Hi Friends,
I have been researching info on fructose and fructans. Two of the problem foods in this group are onions and garlic. One source says that you can cook with whole onion and garlic if you take them out at the end. It also says that you can safely use onion and garlic powder when cooking. Does this sound reasonable to anyone? I am trying to figure out if I risk trying it.
Thanks.
Love, Cristi
fructose and fructans
Moderators: Rosie, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Hi Cristi,
I struggle with dietary fructose intolerance. This is more frustrating for me than gluten. There is no substitute for fruit. I found after my DX of DFI that all the sources give conflicting information. It seems there are varying degrees of DFI because some can tolerate a little bit of fructose whereas some cannot. I seem to be in the cannot catagory. I have even checked out a support group for hereditary fructose intolerance, HFI, something one would have since birth. That is not me, but I even seem to be more intolerant than they are. They can usually tolerate dextrose, I cannot. Some can tolerate quite a few vegetables and some have trouble with a only a few veggies. Some tolerate wheat and others do not.
I recently received an IgG standard food panel test result which I know Tex doesn't think is reliable but I feel desperate. It said all was ok except eggs and garlic, eggs in the moderate range and garlic in the high range. I've been eating a lot of eggs so now I have eliminated them and of course garlic. I have wondered about onion too and even though the IgG test said it was ok I have eliminated it too for now.
Have your pains improved at all? I think about you.
Pat
I struggle with dietary fructose intolerance. This is more frustrating for me than gluten. There is no substitute for fruit. I found after my DX of DFI that all the sources give conflicting information. It seems there are varying degrees of DFI because some can tolerate a little bit of fructose whereas some cannot. I seem to be in the cannot catagory. I have even checked out a support group for hereditary fructose intolerance, HFI, something one would have since birth. That is not me, but I even seem to be more intolerant than they are. They can usually tolerate dextrose, I cannot. Some can tolerate quite a few vegetables and some have trouble with a only a few veggies. Some tolerate wheat and others do not.
I recently received an IgG standard food panel test result which I know Tex doesn't think is reliable but I feel desperate. It said all was ok except eggs and garlic, eggs in the moderate range and garlic in the high range. I've been eating a lot of eggs so now I have eliminated them and of course garlic. I have wondered about onion too and even though the IgG test said it was ok I have eliminated it too for now.
Have your pains improved at all? I think about you.
Pat
Hi Pat,
I have been eating nothing but rice, meat and buckwheat for the last few days and the pain is greatly reduced....so it must be food related. I was already on a restricted diet before. When I reduced the fructose I upped the pumpkin and walnuts (in muffins) which I had been eating in small amounts before. I had horrible cramps then so I eliminated them and the pain is better. So, these are histamine foods...so I am going in that direction now. So frustrating as you are all too aware. When so many foods are a problem I wonder if what Tex did is the answer....an extremely restricted diet for a year. I am also hopeful about the ketotifen. I will let you know how I do on it.
Love,
Cristi
I have been eating nothing but rice, meat and buckwheat for the last few days and the pain is greatly reduced....so it must be food related. I was already on a restricted diet before. When I reduced the fructose I upped the pumpkin and walnuts (in muffins) which I had been eating in small amounts before. I had horrible cramps then so I eliminated them and the pain is better. So, these are histamine foods...so I am going in that direction now. So frustrating as you are all too aware. When so many foods are a problem I wonder if what Tex did is the answer....an extremely restricted diet for a year. I am also hopeful about the ketotifen. I will let you know how I do on it.
Love,
Cristi
Cristi,
I am really curious about this med. Anything that might help. Are you taking any supplements? Vitamins, etc. Do you really think you could stay on rice, meat and buckwheat for a year? Just to get detailed here - what kind of meats and buckwheat and for that matter rice are you eating?
Where did you hear of this med and what exactly is it supposed to do. Did your doctor prescribe it?
Pat
I am really curious about this med. Anything that might help. Are you taking any supplements? Vitamins, etc. Do you really think you could stay on rice, meat and buckwheat for a year? Just to get detailed here - what kind of meats and buckwheat and for that matter rice are you eating?
Where did you hear of this med and what exactly is it supposed to do. Did your doctor prescribe it?
Pat
Cristi,
I'm glad to see that you're feeling better. The question you asked, (about the garlic and onion), is a good one, and I really don't know how to answer. Since you mentioned my restrictive diet, maybe I should point out that I started a food diary, and couldn't see any clues in it. After about 5 weeks, I dropped gluten from my diet, and never intentionally ingested any more of it after that date, (August 31, 2002). I floundered around for over a year, repeatedly "testing" various foods, and studying that diary, and while I could see a "possible" connection for my reactions, with certain foods, (such as dairy, corn, lettuce, onions, etc.), I could never see a clearcut "smoking gun", so to speak, because I didn't seem to always react consistently, in a clear cause-effect pattern, (at least I couldn't detect it, if it is there). Onions, for example, sometimes seemed to bother me, and at other times, I couldn't see a connection. Finally, after being GF for a year and a half, I decided to just cut out everything that was under suspicion, (basically, dairy, corn, soy, fruit and most vegetables, nuts, and all forms of sugar, except for maple sugar), and I lived on meat, (mostly pork and chicken, because I reacted to beef), potatoes, rice, occasionally broccoli or green beans, tea, and Virgil's Rootbeer, (which was the only commercially bottled drink that I considered safe). In fact, the Virgil's Rootbeer was the only processed item that I ate or drank, because when I tried some of the commercial GF, DF, SF mixes for cookies, cakes, etc., I usually got sick. Once I made that drastic change in my diet, though, in less than two weeks, I was in remission.
After 6 or 8 months on that diet, I occasionally "tested" one or two of my favorite foods, (such as dairy or corn), but it was over a year before I could begin to tolerate small amounts of them, and then slowly build up my system's acceptance of them, until I could eventually eat as much as I wanted. I've never tried any gluten, of course, but I seem to be able to tolerate just about anything else, except that I still can't tolerate most nuts. They don't give me D, but they cause general GI distress. I had some tests done at Entoerolab, not quite 3 years after starting the GF diet, (IOW almost a year and a half after attaining remission), and the tests confirmed what I had suspected, I still had a little residual small intestinal damage, but I tested negative to egg, soy, and yeast. There was no way to test for gluten intolerance at that point, of course, but Dr. Fine commented that the residual intestinal damage was a pretty clear indication that I was indeed gluten intolerant, and I certainly believe him, since it's pretty obvious that something in my diet was making me sick, and gluten is basically the only thing that I haven't been able to add back into my diet, (though I do still "partially" react to beef and peanuts). It's interesting, though, that cutting out gluten alone, was not sufficient to achieve remission, so apparently, when the intestines are hypersensitive, they won't heal properly, (at least for some of us), unless various other "irritants" are removed from the diet, even though we may not actually be intolerant of them.
One other thing is worth noting: Of course we are virtually all lactose-intolerant, when we are reacting, because lactase production is severely restricted any time that the small intestine is experiencing any form of enteritis. It may go further than that, though, because by testing myself with lactose free products, I determined that I was indeed casein intolerant, just before I decided to make that drastic change in my diet. I wish I had known about Enterolab back in those days, because I have often wondered if I was truly casein-intolerant, or if something else was going on, (perhaps sugar intolerance confounded those tests), but alas, I didn't learn about Enterolab, until I found the old board, and started reading there.
Anyway, my point is that I really couldn't tell what I was doing, even with a food and reaction diary, (remember, I didn't discover the experts here, who were on Sally's old board, at the time), until I had already achieved remission, so I had no guidance. Until I found them, I really thought that I was the only person in the world, who had this condition.
Obviously, I totally wrong about that. 
Love,
Tex
I'm glad to see that you're feeling better. The question you asked, (about the garlic and onion), is a good one, and I really don't know how to answer. Since you mentioned my restrictive diet, maybe I should point out that I started a food diary, and couldn't see any clues in it. After about 5 weeks, I dropped gluten from my diet, and never intentionally ingested any more of it after that date, (August 31, 2002). I floundered around for over a year, repeatedly "testing" various foods, and studying that diary, and while I could see a "possible" connection for my reactions, with certain foods, (such as dairy, corn, lettuce, onions, etc.), I could never see a clearcut "smoking gun", so to speak, because I didn't seem to always react consistently, in a clear cause-effect pattern, (at least I couldn't detect it, if it is there). Onions, for example, sometimes seemed to bother me, and at other times, I couldn't see a connection. Finally, after being GF for a year and a half, I decided to just cut out everything that was under suspicion, (basically, dairy, corn, soy, fruit and most vegetables, nuts, and all forms of sugar, except for maple sugar), and I lived on meat, (mostly pork and chicken, because I reacted to beef), potatoes, rice, occasionally broccoli or green beans, tea, and Virgil's Rootbeer, (which was the only commercially bottled drink that I considered safe). In fact, the Virgil's Rootbeer was the only processed item that I ate or drank, because when I tried some of the commercial GF, DF, SF mixes for cookies, cakes, etc., I usually got sick. Once I made that drastic change in my diet, though, in less than two weeks, I was in remission.
After 6 or 8 months on that diet, I occasionally "tested" one or two of my favorite foods, (such as dairy or corn), but it was over a year before I could begin to tolerate small amounts of them, and then slowly build up my system's acceptance of them, until I could eventually eat as much as I wanted. I've never tried any gluten, of course, but I seem to be able to tolerate just about anything else, except that I still can't tolerate most nuts. They don't give me D, but they cause general GI distress. I had some tests done at Entoerolab, not quite 3 years after starting the GF diet, (IOW almost a year and a half after attaining remission), and the tests confirmed what I had suspected, I still had a little residual small intestinal damage, but I tested negative to egg, soy, and yeast. There was no way to test for gluten intolerance at that point, of course, but Dr. Fine commented that the residual intestinal damage was a pretty clear indication that I was indeed gluten intolerant, and I certainly believe him, since it's pretty obvious that something in my diet was making me sick, and gluten is basically the only thing that I haven't been able to add back into my diet, (though I do still "partially" react to beef and peanuts). It's interesting, though, that cutting out gluten alone, was not sufficient to achieve remission, so apparently, when the intestines are hypersensitive, they won't heal properly, (at least for some of us), unless various other "irritants" are removed from the diet, even though we may not actually be intolerant of them.
One other thing is worth noting: Of course we are virtually all lactose-intolerant, when we are reacting, because lactase production is severely restricted any time that the small intestine is experiencing any form of enteritis. It may go further than that, though, because by testing myself with lactose free products, I determined that I was indeed casein intolerant, just before I decided to make that drastic change in my diet. I wish I had known about Enterolab back in those days, because I have often wondered if I was truly casein-intolerant, or if something else was going on, (perhaps sugar intolerance confounded those tests), but alas, I didn't learn about Enterolab, until I found the old board, and started reading there.
Anyway, my point is that I really couldn't tell what I was doing, even with a food and reaction diary, (remember, I didn't discover the experts here, who were on Sally's old board, at the time), until I had already achieved remission, so I had no guidance. Until I found them, I really thought that I was the only person in the world, who had this condition.
Obviously, I totally wrong about that. Love,
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 Pat,
I heard about it when I went to a compounding pharmacy in my area for some pancreatic enzymes. The pharmacist there is a Dr. Fine and enterolab fan and has been gf for years. I started telling him my story and then he shared his story. 10 years ago he was very healthy and could eat anything and then got the flu and, like us, everything changed. He had abdominal problems but mostly skin and joint issues that he says all originated with an inflamed gut. He eliminated foods that were causing him problems (gluten and nightshades) and took ketotifen for a year. He said he tried it after a lot of research. I guess trust people who have walked the same walk as us and have found relief....like Dr. Fine and this pharmacist. Plus, it's supposed to be safe for children and the only supposed side effect is drowsiness. So, I'm game to try it.
If it means no pain I will eat like that for a year as I don't know what else to do. For breakfast I eat pocono cream of buckwheat cereal with homemade rice milk ( 1 cup hot suchi rice plus 3 cups hot water in the blender for 3 min). For lunch and dinner I eat tinkyada rice pasta, brown rice and meat (buffalo, beef, pork, chicken or salmon). ...sometimes I add broccoli or cooked greens in small amounts. As a snack I eat homemade buckwheat muffins ...recipe in Dee's kitchen....but instead of banana I use grated carrots and sugar instead of maple syrup.
That's my diet...not much fun but doable. I tried Paleo for over a year with no success. Rice agrees with me. I take digestive enzymes, hcl and a multi from Freeda and a cal mag supplement. Just normal doses , nothing in high amounts. So there is no reason that I can control why I should still be sick , which is why I am going to try the ketotifen. I won't start for a week as I have to give a party for my parents 50th wedding anniversary and I can't be drowsy until that is over, but I'll let you know how I do with it.
Love, Cristi
I heard about it when I went to a compounding pharmacy in my area for some pancreatic enzymes. The pharmacist there is a Dr. Fine and enterolab fan and has been gf for years. I started telling him my story and then he shared his story. 10 years ago he was very healthy and could eat anything and then got the flu and, like us, everything changed. He had abdominal problems but mostly skin and joint issues that he says all originated with an inflamed gut. He eliminated foods that were causing him problems (gluten and nightshades) and took ketotifen for a year. He said he tried it after a lot of research. I guess trust people who have walked the same walk as us and have found relief....like Dr. Fine and this pharmacist. Plus, it's supposed to be safe for children and the only supposed side effect is drowsiness. So, I'm game to try it.
If it means no pain I will eat like that for a year as I don't know what else to do. For breakfast I eat pocono cream of buckwheat cereal with homemade rice milk ( 1 cup hot suchi rice plus 3 cups hot water in the blender for 3 min). For lunch and dinner I eat tinkyada rice pasta, brown rice and meat (buffalo, beef, pork, chicken or salmon). ...sometimes I add broccoli or cooked greens in small amounts. As a snack I eat homemade buckwheat muffins ...recipe in Dee's kitchen....but instead of banana I use grated carrots and sugar instead of maple syrup.
That's my diet...not much fun but doable. I tried Paleo for over a year with no success. Rice agrees with me. I take digestive enzymes, hcl and a multi from Freeda and a cal mag supplement. Just normal doses , nothing in high amounts. So there is no reason that I can control why I should still be sick , which is why I am going to try the ketotifen. I won't start for a week as I have to give a party for my parents 50th wedding anniversary and I can't be drowsy until that is over, but I'll let you know how I do with it.
Love, Cristi
Hi Tex,
I've kept a diary too with no clear cause and effect with regards to a specific food. The only relief I seem to get is when I eliminate a whole group.
I still get confused as to why mine is so difficult when my enterolab came back with no absorption problems found....while I was eating a lot and losing weight. The only thing I can come up with is that the parasites and the treatment to get rid of them has left me with a lot of damage that maybe wasn't there to begin with.
Except for the food allergies and pain, I am very strong now.......keeping weight on and have good stamina.....not like the walking dead I was the last few years and no D. Thanks for sharing how you got well. I can do that too if the meds don't help.
Love,
Cristi
I've kept a diary too with no clear cause and effect with regards to a specific food. The only relief I seem to get is when I eliminate a whole group.
I still get confused as to why mine is so difficult when my enterolab came back with no absorption problems found....while I was eating a lot and losing weight. The only thing I can come up with is that the parasites and the treatment to get rid of them has left me with a lot of damage that maybe wasn't there to begin with.
Except for the food allergies and pain, I am very strong now.......keeping weight on and have good stamina.....not like the walking dead I was the last few years and no D. Thanks for sharing how you got well. I can do that too if the meds don't help.
Love,
Cristi
Cristi,
Thanks for the info on your diet. We have a similar diet, but I haven't been eating the rice until just recently. I ran out of the buckwheat cereal and decided to chance it with rice. Then I added some brocolli, big mistake. I just can't handle brocolli for now. I don't think I could handle the carrot or sugar in the muffins but maybe later
I guess you use the millet called for in the muffins?
Walking Dead is exactly how I feel. I am ready for some energy!
Tex,
I am amazed at how you were able to figure out your diet and do it on your own. You obviously have a lot of perseverance and patience. Thanks for being here to help the rest of us!
Pat
Thanks for the info on your diet. We have a similar diet, but I haven't been eating the rice until just recently. I ran out of the buckwheat cereal and decided to chance it with rice. Then I added some brocolli, big mistake. I just can't handle brocolli for now. I don't think I could handle the carrot or sugar in the muffins but maybe later
I guess you use the millet called for in the muffins?Walking Dead is exactly how I feel. I am ready for some energy!
Tex,
I am amazed at how you were able to figure out your diet and do it on your own. You obviously have a lot of perseverance and patience. Thanks for being here to help the rest of us!
Pat
Cristi,
That is interesting about the slippery elm. I am so afraid to put anything else in my mouth right now. My doctor wants me to consider taking Quercetin and L-Arginine. They both sound interesting.
I think I am intolerant of pork. I looked at Dr. Fines list of 14 things to avoid and that is me except I cannot tolerate fruit or vegetables for now.
Pat
That is interesting about the slippery elm. I am so afraid to put anything else in my mouth right now. My doctor wants me to consider taking Quercetin and L-Arginine. They both sound interesting.
I think I am intolerant of pork. I looked at Dr. Fines list of 14 things to avoid and that is me except I cannot tolerate fruit or vegetables for now.
Pat
Pat wrote:I am amazed at how you were able to figure out your diet and do it on your own. You obviously have a lot of perseverance and patience. Thanks for being here to help the rest of us!
Pat, I appreciate your kind words, but remember that it took me a year and a half to even get to the point where it dawned on me that I needed to eliminate those other intolerances for the long term, and eliminate all of them at the same time. Up until then, I would eliminate one item, it would seem to help, then I would get sick again. I would add it back into my diet, and eliminate something else, with the same result, etc., etc. Even after I cut them all out, I was still dumb enough to start testing myself after about 6 or 8 months - way too soon, so obviously I was just learning by trial and error, and I didn't really know what I was doing. I suppose that I am sort of patient, though, because I never doubted that I needed to remain GF, even after a full year had passed, with no real sign of improvement. Of course, you have to remember that back in those days, I had never even heard of MC, and I just figured that I was a celiac, with some sort of weird complications.
It wasn't until I found the old board, and realized what I had, that I could even put a name to it. After that, though, I was able to think back to what I had learned during my colonoscopy, and my CAT scans, and everything matched.When I joined the old board, I intended to stick around for a week or two, and maybe pick up a few pointers, and move on. I found that I learned so much from the other members, though, that I just couldn't leave. Every day, I learned something new, and their support and understanding, was unlike anything I had ever seen on the internet, or in real life. I was hooked. Despite several truly miserable years, early on, my good fortune in stumbling upon the old board, and the wonderful people there, seemed better than finding an oasis in the desert, and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. In that sense, I consider my disease to be a blessing in disguise, because without it, I never would have become acquainted with all of the wonderful people that I have had the privilege of meeting on these boards. Everyone here is very special, and even those who only stick around for a short time, will never be forgotten.
By the way, thanks for reminding us of that list. I had forgotten about it, but it really is a good list to keep in mind, when we think we've tried everything, or we run out of ideas.
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 Courtney,
Here's a link to the list, and my post there contains a link to the source, in one of Dr. Fine's lectures:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=8324
Tex
Here's a link to the list, and my post there contains a link to the source, in one of Dr. Fine's lectures:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=8324
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.