I was diagnosed with LC today...

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Thu May 12, 2016 11:04 pm

...and I am thrilled to find this completely awesome forum and website! Thank you so much for this wonderful service to others in such desperate need. :-)

But I am having trouble finding a list of foods to avoid. I am undoubtedly having user issues. :D Found a great post with a list of foods to avoid for mast cell issues but I don't know if that's me.

I was diagnosed with CD in the mid 1980s and have been GF since then so I am pretty experienced on the GF food thing.

My GI prescribed Budesonide along with Loperamide to hopefully be able to make the long commute to work but I also want to help my gut heal with diet. So should I avoid dairy, soy and eggs? And chocolate and caffeine? And raw fruit and raw veggies? Yikes...maybe it's easier to ask for a list of what I can eat?

I am a little sad because the low carb South Beach Diet resolved my lipid issues allowing me to remain off statin drugs. It seems like I will have to go back to carbs to be able to eat something besides lean meats and fish?

TIA for any replies. :-)

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Thu May 12, 2016 11:17 pm

Welcome to our group (and yes it is an awesome forum)

there is no strict 'MC Safe' eating plan, as each person can have different triggers.

Majority of MC'ers avoid Gluten, Dairy, Eggs, Soy, and minimise sugar
when flaring avoid high fibre - salad, uncooked vegetables, fresh fruit.
avoid preservatives, additives, chemical sugars,

chocolate - high cocoa chocolate that is dairy free and soy free is ok for some ( others react)
caffine - again ok for some but not for others - listen to your body (i tolerate black coffee fine)
definately avoid raw veges and raw fruit - down the track quite a few can add back in certain salad ingredients

you can find 'safe carbs' with a MC eating plan.
we also recommend having moderate serves of animal fat (it is far healthier than vegetable sources both for MC and for good cholesterol)

read the posts (and subsequent discussions) aimed at new people, what to eat is frequently discussed...

minimising processed gluten free food items is also recommended - the flour blends cause issues for many.

hope this helps!
happy healing

Post by **tex** » Fri May 13, 2016 8:35 am

Hello Jumpindogs,

Welcome to our Internet family. There is a lot of evidence to suggest that celiac disease and microscopic colitis are not actually diseases. They both appear to be symptoms of another disease — gluten sensitivity.

Jumpindogs wrote:It seems like I will have to go back to carbs to be able to eat something besides lean meats and fish?

No! No! No! Going back to carbs is not a solution. Our ability to digest carbs is severely compromised when MC is active because we are unable to produce normal quantities of the enzymes needed to digest most carbs. The resulting partially-digested carbs/sugars invite opportunistic bacteria to ferment them, resulting in the production of gas, bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc.

As Gabes suggested, we have to minimize carbs and especially fiber, and stick with small to moderate servings of a few veggies that we can tolerate well, overcooked to make them more digestible. Contrary to USDA's misguided recommendations, the fewer grains humans eat, the better off (healthier) they are.

If you haven't already seen this, you can download some diet guidelines to help with food selection when designing a recovery diet from the Downloads page of the Microscopic Colitis Foundation website:

http://www.microscopiccolitisfoundation ... loads.html

Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.

Tex

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Fri May 13, 2016 12:41 pm

tex wrote:No! No! No! Going back to carbs is not a solution. Our ability to digest carbs is severely compromised when MC is active because we are unable to produce normal quantities of the enzymes needed to digest most carbs. The resulting partially-digested carbs/sugars invite opportunistic bacteria to ferment them, resulting in the production of gas, bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc.

OK. Good. I didn't wanna go there. But I am still confused because I read that rice or rice cakes is a good choice. Is that incorrect? If rice cakes are out and GF oatmeal is out what do people eat for breakfast?

And thanks for the link...that helps some. My grocery list is as follows. If you can see anything I should add please chime in. I don't cook much because I have pretty severe thumb arthritis and cutting/chopping/peeling.etc. is out of my comfort zone now. Even washing dishes is a challenge some days. Just had my left thumb joint replaced and the right is to follow eventually.

bananas
corn tortillas
almond butter
chicken breasts (not injected)
frozen veggies (plain, no seasonings or additives) - squash, carrots, sweet potatoes

May I ask why fish/seafood is not listed as an acceptable protein source? I am not sure about access to the novel meats listed. And what do you use to flavor your food? Oh my gosh, I can't imagine eating food without at least a little seasoning or GF sauce/condiment.

Post by **tex** » Fri May 13, 2016 1:05 pm

Protein + animal fat is always better than carbs, not only for healing, but for health in general. That said, rice is the grain that is the least likely to cause the average MC patient to react, so it is the safest grain we can choose (unless we have a verified sensitivity to it).

I eat bacon and eggs for breakfast, but some members are sensitive to eggs. About once each week or so, just for a change I'll make pancakes using King Arthur Gluten-Free Pancake Mix (using a safe oil instead of butter, and almond milk instead of cow's milk), and bacon of course. I use either pure maple syrup or something like blackberry jam on the pancakes.

While they are recovering, many people eat the same basic meals 3 to 5 times each day. When I was recovering, I avoided eggs for a while (as insurance) and I ate things such as sausage and hashbrowns for breakfast, or fried catfish and homemade French fries (because back then I didn't know which commercial fries might be safe for us).

I have a hunch that your arthritis will fade away as your gut heals. about 15–16 years ago I had to use a cane just to get around on many days. Some of my fingers were growing crooked and twisted, and the joints were swollen and inflamed. All that stopped when I changed my diet and my gut slowly healed. I still have the crooked fingers as souvenirs, but no more active arthritis.

Fish, shrimp, clams, etc. are good protein sources unless you happen to have to have histamine or mast cell issues (which many of us do). Salt is fine. I use garlic salt as my only seasoning and it works for almost everything (except for sweet foods, obviously). Don't use commercial sauces because most of them contain far too many ingredients to not contain something that will cause most of us to react. Simple and bland is what your recovery diet should be. Remember that recovery from MC is not a vacation spent at a luxury resort eating gourmet foods. Recovery is a tough, tricky journey, and it takes dedication and perseverance to get through it successfully. But the payoff is huge — we get our life back.

When we are in recovery, our food is our medicine, and it should be selected accordingly. We can pig out on seasonings later, after our gut has done some healing, and we are able to properly digest food again. Recover first, worry about nutrition and variety later. If we try to do it backwards or compromise on our diet, we may never recover.

Tex

jlbattin · Post by **jlbattin** » Fri May 13, 2016 2:28 pm

Welcome, Jump.........

I ate chicken and rice and 1 banana for several meals a day for 2 months (plus a little bone broth now and then). When I got some good healing under my belt, I was able to add back in a few things.

I eat sausage patties and a banana with either almond or cashew butter on it for breakfast. My body requires a lot of protein. For lunch, I eat turkey (either one I've cooked myself or Boar's Head gluten free deli meat) and guacamole and a few corn tortilla chips. I can now eat ham, hamburger, and pork, so I rotate between those for dinner.

I can eat cooked broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots. I also can eat the yellow Yukon potatoes.

Those are the basics of my meals. I sometimes throw in some of my sometime foods. It takes some time to figure out what we can and can't eat. Be patient and read everything on here. There's a wealth of great info on here. Tex's book (upper corner) is also a great book.

Welcome to our family!

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Fri May 13, 2016 7:32 pm

tex wrote:Protein + animal fat is always better than carbs, not only for healing, but for health in general. That said, rice is the grain that is the least likely to cause the average MC patient to react, so it is the safest grain we can choose (unless we have a verified sensitivity to it).

I eat bacon and eggs for breakfast, but some members are sensitive to eggs. About once each week or so, just for a change I'll make pancakes using King Arthur Gluten-Free Pancake Mix (using a safe oil instead of butter, and almond milk instead of cow's milk), and bacon of course. I use either pure maple syrup or something like blackberry jam on the pancakes.

While they are recovering, many people eat the same basic meals 3 to 5 times each day. When I was recovering, I avoided eggs for a while (as insurance) and I ate things such as sausage and hashbrowns for breakfast, or fried catfish and homemade French fries (because back then I didn't know which commercial fries might be safe for us).

I have a hunch that your arthritis will fade away as your gut heals. about 15–16 years ago I had to use a cane just to get around on many days. Some of my fingers were growing crooked and twisted, and the joints were swollen and inflamed. All that stopped when I changed my diet and my gut slowly healed. I still have the crooked fingers as souvenirs, but no more active arthritis.

Fish, shrimp, clams, etc. are good protein sources unless you happen to have to have histamine or mast cell issues (which many of us do). Salt is fine. I use garlic salt as my only seasoning and it works for almost everything (except for sweet foods, obviously). Don't use commercial sauces because most of them contain far too many ingredients to not contain something that will cause most of us to react. Simple and bland is what your recovery diet should be. Remember that recovery from MC is not a vacation spent at a luxury resort eating gourmet foods. Recovery is a tough, tricky journey, and it takes dedication and perseverance to get through it successfully. But the payoff is huge — we get our life back.

When we are in recovery, our food is our medicine, and it should be selected accordingly. We can pig out on seasonings later, after our gut has done some healing, and we are able to properly digest food again. Recover first, worry about nutrition and variety later. If we try to do it backwards or compromise on our diet, we may never recover.

Tex

Tex...thanks so much for the explanation. My nerd brain is looking for a specific recovery plan to follow and I am starting to see that there are variations even to that recovery plan.

Sausage and hashbrowns for breakfast? I would adore that! But that is sort of representative of where I get confused...I assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that sausage would be considered a prepared food and spicy with too many ingredients. Which brand did you use?

Losing the arthritis would be extremely cool. But if I had a choice I'd keep that and stop pooping my pants. :D So glad your arthritis resolved. :-)

Thanks on the garlic salt...that will be a great help.

I am both IgA and IgE deficient so I may not have a histamine issue. I've never had allergies. I know IgE is the major player in mast cell degranulation but I don't know if that's the only pathway. Maybe fish will be OK for me.

Hahaha! I've been eating GF since my CD diagnosis in the mid-80s when there were no GF foods available to speak of beyond rice crackers. My food life has never approached that "luxury resort eating gourmet foods" quality. :D Although our retirement destination of Sequim, WA has a fabulous GF restaurant, Nourish, that has made me feel quite pampered a few times.

I did look in my frig and pantry today after hours of reading on the forum then sat down and cried. Could not eat a darn thing in there.

jlbattin · Post by **jlbattin** » Fri May 13, 2016 7:37 pm

I buy the Jimmy Dean all natural sausage. I do great with it! I can find it at Costco in a 3 pound roll and fry it up and then freeze it and pull it out every morning.

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Fri May 13, 2016 7:47 pm

jlbattin wrote:Welcome, Jump.........

I ate chicken and rice and 1 banana for several meals a day for 2 months (plus a little bone broth now and then). When I got some good healing under my belt, I was able to add back in a few things.

I eat sausage patties and a banana with either almond or cashew butter on it for breakfast. My body requires a lot of protein. For lunch, I eat turkey (either one I've cooked myself or Boar's Head gluten free deli meat) and guacamole and a few corn tortilla chips. I can now eat ham, hamburger, and pork, so I rotate between those for dinner.

I can eat cooked broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots. I also can eat the yellow Yukon potatoes.

Those are the basics of my meals. I sometimes throw in some of my sometime foods. It takes some time to figure out what we can and can't eat. Be patient and read everything on here. There's a wealth of great info on here. Tex's book (upper corner) is also a great book.

Welcome to our family!

Thanks, Jari!

Your meal plan is simple but sounds very doable. I am a protein gal, too, so maybe that's why it appeals to me. I know we are all different and will have different sensitivities. But my brain keeps asking if I will eventually be able to eat stuff that I like. <sigh> Maybe because I've been on such a restricted diet for most of my life. I think I need a few days to wrap my head around this. It's been a little over 24 hours since my diagnosis and I'm prolly trying to cram too much information into too little time.

I did buy the Kindle version of Tex's book last night but for some reason it won't download. Gotta work on that.

I've been on many forums and I gotta say that this one is really stellar. So much information, so many kind and giving people. I am so thankful that I found you. Thank you again.

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Fri May 13, 2016 8:07 pm

It's been a little over 24 hours since my diagnosis and I'm prolly trying to cram too much information into too little time.

yes... time to get off the computer, stop reading and overthinking.

put some relaxing music on, and do some deep breathing.. calm the mind, and have faith that you are on the right path to wellness

the info on this forum will be there tomorrow and the next day. this group of wonderful supportive people arent going away...

there is plenty of time...

Post by **tex** » Fri May 13, 2016 8:23 pm

Jumpindogs wrote:I assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that sausage would be considered a prepared food and spicy with too many ingredients. Which brand did you use?

I have my sausage custom made at one of the few surviving small town butchers. It has only pork (not too fat, not too lean), salt, and a slight amount of black pepper. It's delicious. But I believe that someone else (in addition to Jari) has mentioned Jimmy Dean sausage, so it must be good stuff.

I believe you are very likely correct about not being likely to have mast cell issues, because of your IgE deficiency. Fresh fish is key, especially for those who have histamine issues, because histamine continues to increase in certain foods (such as fish and chicken) at normal refrigeration temperatures. That's why most of us cook batches, divide them into serving-size containers and freeze them until needed.

All of us have thrown away a lot of food that we thought we could eat and found out we couldn't. And many a member has cried while walking the aisles of their favorite grocery store searching for something safe to eat. MC is a cruel teacher, and also a very strict one but she forces us to be good students, and most of us end up with a much healthier diet as a reward of sorts. I'm sure you felt empowered after you conquered celiac disease, but you will probably feel much more empowered after you conquer MC.

Tex

Post by **tex** » Fri May 13, 2016 8:35 pm

Jumpindogs wrote:I did buy the Kindle version of Tex's book last night but for some reason it won't download. Gotta work on that.

If you have trouble getting the download to work, or if you just want an alternative digital version (or if you're tired of fiddling with Amazon trying to get the file to download), I'll be happy to send you (attached to an email) any digital version you want (that is, it will be formatted to work on the digital device of your choice). Or I can send you a PDF version that you can read on any PC or MAC, or most digital devices (as long as they have a PDF reader, and most of them probably do these days). Or I would be happy to send you a printed version, if you prefer. Just let me know.

Tex

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Sat May 14, 2016 7:44 am

jlbattin wrote:I buy the Jimmy Dean all natural sausage. I do great with it! I can find it at Costco in a 3 pound roll and fry it up and then freeze it and pull it out every morning.

Thanks! My goal is chicken and potato in olive oil with garlic salt and pepper, banana and tea/water for the first two weeks but it's a relief to know that there is something tasty that I might be able to fall back on.

I need to find some clean hash browns too.

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Sat May 14, 2016 7:46 am

tex wrote:
Jumpindogs wrote:I did buy the Kindle version of Tex's book last night but for some reason it won't download. Gotta work on that.
If you have trouble getting the download to work, or if you just want an alternative digital version (or if you're tired of fiddling with Amazon trying to get the file to download), I'll be happy to send you (attached to an email) any digital version you want (that is, it will be formatted to work on the digital device of your choice). Or I can send you a PDF version that you can read on any PC or MAC, or most digital devices (as long as they have a PDF reader, and most of them probably do these days). Or I would be happy to send you a printed version, if you prefer. Just let me know.

Tex

Tex...you are an angel. :-) The download finally worked last night and I dove right in. Thank you so much for writing this book!

Jumpindogs · Post by **Jumpindogs** » Sat May 14, 2016 8:08 am

Gabes-Apg wrote:
It's been a little over 24 hours since my diagnosis and I'm prolly trying to cram too much information into too little time.
yes... time to get off the computer, stop reading and overthinking.

put some relaxing music on, and do some deep breathing.. calm the mind, and have faith that you are on the right path to wellness

the info on this forum will be there tomorrow and the next day. this group of wonderful supportive people arent going away...

there is plenty of time...

Thanks for the great advice, Gabes. :-)