I have been on a bland diet for 3 days now. White g/f bread with df/sf butter. Sugar free/low sodium bacon. Bananas. plain roasted chicken and plain skin free potatoe. Shrimp and g/f pasta with little olive oil.
This is all I have been eating for 3 days and though I am going less frequently and my D isn't as watery, more like little fluffy chunks or a fluffy cow pie looking thing (TMI, I know, but isn't this forum all about poop? lol) I am still not getting more formed poops.
Do I need to limit my diet more or just give myself more time? Do I remain on this restrictive diet until I start seeing more results or should I start adding things in now? I am afraid of going too long w/o veggies because I know that isn't good either.
How do I know I react?
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
How do I know I react?
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Isaiah 26:3
DX:
2005 Thyroid Disease, Celiac Disease
2015 Reflux, L-MC
DX:
2005 Thyroid Disease, Celiac Disease
2015 Reflux, L-MC
Brooke,
Most of us do not see any significant improvement in such a short time, so you appear to be responding well to the diet. Unless we are taking budesonide to mask the symptoms, it usually takes several months for the diet to allow the inflammation to fade away, because the intestines typically heal relatively slowly. We may see an improvement in our bowel movements (BMs) after a few weeks, but in most cases that simply means that the healing has begun — it still has a long way to go.
The longer we remain on a very restrictive diet, the faster we tend to recover. When we begin to test foods back into our diet, we need to do it very slowly, one food at a time, and start with a small portion. We increase the portion each day, and if we don't detect any adverse reactions within those 3 days, the food is probably safe. If we react, we have to give our GI system at least a few days to settle down again before trying another new food. If you don't see continuing improvement after a few more weeks, you may need to skip the GF bread. Many of us cannot tolerate processed foods while we are recovering, especially those that have more than about 5 ingredients, and especially those that involve GF flour blends. (Some GF flours are notorious for being cross-contaminated with gluten during the milling process, unfortunately.)
Don't worry about the nutrition details early on, because we have trouble absorbing vitamins and minerals anyway, until our gut begins to heal. As the healing progresses, the nutrition problem will slowly be corrected. You're off to a good start.
Tex
Most of us do not see any significant improvement in such a short time, so you appear to be responding well to the diet. Unless we are taking budesonide to mask the symptoms, it usually takes several months for the diet to allow the inflammation to fade away, because the intestines typically heal relatively slowly. We may see an improvement in our bowel movements (BMs) after a few weeks, but in most cases that simply means that the healing has begun — it still has a long way to go.
The longer we remain on a very restrictive diet, the faster we tend to recover. When we begin to test foods back into our diet, we need to do it very slowly, one food at a time, and start with a small portion. We increase the portion each day, and if we don't detect any adverse reactions within those 3 days, the food is probably safe. If we react, we have to give our GI system at least a few days to settle down again before trying another new food. If you don't see continuing improvement after a few more weeks, you may need to skip the GF bread. Many of us cannot tolerate processed foods while we are recovering, especially those that have more than about 5 ingredients, and especially those that involve GF flour blends. (Some GF flours are notorious for being cross-contaminated with gluten during the milling process, unfortunately.)
Don't worry about the nutrition details early on, because we have trouble absorbing vitamins and minerals anyway, until our gut begins to heal. As the healing progresses, the nutrition problem will slowly be corrected. You're off to a good start.
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.
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Gabes-Apg
- Emperor Penguin
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- Location: Hunter Valley NSW Australia
Brooke
how long healing/improvements take is not a black and white 'fixed' thing
it can all depend
for some, if they are not deficient in too many nutrients, get their eating plan figured out, have minimal stress in their lives (physical, mental, and emotional) then good healing can happen in 1-3 months
for some - if they have Vit D3 /magnesium deficiency, maybe some other health issues, (hormones, or thyroid or?) and a bit of stress then it can take 6-9 months
for others - if there are major deficiency issues, they have external/environmental triggers, other health issues, struggling to figure out their safe eating plan then the healing process can take 12 months or more..
we encourage people that even with major improvement in their poop, to stick with the bland, low amount of ingredients for as long as possible, at least 2 months, longer if they can. Good healing at this stage is a good foundation for long term wellness.
Keep in mind - if you break a bone, it is a 8-12 week healing process. It is even longer for our gut....
even longer if there are nutritional deficiencies...
how long healing/improvements take is not a black and white 'fixed' thing
it can all depend
for some, if they are not deficient in too many nutrients, get their eating plan figured out, have minimal stress in their lives (physical, mental, and emotional) then good healing can happen in 1-3 months
for some - if they have Vit D3 /magnesium deficiency, maybe some other health issues, (hormones, or thyroid or?) and a bit of stress then it can take 6-9 months
for others - if there are major deficiency issues, they have external/environmental triggers, other health issues, struggling to figure out their safe eating plan then the healing process can take 12 months or more..
we encourage people that even with major improvement in their poop, to stick with the bland, low amount of ingredients for as long as possible, at least 2 months, longer if they can. Good healing at this stage is a good foundation for long term wellness.
Keep in mind - if you break a bone, it is a 8-12 week healing process. It is even longer for our gut....
even longer if there are nutritional deficiencies...
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
It's really hard to be patient in an age when we are used to quick results. The fact that diet changes take time to control MC symptoms is a hard thing. But it's true. We have to give our bodies time to heal.
The first time I tried going gluten-free, I did it for 2 weeks, and concluded that gluten wasn't the problem. That was before I found this forum and found out that gluten is in WAY more things than I suspected, and that it takes WAY longer to get results than I expected.
Hang in there! This forum is a great place to get information and encouragement.
The first time I tried going gluten-free, I did it for 2 weeks, and concluded that gluten wasn't the problem. That was before I found this forum and found out that gluten is in WAY more things than I suspected, and that it takes WAY longer to get results than I expected.
Hang in there! This forum is a great place to get information and encouragement.
Martha
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Mrs. Poopy Jeans
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humbird753
- Rockhopper Penguin
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It does sound like you have a good eating plan in line. It took me 3 or 4 months before I noticed my digestive system was settling down. And then as I continued to remain strict by avoiding foods I was sensitive to, the symptoms continued to fade away. This disease definitely tries our patience.
Welcome!
Paula
:)
Welcome!
Paula
:)
Paula
"You'll never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have."
"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass... It's learning to dance in the rain."
"You'll never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have."
"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass... It's learning to dance in the rain."
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nsaidcolitis
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- Joined: Mon Nov 04, 2013 4:25 pm
takes me 2 months of no mistakes to calm down the inflammation but you should see improvement within the first week if no trigger foods have been consumed. dont worry about vitamins for now if you can get fresh chicken or organic chicken or fish, it has tons of vitamins i think i read that tip from this forum.
be careful of processed meat ! some might contain gluten or other nasty stuff. luckily i stayed clear of those brands cuz Tex kept us informed back then!
be careful of processed meat ! some might contain gluten or other nasty stuff. luckily i stayed clear of those brands cuz Tex kept us informed back then!