the inside. As you heal, you will gain a tolerance to those foods.
Also, even now that E can tolerate even raw veggies, fruits, and beef....he cannot drink a carbonated soda without getting really sick. I hate to tell you to nix the Sundrop but it might be best to skip it for now.
Sundrop? Do you live in the Carolinas or has it finally moved out of state? lol
 
I'm about 6 weeks into my paleo diet and I feel pretty damn good......I am on prednisone though, so I gotta taper to see if indeed the diet is doing what I pray it is doing.

The wife and I went out to celebrate on Saturday night, she is 2 weeks into the paleo, and is down 6-7lbs. She needs to have a "cheat" meal to keep herself going/sane. We went out to a nice sushi/asian place. I felt like crap after eating some tastey sushi for most of the day Sunday.

Gonna have to keep those treat few and far between.
 
I know how you feel, iv been pretty much SCD for like 5 months then allowed for "organic" rice puffs for breakfast, I had a chicken schnitzel the other day, plus a muffin, I should mention I'm also tapering from 6months pred and been on imuran for a month, Ive been having pretty healthy bowel habits for a month now (Was formed w blood before). I'm planning on going full paleo soon in addition to my medication, I believe that's the way to get the best results. I'm hoping the combo can get me into historical remission
 
I'm not sure what diet we follow, but except for our bread and milk products, it's pretty close to SCD/ Paleo.
 
I'm not following any of these, but am extremely interested in the way that diet can affect health generally and, of course, Crohn's in particular. I have been following the Blood Type Diet since just after my proctocoloectomy in 2000 and am now in my 13th year on no medication.
 
Susan2 said:
I'm not following any of these, but am extremely interested in the way that diet can affect health generally and, of course, Crohn's in particular. I have been following the Blood Type Diet since just after my proctocoloectomy in 2000 and am now in my 13th year on no medication.
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Wow 13 years with no medication is AWESOME. I'd love to be in that place soon. Have you stuck STRICTLYto any specific diet for those 13 years? Or have you incorporated regular foods back into your diet during that time?
 
What is the biggest difference between Paleo and SCD? I hear a lot of people say that Paleo isn't as strict and restrictive as SCD. I'm currently doing SCD, but if there is an alternative that isn't as restrictive I'm open to it. I see some people incorporate a little of both diets. I'm going to research the Paleo diet, but I would love to hear from people who have already done it or are doing both SCD and Paleo.
 
When I am at home, cooking for myself, or in a restaurant that will adapt for me, I try to keep fairly strictly to my beneficial or neutral foods. Otherwise I try to avoid things that will be bad for my Crohn's (hard insoluble fibre, strong spices, nuts, etc) but don't get too fussed about other things. Chicken, for example, is one of my "avoids" but if it is put in front of me, I eat just enough of it to not call attention to myself. The Blood Type Diet allows a full range of food groups/types of food for each blood group - vegetables, fruit, meat, etc - but different ones for each, so it's not so much a matter of incorporating "regular" foods back into your diet.
 
Susan2 said:
When I am at home, cooking for myself, or in a restaurant that will adapt for me, I try to keep fairly strictly to my beneficial or neutral foods. Otherwise I try to avoid things that will be bad for my Crohn's (hard insoluble fibre, strong spices, nuts, etc) but don't get too fussed about other things. Chicken, for example, is one of my "avoids" but if it is put in front of me, I eat just enough of it to not call attention to myself. The Blood Type Diet allows a full range of food groups/types of food for each blood group - vegetables, fruit, meat, etc - but different ones for each, so it's not so much a matter of incorporating "regular" foods back into your diet.
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I understand. Since starting SCD, I have had a similar experience. I was already eating healthy by baking, grilling, boiling, etc. most of my foods and eating plenty of fruits and veggies. However I was still having D and mild flare ups. Since starting SCD the only thing that has really changed in my diet is to cut out sugar, processed foods, breads, grains and stuff like that. I'm thinking that as long as I stay away from those things the majority of the time I should be fine. Maybe only have them once a month or once every two weeks. At least then I wouldn't feel so restricted by the SCD diet. I'm feeling so good right now...I just don't want to mess things up. I'd hate to go back to feeling miserable simply because I just had to have soda or a piece of bread.
 
Susan2 - Interesting, at least to me, about the chicken being off limits. I've noticed the same with chicken and eggs causing me problems. My gut issues almost went away after avoiding those two. Of late I've added cinnamon and turkey to the avoid list, to see if I can be rid of the almost well label, and results are encouraging. The way things are going I might have my first week of being completely well, knock on wood. Well, I'm avoiding a good number of other foods too, with following a SCD/ paleo diet so more probably is going on. Don't imagine I would do well eating wheat. That would cause D. Cane sugar might be a problem too.

I've noticed David mentioning that chicken seems to be a trigger food for him also. Maybe our ancestors were poor bird hunters.

Monirob - the paleo diet is more flexible and pliable. There isn't one single paleo diet out there. As can be imagined many cultures developed different diets based upon what was available in their region of the world. The basics for the paleo diet are avoiding grains, soy, potatoes and dairy. Some will say that aged dairy is fine. Another mention sometimes made for the more hard core paleo followers is seasonality of foods. Before modern transportation and storage, foods tended to be seasonal. For example, eggs were a seasonal food believed to not be eaten through out the year. Fruits were the same. I've seen some mention that they believe pork to be a problematic food, but with many disagreeing on that. Our water sources for our ancestors came from streams and lakes, full of minerals and microbes - some believed to be beneficial.

I recall seeing this article the other day on Dr. Davis's sight about other paleo nutritional ideas. For example, humans are unique in that we do not manufacture our own vitamin C. Instead we need to get this from our diet year round. Eating sea foods rich in iodine, which helps the thyroid is another idea. Being in the sun, creating vitamin D is often brought up too.

"Experience your inner Homo erectus"

http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2013/03/experience-your-inner-homo-erectus/
 
monirob said:
I understand. Since starting SCD, I have had a similar experience. I was already eating healthy by baking, grilling, boiling, etc. most of my foods and eating plenty of fruits and veggies. However I was still having D and mild flare ups. Since starting SCD the only thing that has really changed in my diet is to cut out sugar, processed foods, breads, grains and stuff like that. I'm thinking that as long as I stay away from those things the majority of the time I should be fine. Maybe only have them once a month or once every two weeks. At least then I wouldn't feel so restricted by the SCD diet. I'm feeling so good right now...I just don't want to mess things up. I'd hate to go back to feeling miserable simply because I just had to have soda or a piece of bread.
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The SCD diet does allow 1 diet soda a week (with nutrasweet) and there's a number of bread substitutes. We made some SCD legal coconut macaroon cookies last night that turned out amazing, and seems to help keep the bread and sweets cravings in check.

There's also the primal, GAPS, and Maker's diets.

The greatest common denominator all of all these diets seems to be the preparation of food from scratch, and keeping away from prepared, preprocessed food that contain chemical additives and high fructose corn syrup.

What separates the SCD diet is it only single molecule sugars are "legal", and those are found in fruits and honey. Table sugar is a double molecule sugar, which is why it's illegal.
 
Ya noy, I'm actually not a big bread fan. I just like to enjoy a hamburger or two every now and then and that's where the bread issue arises. As far as sweets, I think I can manage in that category now that I have my Lara Bars, almond flour, and an arsenal of recipes. The diet soda thing is ok...but.....I've been dieting for a while and my motto was to always stay away from sodas, sweets, etc. When I did have it I would have the real the real thing, that way my cravings for the real thing wouldn't take over and make me binge. I'm just not big on eating "fake" sugars and empty calories because I'm trying to lose/maintain weight. Those zero calorie drinks only serve to make ur body think it's getting calories when it's not which just sets ur body up to crave and binge like crazy. I don't know...maybe I should give the diet soda a try for the sake of helping my guts and focus on weight loss later. I only have about 25 more pounds I want to lose so I think the weight loss can take a back seat for now.
 
Beach said:
...Maybe our ancestors were poor bird hunters.
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Or maybe modern day chickens are a long way from what our ancestors would have eaten. Many people who are unable to cope with modern day wheat, which has been heavily modified, seem to be able to cope with spelt, the ancient ancestor of our wheat.
 
Susan2 said:
Or maybe modern day chickens are a long way from what our ancestors would have eaten. Many people who are unable to cope with modern day wheat, which has been heavily modified, seem to be able to cope with spelt, the ancient ancestor of our wheat.
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True, and the older grain products seem to be becoming more popular of late, stocked more often at stores I've noticed.

Different, but thinking about with out modern animal raising, that is one idea I've tried also, wondering if what the animal ate could effect my IBD condition. Unfortunately, range free chicken and eggs was not a help for me.
 
Yes, grass fed beef and lamb is preferable, I think. Unfortunately, grass fed beef, especially, is very difficult to find and very expensive here in Australia. I eat mainly lamb, and wild rabbit when I can, and fish.
 
I updated E's stats. His c-rp is still elevated but it is lower than it has been in a while so I am happy to see it (hopefully) going down.

His C-RP was 28.3
 
What fattening foods do you eat to ensure a healthy weight? One if my reasons for stopping paleo was the incredible weight loss.
 
I've been having trouble sticking with paleo/SCD because I haven't been able to get enough calories. I can't eat beef, pork, or any dairy (allergies), which cuts out a bunch of paleo/SCD options. I also have to keep my nut intake on the lower end, because too many nuts irritate my stomach.

Avocados are pretty high in fat and are delicious.
 
Oh how I miss bread, I'm thinking of incorporating spelt bread into my diet, I was hardcore SCD for like 4-5 months, then after breaking it with a week of nothing but fortisip as by suggestion of a silly dietician I decided I need not be so strict, so I brought in rice puffs (organic, very clean ingredients) I Havnt had any problems with them at all, thing is iv been on pred basically the whole time so it's hard to tell the efficiency of the diet but I figure it definitely couldn't be harming me. Gotta admit though, I miss pizza so badly, though I know if I treated myself to one I'd crave it so much more often... What I need is kwalker baking me up some apple crisps etc haha
 
Same here. I recently made peanut butter fudge using peanut butter, coconut oil and another ingredient (that isn't coming to mind) and each piece is around 400 calories and I usually eat 3 at a time because they're soo good! lol
 
I was eating lots of avocados, bananas, starchy veg and coconut oil while paleo but still dropped an enormous amount.

I only started gaining weight once I are dairy and wheat again. I'd like to be on one of these diets but it doesn't seem to work for me weight wise.
 
Well, I guess I have some news to report about my diet. I've more or less made a switch from SCD eating to a paleo diet the other day. The reason for doing this was, I've been well most of the time to the gut since January. The problem being that during this time I had little energy. I ached too. I even stopped exercising recently.

So I thought of changing things up a few days ago. I decided to stop eating beef and dairy items, rich in probiotics. And ever since doing this I've been ill to the gut! The strange thing being that now, despite being ill, I have good energy, the aches and pains are gone, the gut feels good, and I'm looking healthy. I can't win! :ybiggrin:

At this point I'm thinking it would not be a bad idea for me to keep exploring the avoidance of beef and dairy. Some consider those two foods to be the top allergens for westerners. Figure this current stomach issue will pass, and when it does hopfully I can get back into working out.

I've tried avoiding beef and dairy in the past, for up to a month. Figure it would be a good idea if I try a few month avoidance of the two foods and see what it does for me. I'm also slowly ramping up the eating of probiotic rich foods, outside of dairy.
 
Beach, what does this look like for you? As opposed to SCD you are eating ......? (Potatoes, sweet potatoes?) I am just curious.

Keep us updated :)
 
Thanks Charleigh - I'm eating the same as before when I was well since January, just minus beef and dairy products. I do eat sweet potatoes.

Since doing that dietary change I became pretty ill to the gut as of a few days ago. Curiously the muscle fatigue I have been experiencing has gone away. Energy levels have risen nicely also, thankfully. My appearance has improved too, as I appear less run down. So this has me thinking maybe I'm experiencing a beef and dairy allergy. Hard to say. There are several different possibilities of what could be going on. Hopfully the stomach will improve over the next few weeks and overall I'm pretty happy about the muscle fatigue leaving and energy levels rising since avoiding cow products. Hard to believe also, but since being ill my weight has actually gone up a few pounds. And my pants are looser. Possibly I'm less bloated? Ugh... strange body.

Life would be easier if I had been born with an instruction manual.:)
 
I'm over a month in now, and feeling great. My stricture seems to have relaxed some, and my energy is wayyy up from before. I am noticing that sone arthritis i had a few years ago is back though. Cant figure out why that is, am i missing a nutrient i used to get? I am juicing fruits and veggies quite a bit, and eating cheese, nuts, and some white meat. My diet is probably way more well rounded than before, but i have to wonder.

Anyway, i'm pretty convinced that the SCD is working for me. :)
 
I'm so happy to hear you guys are having success with your diets! Beach, I have to loosen my belt now too! lol. I haven't lost weight but I feel different in my stomach
 
Thanks KWalker. I've been enjoying the last couple of days being able to sit and not feel bloatedly uncomfortable.
 
Beach said:
True, and the older grain products seem to be becoming more popular of late, stocked more often at stores I've noticed.

Different, but thinking about with out modern animal raising, that is one idea I've tried also, wondering if what the animal ate could effect my IBD condition. Unfortunately, range free chicken and eggs was not a help for me.
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Free range alone is not quite the same as also grass fed, which makes a big difference in the taste of the chicken. The yokes of the eggs also seem darker, more orange than yellow.

The last few Thanksgivings we've also gone with heritage turkeys, which are free range, grass fed, but also smaller and a lot more expensive, but a lot more flavorful. Very little breast meat because heritage turkeys can actually fly, and mate normally. Most turkeys are artificially inseminated, the gigantic breasts they've been breed to produce can also prevent them from getting close enough to each other to mate.

The taste difference between even just a fresh chicken or turkey and one that's been frozen is enormous. Fresh poultry is just more tender, juicier, and requires little to no basting or added flavoring. Even the gravy from the giblets tastes better.
 
Thanks Ya noy. I agree.

I typically have not eaten eggs or chicken of late. It's been a food of concern. I'm thinking now I might have been wrong with what was going on. I guess I'll find out over time. I ate my first piece of chicken since at least January this morning, after working out. It was delicious! Always did enjoy chicken, even if it didn't like me.

Picked up some locally produced free range/ grass fed chicken and eggs yesterday from a local health food store. I remember you mentioning that you are of Asian ancestry - the store is owned by a Thailand immigrant. He's a character, fun to talk with. In the past he has let me know I should buy more of these local farm eggs, as the chickens feast on the Japanese beetles, along with other items, probably grass. Doesn't sound appetizing! I'm not thinking this to be a good sales pitch for most customers! But have to admit, the eggs and chicken are delicious, and the fewer Japanese beetles flying around the better as far as I'm concerned.
 
Beach said:
Thanks Ya noy. I agree.

I typically have not eaten eggs or chicken of late. It's been a food of concern. I'm thinking now I might have been wrong with what was going on. I guess I'll find out over time. I ate my first piece of chicken since at least January this morning, after working out. It was delicious! Always did enjoy chicken, even if it didn't like me.

Picked up some locally produced free range/ grass fed chicken and eggs yesterday from a local health food store. I remember you mentioning that you are of Asian ancestry - the store is owned by a Thailand immigrant. He's a character, fun to talk with. In the past he has let me know I should buy more of these local farm eggs, as the chickens feast on the Japanese beetles, along with other items, probably grass. Doesn't sound appetizing! I'm not thinking this to be a good sales pitch for most customers! But have to admit, the eggs and chicken are delicious, and the fewer Japanese beetles flying around the better as far as I'm concerned.
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No, I'm not Asian, but rather German, Russian and Croatian. Probably got that impression from my username, which was actually an iPad "autocorrect" error, lol! I may have mentioned that my sister-in-law is Korean, and we use a lot of her family recipes, shopping for ingredients at Asian food marts.

We can't try any new recipes right now while my husband's undergoing allergy testing to pinpoint exactly what caused him to develop Stevens-Johnson syndrome. For now, chicken is the only meat he can eat. We still make our own bread, but for now now, he's still only allowed to use white flour. Can't wait until he can go back to eating real (primarily paleo) food.

We can actually buy organic paleo bread at our local deli, made with almond and coconut flours. Very tasty.

We buy our organic, grass-fed chicken from a local farmer who actually has a chicken coop on wheels, that they move every night so the chickens have fresh grass to graze on each day. Chickens also eat worms and other bugs, but we just view it as part of the "circle of life."
 
:lol2: Well, I guess I missed that one! Actually too, the other day I met a lady from Vietnam named Noy, so that might have played a part too. I hope your husband is able to find an answer as to what's going on! It is nice with all the alternative diet foods now available in stores. I've seen some purist express concern over "paleo" prepared foods sold in stores - but I think that to be great, and very convenient.
 
I've heard paleo "purists" say that as well, but the paleo bread is made with only 6 ingredients, all of which are also SCD legal, and it's also gluten, grain, yeast, dairy and soy free.

Thr only ingredients are almond and coconut flour, water, organic apple cider vinegar, psyllium, egg whites, and baking soda.

At 7.99 a loaf, it's not cheap, but not outrageously expensive either, and really helps fulfills cravings for REAL sandwich bread. It can also be ordered from their website: https://www.paleobread.com/

The coconut version is also nut free, so it works for almost any diet except vegetarian/vegan.
 
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KWalker said:
Same here. I recently made peanut butter fudge using peanut butter, coconut oil and another ingredient (that isn't coming to mind) and each piece is around 400 calories and I usually eat 3 at a time because they're soo good! lol
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Can you post the recipe bro?
 
CrohniePilot said:
Just ordered some of that bread! Thanks!
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Hope you used the discount coupon code for March, to save $5! The coupon code is 1776

(See "retailmenot" link: http://www.retailmenot.com/view/julianbakery.com )

If you like the bread, you can use it on your next order, and I'd love to know what you think of it. :)


And rather than ordering from their site, you can input your zip code into this locator, and see whether there are any stores close by you that carry their breads -- http://www.julianbakery.com/locator/

Most people seem to prefer the one made strictly with coconut flour over the one made with both almond and coconut flour.
 
Looks great but if you are on the east coast then shipping is ~ wow! You have to ship 2nd day air and shipping alone for 3 loaves is $20 :eek2:
 
Charleigh said:
Looks great but if you are on the east coast then shipping is ~ wow! You have to ship 2nd day air and shipping alone for 3 loaves is $20 :eek2:
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Wow! That's outrageous. There is a coupon for $5.95 for shipping if you buy 6 loaves, and you can freeze them.

But there's 6 delis that sell these breads in my immediate vicinity, closest is only 3 miles from my house.
 
Ya noy said:
We still make our own bread, but for now now, he's still only allowed to use white flour. Can't wait until he can go back to eating real (primarily paleo) food.
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Is your husband allowed white spelt flour? It makes lovely bread and, being an ancient grain, causes far fewer allergies than wheat.
 
Susan2 said:
Is your husband allowed white spelt flour? It makes lovely bread and, being an ancient grain, causes far fewer allergies than wheat.
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I think they want him to stick to wheat because it's already been eliminated as an allergen for him, but it's just a for a few more weeks until they're finished running the tests.

We normally have been mixing spelt and other ancient grains into our bread flour.
 
Happy to join this group! Am mom of a wonderful youngster, early teens, dg with Crohn's in June 2012 during traumatic hospitalization. Was on prednisone all summer, and as she tapered we started SCD. I probably won't share more family details out of respect for her privacy. But her bloodwork was totally normal in December so now we are treating this as a remission with diet.

Got absolutely NO support for this from doctors. Never expect most traditional doctors to do more than give you an amused smile and subtle signals that you are crazy. Even after completely normal bloodwork and symptom-free child after only 4 mos of the diet, the most I got was friendly, noncommittal congratulations and the gracious acceptance of the Breaking the Vicious Cycle book from my hands (I purchased two: one for the doctor, and one for the nutritionist in her office who DEFINITELY should at least have MENTIONED SCD to us).

Okay, I am a little bitter.

But we did it. We are doing it. You can too. It is a breath of fresh air to join this upbeat, positive group after slogging through all the depressing stuff on the boards "out there"

We continue on Pentasa, though it seems we might not need to do so. Better safe than sorry for now. Also we use a great probiotic and make a lot of smoothies with the yogurt. We do use raw cocoa, which technically makes us on the GAPS diet, not SCD, but whatever.

And also: I do not want to live in a world without pancakes. That was one of the first things we brought back -- SCD legal and delicious. Will post recipe when I have a bit more time. It's from Steven Wright's SCD Lifestyle Blog so you can just google "SCD Pancakes" and you should get it.
 
Grateful4Pancakes said:
Happy to join this group! Am mom of a wonderful youngster, early teens, dg with Crohn's in June 2012 during traumatic hospitalization. Was on prednisone all summer, and as she tapered we started SCD. I probably won't share more family details out of respect for her privacy. But her bloodwork was totally normal in December so now we are treating this as a remission with diet.

Got absolutely NO support for this from doctors. Never expect most traditional doctors to do more than give you an amused smile and subtle signals that you are crazy. Even after completely normal bloodwork and symptom-free child after only 4 mos of the diet, the most I got was friendly, noncommittal congratulations and the gracious acceptance of the Breaking the Vicious Cycle book from my hands (I purchased two: one for the doctor, and one for the nutritionist in her office who DEFINITELY should at least have MENTIONED SCD to us).

Okay, I am a little bitter.

But we did it. We are doing it. You can too. It is a breath of fresh air to join this upbeat, positive group after slogging through all the depressing stuff on the boards "out there"

We continue on Pentasa, though it seems we might not need to do so. Better safe than sorry for now. Also we use a great probiotic and make a lot of smoothies with the yogurt. We do use raw cocoa, which technically makes us on the GAPS diet, not SCD, but whatever.

And also: I do not want to live in a world without pancakes. That was one of the first things we brought back -- SCD legal and delicious. Will post recipe when I have a bit more time. It's from Steven Wright's SCD Lifestyle Blog so you can just google "SCD Pancakes" and you should get it.
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Thanks for sharing. My son is 11 (almost 12) and he is also having success without meds on SCD. It can be very frustrating and very embittering when you work so hard and see results and they are brushed off by medical professionals. E's doctor cannot deny that he is doing great but the little comments get to me. Things like. "this happens with crohn's, comes and goes for no reason". Seriously, I (as his mom) have worked my backside off feeding this child and he has given up alot of great foods. This isn't just "coincidence"!!! Also, after E's last check-up and there was no blood in his stool and his growth had taken off, etc the doctor scratched his head and said, "I originally said that E was diagnosed with moderate to severe crohn's but I think I need to change that diagnosis. Moderate to severe crohn's does not improve like this in only 4 months, especially without medication." So, you made a diagnosis based on good information (what he saw with the scope, pics, symptoms, labwork, etc) and now because he is doing so great without meds you are going to go back and CHANGE his diagnosis. That doesn't seem very scientific to me? All of this to say, I KNOW how you feel!
 
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1364258992.862789.jpg

Tomato basil soup with havarti, baby swiss and muenster grilled cheese sandwich (made with coconut flour paleo bread).

I have to say, considering that it was SCD-bread, which is somewhat of a contradiction in itself, it was pretty darn tasty!
 
Oh and on the topic of western medicine's absurd notion that a DIGESTIVE disease couldn't possibly be affected by anything you EAT is quite ridiculous really. My 6 yr old knows better than that.

Speaking of which this article pissed me off on behalf of the SCD. Shame on the author for being so discouraging of the diet.

I http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/features/specific-carbohydrate-diet-review?page=1

I would have written to her but i couldn't find a way to do it!
 
Hello everyone. On SCD since June 2012. Doing well on it, as long as I don't cheat, or worse...as I did recently, binge. This diet, when not deviating, makes a huge difference for me. I take no meds what-so-ever. I want to avoid them as long as possible. For those starting, make sure that you can handle the carrots, I couldn't. Once I eliminated them I began seeing results. This diet is not black and white. Just because the "legal" list says it should be okay, doesn't mean it will be for you, yet. It took me awhile to learn the queues from my body as to which foods are friendly, and which foods aren't. I'm looking forward to learning from others here, who are on the diet.
 
DDP1966 said:
Hello everyone. On SCD since June 2012. Doing well on it, as long as I don't cheat, or worse...as I did recently, binge. This diet, when not deviating, makes a huge difference for me. I take no meds what-so-ever. I want to avoid them as long as possible. For those starting, make sure that you can handle the carrots, I couldn't. Once I eliminated them I began seeing results. This diet is not black and white. Just because the "legal" list says it should be okay, doesn't mean it will be for you, yet. It took me awhile to learn the queues from my body as to which foods are friendly, and which foods aren't. I'm looking forward to learning from others here, who are on the diet.
Click to expand...


We definitely found this to be true. Some things that E could not eat at first have become okay as he has healed though. He couldn't eat carrots at first but now he can tolerate them. Same with berries, etc. Also, beef was a huge no-no in any form in the beginning. Now, he can tolerate a limited amount of ground beef (but no steak, roast, etc).
 
Hmm, that paleo bread really does look better than I thought it would turn out! I'll have to run across town to a store that carries such items and see what they have for sale.

Yeah, I think it comes as a surprise for many to learn that of all the years spent in medical school, most physicians typically receive only a few weeks training on nutrition and diets, and overall care little about diets.

Dr. Eades has written a few interesting articles about the problem. One piece of his that I recall.

"Mitochondria rejuvenating diet the nutritional ‘experts’ bash"

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/...juvenating-diet-the-nutritional-experts-bash/

snippet from his article:

The subtitle of this post could just as easily have been: Feed your mitochondria right.

The two videos below pretty much tell the whole sad tale of doctors and nutrition. Taken together, they confirm the widespread notion that doctors, in general, know very little about nutrition and seem to be proud to keep it that way.

This first video has made the rounds on the internet. I’ve had it sent to me or recommended to me a dozen times, but I had never watched it until just a few days ago. I was put off because of its length, which, at a little over 17 minutes, seems like an eternity in internet viewing time. But I hope anyone reading this post doesn’t make the mistake I did and avoid watching because of the length. It is a spectacular talk given by Dr. Terry Wahls, a female physician who was struck down by a relentlessly progressive neurodegenerative disorder. She describes how she was able to restore her health by revamping her diet in in a way designed to properly feed her mitochondria.* The transformation is almost unbelievable, especially considering the disease she was battling. If you haven’t already seen this video – watch it. I guarantee you’ll be glad you did. And while you watch, pay careful attention to what her diet doesn’t contain much of.

After you’ve seen the above video, take a look at the one below. It is a little over 2 minutes long and was developed to give doctors – who, for the most part, don’t give a flip about diet – advice they can pass along to their obese or overweight patients. Watching the longer video above first will give you more context to better appreciate the one below and show you just how lame mainstream medicine can be.

This video came from Medscape, a subscription service for doctors to keep them abreast of all the latest and greatest news and updates from the world of mainstream medicine....
Click to expand...
 
Disappointing! Yesterday I stopped by two local stores that have alternative breads. One sells brand names, and the other bakes unique breads along with selling other brands. Neither had a paleo type bread. I might have to break down and order some over the internet.
 
Beach said:
Disappointing! Yesterday I stopped by two local stores that have alternative breads. One sells brand names, and the other bakes unique breads along with selling other brands. Neither had a paleo type bread. I might have to break down and order some over the internet.
Click to expand...

Beach,

if you are still in Chicagoland, well, there are stores all over that Sell Julian Bakery's paleo bread. There are 6 right within my immediate vicinity, but I do live in the Western suburbs. To find the closest retail store that sells it near you, just type in your zip code In this locator link:

http://www.julianbakery.com/locator/
 
What is a GAPS diet? and what are the specifics for SCD??? I have been gluten free about 2 months now which is the paleo diet I think???? i could really use some advice on this stuff im so tired and losing a lot of weight from not eating...thanks.....
 
Hey all! I am new to the forum and since I started the Paleo diet 4, months ago with complete success, I decided that perhaps I might be able to offer some support. I have Crohn's Disease and this diet, I believe, has saved my life.
 
What exactly is the paleo diet?? I have stopped eating gluten but might not be doing it right i still am having issues with my stomach..
 
GAPS stands for Gut and Psycholgy Syndrome, and from what Inunderstand, the GAPS diet is a modern update of SCD (specific carbohydrate diet).

The SCD diet prohibits all preprocessed foods, and only permits consuming single molecule carbohydrates, monosacrides, such as fructose and glucose. In table sugar, fructose and glucose combine to become a whole new carbohydrate, sucrose, which is a disaccharide, and not permitted (illegal) on the SCD diet. Most fruits are permitted, along with honey as a sweetener.

In the SCD diet, you are supposed to make your own yogurt, however, with the GAPS diet, they recommend you make kefir instead, as it contains far more beneficial strains of probiotics. Kefir is a lot easier to make as well, Although it does require kefir grains.

The main difference with the paleo diet is it doesn't allow any legumes (nuts) and aside from also recommendinng drinking kefir, prohibits consuming preprocessed foods, and instead eating organic and grass fed meats.

The whole point of all of these is to "starve" the bad bacterias, while feeding and the colonizing the beneficial digestive bacterias and probiotics in your digestive system.
 
In short, the Paleo Diet is basically eating Grassfed Beef, Free Range Chicken, Lamb, Buffalo, and sugarfree, msg free, nitrate and sulfite free pork. No processed foods or sugars. No grains, no carbs. No beans. You do not necessarily have to buy grassfed, however, I noted a significant difference in how I felt between grassfed and non. I have not been able to eat regular beef in years. Had always made me sick and difficult to digest. But Grassfed Beef actually makes me feel very good. I eat some sort of protein, beef, chicken, lamb or buffalo, 3 times a day. I never in a million years thought it would actually be good for me and I would do okay on this sort of diet. But I was so sick I felt I had no other options but to give the diet a try.

I did start with the homeade free range chicken broth, eating the bone marrows, etc., for the first 3 days. I found immediate relief. I have Crohn's of the ileum and get alot of bloating and tummy pain. This diet has literally erased all of that. I did not and do not do the fermenting, as is found on the SCD diet. I can not do yogurt and I have achieved success with the Paleo Diet, so I am content with that. I get to eat things that I haven't been able to eat in years, and that makes me very happy.

I did lose a considerable amount of weight in a very short amount of time, which was alarming for me in the beginning because I am rather thin to begin with. However, my doctor said that as long as the pain is gone, my energy is good and I feel better, being skinny is not all bad. I have gotten used to it and have decided that I do not care what I look like, as long as I feel good and am taking care of my body.

I must add, however, that I do have other health issues, such as Myleoprolific Disorder and Fibromyalgia. I feel that this diet has given me a new lease on life. I am no longer having inflammation as i did and I actually feel like my future is promising. And the best part is that I am actually enjoying eating!

I would caution though, grassfed meat is expensive. However, there are ways to offset this. First, I bought a small, compact freezer for $140, at Walmart. This way I am able to stock up when the meats are on sale at my local grocier. I buy the rest of my meat at US Wellness Meats online, where I can get my sugar free, msg and nitrate free sausage and hot dogs. Their shipping is super fast and their meats are first rate! Second, I rarely eat out, so I save ALOT of money that way. Third, I have found that by not eating all of the processed junk, I actually spend less monthly on my grocery bill. I literally cook EVERYTHING from scratch. It takes a bit of planning, but once you get the hang of it, it is pretty easy.

You will most likely have to modify the diet, depending on your digestive needs. I can not do nightshades, so no tomatoes, etc. for me. I also can not do Coconut flour, or coconut milk, which is a real bummer, as homeade coconut custard ice cream is the BOMB!! But boy does it make me SICK!!! So, luckily I do well on almond milk, and do make ice cream out of that, not as good, but still yummy.

I hope this helps some of you who are considering this type of diet or are looking at options to alleviate some of your pain and other bathroom type issues.
 
Ya noy said:
Beach,

if you are still in Chicagoland, well, there are stores all over that Sell Julian Bakery's paleo bread. There are 6 right within my immediate vicinity, but I do live in the Western suburbs. To find the closest retail store that sells it near you, just type in your zip code In this locator link:

http://www.julianbakery.com/locator/
Click to expand...

Thanks Ya noy - unfortunately the closest Julian selling store is around an hours drive away for me. I was thinking I'll probably order some coconut bread over the net to see what I think of it. If I find the bread is to my liking, I'll look into baking something similar.
 
I feel I need to add my experience with SCD and Paleo-not to discourage anyone but to be real and honest about my time with it. Note, I never cheated on the diet-read the book, consulted with SCD experts, told the GI I was doing the diets and he was supportive. The book (Breaking the Vicious Cycle-SCD-does mention the success rate and I believe it was in the 80s%, I believe. I wish I was in that 80 percent.

I did SCD for 1.5 years-cooked EVERYTHING I ate, even bought lots of cookware to sustain the diet (yogurt maker, pressure cooker, etc). I did Paleo after that for about 8 months-made it even more restrictive for myself by also going organic.

If you have strictures, this may not be the best diet since some veggies are high in fiber and you do not want to risk obstruction.

The meds I was on at the time of diets included: LDN, Xifaxan, Remicade. My bloodwork was never normal, blood loss constant, weekly iron infusions, and pain every day.

Remember though, that Crohn's can go into remission on its own so it will be hard to influence docs that diet alone did it. I do believe there is not one plan for everyone only guidelines we can start working with. I am also happy for those who find relief from diets. I never was that lucky.

The diets left me with lots of discipline towards how I look at food, modified ways to cook foods FAST, and some delish recipes that I came up with (including breads-blueberry, banana-my fav)-I can share these recipes upon request. It can also be very expensive and exhausting to maintain said diets but some think it's worth it...I tweaked the diets several times within guidelines to tailor to myself and just decided eventually that diet for me, was too tiring and not worth it too maintain. I still eat very healthy.

Also, once I got on prednisone after I quit all the diets, that's when my bathroom issues and vomiting decreased...

Good luck to all.
 
I'm so glad you guys mentioned the Paleo bread and where to get it from. I put my zip code in the store locator and there are two stores near me 20-30 miles away. That's about a 30-45 minute drive for me but it will be well worth it. And one of the cities it's sold in my brother lives in so I can just have him or his wife pick some up for me and bring it when they visit! :D This is going to open up so many doors for me so that I can enjoy hamburgers again and hopefully I can find some SCD legal hotdogs too. Sandwiches and grilled cheeses here I come! Thanks again!!
 
monirob said:
I'm so glad you guys mentioned the Paleo bread and where to get it from. I put my zip code in the store locator and there are two stores near me 20-30 miles away. That's about a 30-45 minute drive for me but it will be well worth it. And one of the cities it's sold in my brother lives in so I can just have him or his wife pick some up for me and bring it when they visit! :D This is going to open up so many doors for me so that I can enjoy hamburgers again and hopefully I can find some SCD legal hotdogs too. Sandwiches and grilled cheeses here I come! Thanks again!!
Click to expand...

Give us a review when you try it :) It is about a 45 minute drive for me to get to it. I want to know if it is worth it :D
 
I had a friend that works in the town the Paleo bread is sold in to bring some for me so I didn't have to drive at all to get it. I am a bit disappointed though. The bread is very dense, not at all light, fluffy, or flaky. It was frozen and maybe that contributed to the texture. It also had no flavor and seemed to crumble up into bits of flavorless, wet dust (is that possible lol) in my mouth. I toasted some with butter in a skillet and made an egg sandwich this morning....later I put some in a toaster and tried to eat it with jelly. Neither experience was enjoyable. The bread also had a fishy smell to it...sort of like chicken when it has spoiled. Did anyone else experience that smell? Maybe I'm doing something wrong. Maybe the bread needs to sit for a little while after it has thawed. I just can't seem to get it to be crispy like toast :( If anyone has any suggestions please let me know. I was so looking forward to this bread being a lifesaver for me. Maybe I'll try out the gluten free bread made by the same company if it doesn't have too many bad ingredients. Perhaps it will have a better taste and texture.
 
I never did get around to ordering the paleo bread myself. I was reading the ingredients and saw it had eggs in it. Every once in awhile I have a notion that I can eat eggs and chicken, and each time I do a few days afterwards I end up regretting it with a belly ache. Maybe if I did the SCD or GAPs diet more strictly that problem would go away. Hard to say. I might have to try the wrist sensitivity food test some time too with eggs, as mentioned in the GAPs book to see if I have a "true allergy" as described in the book.

In the past I've tried different gluten free breads. Some where very high in fiber. That caused me a good deal of grief on its own. There are some lower fiber white rice based breads that I've tried. They tasted great and were not as problematic.

I'll eat one of the rice breads from Canada every so often, enjoy the taste, but find them so loaded with sugar that I usually end up regretting it. The stomach doesn't seem to have terrible regrets from the sweet bread, it's that i feel sluggish and worn down.
 
I'm letting the Paleo bread thaw in the fridge for about two days then I will try it again. If I still don't like it then I will see if I can find another bread that is healthy and as close to SCD as possible. I hear sourdough bread that has been fermented is ok.
 
I am a greater baker (if I must say so myself, lol) and I cannot seem to make a paleo bread. You move on though....you move on with life and you don't need bread anymore. I know that is difficult for the typical western dieter to understand but you really do adjust ;)
 
I
Prefer sweet potatoes, they've been fine upon trying them, I actually tried sourdough bread today and was also fine, don't wanna make a habit of it though haha, and had spelt pasta for dinner (iv been really adventurous lately - within the last week)
 
Joshuaaa said:
I
Prefer sweet potatoes, they've been fine upon trying them, I actually tried sourdough bread today and was also fine, don't wanna make a habit of it though haha, and had spelt pasta for dinner (iv been really adventurous lately - within the last week)
Click to expand...

Thanks. We grow potatoes and they are just so darn cheap and easy. I can't eat any grains but I can eat potatoes. I wonder about potatoes and E.

Just be careful with your adventurousness, it could compound and cause problems and then you won't know what the problem was, but you already know that ;) We did that with E once, tried adding in a few safe but new things. A month later when he began having some issues we had to step back and remove all three and try again.
 
Hey guys- newbie here. Does anyone feel that the SCD or Paleo works pretty well? Right now, I'm gluten free. Need some guidance and advice.
 
Hi I am a newbie too, can't tell you too much about SCD as I am waiting to try it myself, lots of good stuff on here though. I went gluten and dairy free and have been quite symptom free & no meds but then I would off road particularly choc and cakes and get sick flaring a couple of times a year. I have found a dietician and doc to support me trying the diet route properly once and for all for a year. We decided to follow Dr Hunter's suggestion from Cambridge to do a liquid diet first so I am on week two of an 8 week elemental 028 diet, (you drink 8 cartons of this milkshake type stuff) then I am going to start in SCD gently excluding beans and pulses nuts & dairy to start and leaving out illegal fodmaps items for 6 week. Are you thinking of taking the plunge and going on SCD? best of luck with everything.
 
I'm 3ish months on the SCD, I feel better than i have felt in 15 years, and am weaning off my pentasa and imuran.

I cannot overstate what this diet has done for me. I used to feel like this CD controlled my life. Now i feel like I am the one with all the control.

Thank you to all those who encourage people to try it. You've changed my life!
 
CrohniePilot said:
I'm 3ish months on the SCD, I feel better than i have felt in 15 years, and am weaning off my pentasa and imuran.

I cannot overstate what this diet has done for me. I used to feel like this CD controlled my life. Now i feel like I am the one with all the control.

Thank you to all those who encourage people to try it. You've changed my life!
Click to expand...

Care to share your daily menu? I struggled maintaining this diet due to the monotony of what I was eating, started losing my appetite for it :(
 
Before I was diagnosed with Crohns I was eating mostly Paleo to control what we thought was Celiac, and it was working wonderfully (and obvioulsy I was 100% gluten free). I had tried adding rice back into my diet, and got a tummy ache that lasted for 2 weeks and got worse and worse, until I was diagnosed in the ER in pain. After being dianosed (3 weeks ago) I fell off the wagon in an epic way. I'm starting again today.

I never went back to eating grains after my original attempts at adding rice in, but I have been eating way too much proccessed crap. Pop, candy, popsicles etc. I need to phase out all the sugar and junk again and get back to a very basic way of eating. My "trigger" foods are corn/rice/oats/gluten/dairy and nuts, all "non-paleo- foods anyway.
 
Joshuaaa said:
Care to share your daily menu? I struggled maintaining this diet due to the monotony of what I was eating, started losing my appetite for it :(
Click to expand...

I know EXACTLY where you are. I totally lost my appetite after going SCD. I posted on here about it actually. All I can say is, that once i realized it was WORKING, my perception shifted from something I had to do, to something I wanted to do.

Anyway, I don't have a daily menu. In general, here are some of my thoughts. I seldom try and simulate something that I can no longer have (like pizza). It always ends in me wishing for real pizza. So instead, I am focusing on simple things I CAN have. Here are some of my staple foods so far:

Snacks:

-Larabars. I eat a few a day on work days. They travel well, and are good healthy food.

-Fruit. I'm trying to eat a lot of fruit.

-Cheese slices

-Nuts

-Raisins

-Trader Joes Chocolate Honey Mints (thank god for those, they take care of my sweet tooth. I am addicted to them though.)

-Frozen mango or banana sorbet from the juicer.

Meals:

-Grilled chicken

-Veggies

-My wife is better about trying to cook new dishes for me than I am.

-I treated myself to a new charcoal grill, and have been focusing on enjoying grilling and bbq'ing. I smoked some yummy SCD baby back ribs, roasted a turkey breast and a whole chicken. I'm really trying to embrace BBQ because there is no reason any bbq meat can't be SCD. I am still experimenting with homemade SCD BBQ sauces.

-Juicing. My wife and I have been doing a lot of juicing.

-Eggs. I make a lot of omelets and scrambled eggs.

Gotta run for now, but there are some thoughts to start.
 
CrohniePilot said:
I know EXACTLY where you are. I totally lost my appetite after going SCD. I posted on here about it actually. All I can say is, that once i realized it was WORKING, my perception shifted from something I had to do, to something I wanted to do.
Click to expand...

Just want to second the above thought. E was really hesitant to go on this diet, but I told him not to look at it as "the rest of his life" yet but to just give me 30-60 days. I told him that if he didn't feel better after 60 days then we would check it off our list and move on. Well, this diet took my extremely sick and frail child and changed his life for the better. He is never tempted to cheat, he never asks for non-scd food, etc. He knows how much better he feels so he knows that it is 100% worth it. Before this diet, eating pizza and ice cream are important to you and the idea of living without those things is painful. But, just like crohniepilot states above, you perception changes. Your tastes change too by the way and you don't even crave those foods anymore!
 
I can also vouch for this diet. I've had to make some changes and alter the diet at the moment because of financial and time restraints for now but I even notice a difference from adding a few things in, but there's nothing I can really do at the moment so I can only stick to the diet as much as I can. Even after altering the diet, I've lost taste for things I used to love before. I tried a can of pop after going months with no pop and I didn't even like it because it tasted so sugary and fake. I pretty much only drink water and smoothies now.

There are still tons of things you can eat with the diet, you just have to get used to it and commit yourself to it. As soon it becomes possible I will be following the diet 100% again.
 
KWalker said:
I can also vouch for this diet. I've had to make some changes and alter the diet at the moment because of financial and time restraints for now but I even notice a difference from adding a few things in, but there's nothing I can really do at the moment so I can only stick to the diet as much as I can. Even after altering the diet, I've lost taste for things I used to love before. I tried a can of pop after going months with no pop and I didn't even like it because it tasted so sugary and fake. I pretty much only drink water and smoothies now.

There are still tons of things you can eat with the diet, you just have to get used to it and commit yourself to it. As soon it becomes possible I will be following the diet 100% again.
Click to expand...

Sorry that you're having to make sacrifices. I hope that someday diets like the SCD are recognized as a treatment for disease. We are what we eat after all right?

I'm finding that more and more people seem to be embracing healthier eating choices.
 
I just try to encourage you to try and stay on SCD. My daughter had 2 years SCD and now we are on that stage, were she can eat lots of not legal foods, too. Only wheat, lactose and sugar are left.
 

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