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Hi! I am starting to get very frustrated with making meals and looking for any help anyone has to offer! I have not been tested yet for food intolerances, however I know my body can't handle dairy, soy, eggs or refined sugar. Also, most veggies right now cause a reaction. I am not sure about gluten... I am a huge pasta eater and I have never had a problem the nights I eat pasta. However, if I eat eggs I have D and if I eat dairy I have major C issues. I don't know if I should be giving up gluten as well.
I have been trying to find dinner idea's, besides plain chicken and rice, but seem to be hitting a brick wall. All recipes have something in it I shouldn't have. I can find recipes that are gluten and dairy free, but they have eggs or soy in it or something I shouldn't be eating!
Anyways does anyone have any recipe suggestions or know of a recipe book I can get.
There are hundreds of gourmet-quality recipes there that are free of gluten, dairy, and soy. And Dee lists several egg substitutes in some of the "sticky" posts at the top of that forum.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Hi Tracy. I know , it's very hard to think of recipes. Whether you should go GF depends on how you feel. If you are still having symptoms, then I would say yes. it takes a while to see results with gluten, but it can make a huge difference. There are decent rice, corn, and quinoa pastas on the market. I make my own pesto with basil, garlic, pine nuts, and olive oil. It's very yummy, but i don't know if you can deal with the raw ingredients yet.
No cooked veggies work for you? butternut squash and zuccinni , and carrots usually works well. I ate a lot of sweet potatoes when I was healing. The orange ones I just baked and ate with a little coconut oil and brown sugar or cinnamon. The white ones I just cut into cubes, tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted at 425 until done. They are delicious. I ate apple sauce and a small amount of canned peaches also.
Can you eat all meat proteins? I rotate between beef, pork, chicken, and fish. Can you have corn tortillas? How about potatoes? I didn't eat them until about 6 months into my healing, but I seem to fine with them ( also roasted).
I also made big pots of soup. Chicken/rice, beef/vegetable, butternut squash.....
As for recipes, there are some on this forum. Take a look at them. I also just google recipes and them substitute ingredients.
Can you eat rice cakes? I had a lot of them at the beginning with almond butter and a little jam.
I also eat a lot of avocados. I make guacamole and dip corn chips in for a treat. I also use it instead of cheese for many things
How about Chex cereals with almond milk? ... good breakfast or snack. I sometimes eat them right out of the box.
Thank you for your help. I just saw the recipe section.
As for veggies, some cooked veggies are ok. Carrots, squash and sweet potatoes seem to be ok. White potatoes sometimes give me problems so I am trying to stay away from them.
Corn tortillas don't seem to like me. I have tried those.
Most meats are ok. But only plain. Pork chops, beef and chicken. I do not like fish and can't bring myself to eat it!
Most fruits seem to cause a reaction especially banana's.
I heard some rice are not good for MC but I am not sure what kind are ok.
It's just frustrating trying to change 32 years of habits and what not. Its not that I was an unhealthy eater before, cause I wasn't, but it seems even all my healthy foods I can't eat anymore. Like salads. I just find everything very bland and repetitive lately and I am having a hard time adjusting. Especially cooking "special" meals for me and other meals for the rest of my family.
I will cut gluten out of my diet to. I need to get out of this flare up because I am going down south soon and don't want to get worse while I am there. Its already going to be hard trying to find something to eat at the resort!
The good news is that after our intestines heal, most of us are able to reintroduce raw vegetables, fruit, salads, etc., back into our diet. While we are recovering though, the blander the meals, the faster we tend to heal.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
know what you mean Tracy. Those days of eating the same foods over and over again are not that far behind me... but they are behind me non the less BECAUSE I put up with that very restrictive diet for so long. I have to say though that rice was my saving grace ( just make sure you rinse it first). I cook it in either chicken broth or a combination of broth and low fat coconut milk.
As for the meats, for the first 6 months, I basically used garlic salt and basic seasonings like basil, thyme, and rosemary. I was lucky in the fact that I could still eat onions and garlic back then.... and was also able to eat most veggies when they are well cooked.
I did miss my salads tremendously! I use to eat a huge one almost every day for lunch. I can report that I am back to eating salad, so there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Another thing that helped me was to eat very small meals throughout the day.
When I make meals , if I cook myself a sweet potato, I bake a reglar one for my husband and daughter. If I make a meat and veggie, then I just give them some sour dough bread to round out their meal. it's a pain, but we all adjusted . and as I have gotten better, so has our family meals. I even figured out how to make a stir fry sauce without soy that my family likes. We eat it over white rice. We have hamburgers or lamb burgers. I don't have a bun, they do. Pork tenderloin is also very good. I make a paste with dijon mustard. rosemary, garlic , salt, and oilve oil. Then I spread it all over the pork that I have pierced all over. Roast it in the oven at 350 until done... about 30-40 minutes depending on how big it is. Let it rest, then slice. Delicious.
Hang in there Tracy. It's hard now, but things will get better.
I am trying to have a more positive outlook on this. I found some recipes I am going to try and got myself some chex cereal and almond milk..
I even found some gluten free pasta I am going to try tonight.
I was diagnosed with LC in Oct. 2012. I still have trouble understanding all the food limitations.
I am dairy & gluten & caffeine free. I avoid yeast, white potatoes, anything spicy like tomato sauce, etc. and now I think soy lecithin causes a reaction. I read labels very carefully now, and make 99% of what I eat, so I know what ingredients go into them.
There isn't much left to eat and I hope remission can come soon as I am bored with my food options.
I do not want to take pharmaceuticals as I always have reactions to them.
I need encouragement.....
Welcome to the board. You are definitely on the right track. We are all different, so it's impossible to guess how long it will take for someone's intestines to heal enough for remission to arrive. One of the problems is that in additional to the time it takes for healing to occur, remission usually will not happen until every significant food sensitivity is removed from the diet, and it can sometimes be very difficult to track down some of them, especially if they are not common. The main thing to avoid is gluten, because healing the damage caused by gluten can take a long time, if it is extensive. Damage from the other food sensitivities usually heals much faster, so once the intestines heal from the gluten damage, then it becomes easier to determine other foods that are causing problems.
Remember that many pharmaceutical products (including prescription drugs and vitamin supplements) contain traces of ingredients that can prevent us from reaching remission. Some people are also affected by such things as skin care products, shampoo, soaps, cosmetics, etc., especially if they should get in the mouth (such as lipstick). Even the soap your partner uses, has been known to cause a problem.
The tricky part of our recovery is that from one day to the next, we typically have no clues to tell us whether we might be one day away from remission, or a month or more away. Progress can be slow, so we have to live one day at a time, doing what needs to be done, and eventually our hard work will be rewarded, when we wake up one day and realize that we have our life back.
You seem to be motivated, and motivated people get results, so I have no doubt that you will be successful in accomplishing your goal. Please keep us posted on your progress, and never hesitate to ask any questions, or vent your frustrations, or anything else that might be helpful for you.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Stick with white rice. Brown rice is too hard on our guts. I eat a lot of Jasmine rice, corn chips and avocados. I love the Quinoa pasta but it has some corn in it. The rice pastas are good as well. I didn't care for fish either but now I love it. Eat it twice a week and usually season it with olive oil, cilantro, garlic and salt. Those are the only spices I'm brave enough to use right now along with Garlic powder. I always peel my squash and zuchinni before cooking. Hope you find some good recipes!
Terri
Diagnosed with Lymphocytic Colitis in July, 2012 then with Celiac in November, 2012.
Idubois7, Tex is so right . If you choose to do this with no drugs, then healing can take a while.... actually it takes a while anyway, it's just that the drugs lesson the symptoms while you heal.
Eggs are another food that some of us react to here. And of course staying away from fiber foods for now is a good idea. They are just too hard on our guts when we are inflamed ( RAW fruits and veggies, beans, whole corn....etc.). It really can slow down this process. You can test them back in one at a time when you have healed significantly.
Good luck and remember that we all understand what you are going through, and that there is light at the end of the tunnel if you can just hang in there with the diet long enough.
It is so hard for me to not eat fiber! It doesn't make sense to my brain to avoid it in my diet. Of course, it doesn't make sense to cook my fruits & vegges and not eat raw either.
I've been cooking with coconut flour and it requires a lot of eggs, so I have cut out eating them as a main course, but they are still in my almond flour bread, and some of my baking. Do you think I should cut eggs out completely? I could make 'flax eggs' but flax is high in fiber, too.
Tex, I'm glad you brought up the point about supplements...I was having a bad time with the colitis a few months ago, and researched my supplements only to find that many of them had gluten. It's everywhere!
I know I have to be patient, but it's tough when you can't go out to eat or even meet a friend for a cup of coffee. It gets frustrating.
Thanks for the words of encouragement. It means so much to converse with others that have the same experiences.....my family tries to be understanding, but they just don't get it. I look the same on the outside (except for the weight loss) and I think it's hard for them to comprehend what I go through day & night.
Any suggestions for the bloating/gas that happens almost every night, or is that just part of what I go through at this point?
Are you sure that you react to coffee? Most (not all) of us are able to drink coffee without any problems (as long as we don't use milk, or Coffeemate or something of that sort in it).
The bloating/gas is most likely due to poor digestion that results in the fermentation of either fiber, sugar, or other carbohydrates. It's a symptom of active celiac disease or LC/CC/MC. Some members say that products such as Beano help, but I was always afraid to try things such as that, so I don't have any experience with those remedies.
You're very welcome,
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I know, it was hard for me to wrap my head around the no fiber thing too. I'm a personal trainer and nutrition specialist and was eating tons of raw fruits and veggies before all this started. Just think of it this way... it's like putting sandpaper to an open wound. Right now, your gut is inflamed, so sandpaper doesn't sound too soothing, does it? It helped me to think of it as temporary. I have since been able to add salads and beans back into my diet (yay!), but fruit continues to bother me. I think I am one of the unfortunate ones that has fructose malabsorption. I can only eat small quantities of certain carbs. It may be what's going on with the bloating/ gas with you. Sugars can ferment in the intestine ( and cause gas) when they are not completely absorbed. Certain veggies ( like broccoli) can also cause gas. Even the simple act of giving your system too much food at once can cause distress. That's why, (at the beginning) small portions are best.
If all else fails, and I have a bout of uncomfortable gas, I take a Gas-X.
When it comes to eggs, it's hard to say. You can experiment and take them out for a week and see if your symptoms get better. If they don't, you are probably ok with eggs. If it does, you know you are sensitive. HOW SENSITIVE? You can test it by using it in baked goods and see if you react again. Some people can use them in baked goods, but not eat them straight.
If you don't do the Enterolab tests, it's all trial and error. That's how I had to do it. It takes time and patience. Believe me, I did my share of crying by myself :(.... But things are so much better now!
Leah, My problem with GasX meds are that the sugar alcohols in them make me go more. Even Pepto Bismol tablets have sorbitol! If sugar alcohols have a laxative effects why are they in all of these types of meds? It's maddening!
Maybe I am eating too much at dinner, it's only a little more than at lunch but evening is especially when the symptoms occur.
Do you have trouble with fats?
Tex, I was told (maybe by my doc) that coffee was very bad for MC.....I just cut it out when I cut out out everything else. Maybe I'll be brave and give it a try again.
I have not been tested yet for food intolerances, however I know my body can't handle dairy, soy, eggs or refined sugar. Also, most veggies right now cause a reaction. I am not sure about gluten... I am a huge pasta eater and I have never had a problem the nights I eat pasta. However, if I eat eggs I have D and if I eat dairy I have major C issues. I don't know if I should be giving up gluten as well. 
