Ulcerative colitis newly diagnosed what about diet?

Digestive health
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Hi, so this question has probably been asked about 4million times but... i've just been diagnosed with UC and am currently going through quite a nasty flare that has been going on for about 5 weeks. I really want to look at my diet rather than just relying on meds and have been reading up about low residue diets. I'm a bit of a health nut and a fruit fly, i have spent years drumming it into myself that whole grains are best low fat etc. this diet seems like almost a total turn around.

Really my question is, does anyone do this kind of diet and if so how do you fit it with normal life? at the moment im seeing a stretch of mashed potato and plain white rice ahead of me. Can anyone recommend somewhere where i can go for recipes or ideas. i'm totally confused by the whole thing! for example- if i want yogurt, do i go for low fat to keep a low fat diet or do i go for full fat in order to avoid sweeteners? i currently have a cupboard stuffed with lentils, brown rice and chickpeas- can i assume that i need to stay away from these for now?

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you need to find out what works for you i sufferd bad for 2 years until i found out what to avoid, alcohol, caffine, dairy, carbon pop, high fibre foods beans nuts fatty fast foods chocolate, i now live on low fibre diet white bread fish rice pasta and complan shakes made with water and i now have no symptoms at all i believe its the complan it has all the vitams ppl recomend to take worked for me

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Hi, thanks for that- how about fruit amd veg? I feel like I've been walking around with a burning stone in my belly for weeks and starting to experience quite a lot of pain

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yeah i avoid anything with a skin as its high fibre also i avoid sweet corn i use to stave myself to feel better now with complan i dont have to i now also have loads of energy i use to sleep 9 hours per night then 2 afternoon just have the norm 8 now

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Hmmm- this is going to be difficult isnt it?

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with me it was bloating and feeling sick all the time aswell as 24 bloody mucas toilet trips per day im now 3 per day keep diary of what you eat and how it afects you next day so can avoid if it dont agree with you took me two years to get it under control and its only due to dental work i had to use complan because i couldnt open my jaw for 8 days and discoverd my uc was not bothering me when i started eating again it all retured so i went back on the complan and went to see the surgon he agree if it works containue with it

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Ok great thanks. I dont even know where to start about trying to think of things to eat even tomorrow- where do you start with this kind of overhaul?

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yeap i know you can read for days what to avoid what you should be taking what works for others may not work for you iv tried them all io can tell you my diet for tomorrow but it may not work for you

breakfast slice of toasted white bread with complane shake 300ml water + my oral mezzaline meds

1030 complan shake 300ml water

dinner x2 small warbutons thins with tuna

2pm complan shake 300ml water

tea pasta with turkey mince bland tomato pasta sauce

7 pm tick tock tea high in anti-oxidents with plain rich tea biscuits

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iv kept to a very similar diet every day since feburary and had no symptoms iv never fet better at christmas there i was ill and noticed just by cutting out alchol i was down to 12 toilet trips aday and didnt feel as ill

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Thanks for that! That is actually quite helpful. I was thinking I might just eat some very blamd food for the next few days, porridge for breakfast (is porridge ok?!) Mash and tinned spaghetti for lunch and pasta for dinner with passata and see if everything calms down a bit.

at the moment I eat a lot of fruit and wholewheat pasta and rice. If I can still eat veg then im going to try cooking broccoli really well and see how that goes

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yeah im ok with steamed veg its fresh with skins i avoid wholewheat pasta, porridge, salad and beef meat makes me ill what are your symptoms

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[PDF]

Low fibre diet - Guy's and St Thomas'

http://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/resources/patient-information/nutrition-and-dietetics/low-fibre-diet.pdf - Similar to Low fibre diet - Guy's and St Thomas'

Low fibre diet. This information has been given to you to help answer some of the questions you may have about following a low fibre diet.

Emis Moderator comment: I changed the link above as the one posted did not work. If this is incorrect post a reply in this discussion and I can change it.

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I've been suffering with what has been loosely diagnosed as IBS for about three/four years now- terrible stomach cramps, bouts of diarrhoea, once for ten weeks solidly going about ten times a day, constipation for about four weeks- only relieved with 8 satches of movicol in one go. For about five/six weeks now I've had diarrhoea going lots of times a day with loads of blood. Really bad bloating and feeling uncomfortable all the time. I feel sick a lot of the time too. The amount of blood is so much now. Luckily I work from home so have avoided a lot of bad situations with this. But cant go out much etc. Have been trying to eat as healthy as possible to try and heal myself but it looks like I've actually been making it worse. I was so glad they found it when they did the flexi, I feel like I actually have an answer now

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I also find it interesting that I take 200mg of ciclosporin for a skin condition and I still have this so badly as its meant to be one of the treatments for this

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I am not a doctor but I have been almost completely symptom free for several years with diet alone.

You should eliminate certain foods for about 3 weeks and then gradually add them back and wait and see

how your body reacts. If you get a stomach ache, acid or indigestion then you know you need to eliminate

that food. For me, I am allergic to eggs and preservatives. So I eat no microwave meals prepackaged dinners. I cook fresh. I will use frozen vegetables, but not anything with sauces. I use

some canned products, but have through trial and error found what works for me. If it gives me indigestion I either have eliminated it completely or eat them rarely. It is about your being in control. Recently I saw a PBS show about the Virgin Diet, by a nutritionist named JJ Virgin. Her findings were supportive of my own experience. Below is a listing of the foods she felt should be eliminated from your diet for 21 days and then slowly reintroduced to see how your body will react. For myself I went to a diet of broiled fish and fresh

vegetables only. At the end of two week, my colonoscopy revealed the remnants of ulceration that was

healed. The items listed are some that most people have some allergy to based on her research

as a nutritionist.

1. Sugar/artificial sweeteners - Any food with a high sugar content will give me an acidy stomach. So you

should avoid sugary foods. I can eat cake, but make it from scratch. Cake mixes are too high in sugar. Watch the your food packages for the sugar content. Also remember artificial sweeteners are equally bad.

I use Stevia. It works great. I still use real sugar in baking and cooking, but I just minimize the amount of

that.

2. Corn - corn has been so genetically altered it no longer has the value it used to. It is high in sugar and

inflammatory. High fructose corn syrup is very bad for you as your liver will store it as fat.

3. Soy - This sounds crazy because so many people use this in place of milk and as a good source of

protein, but also genetrically altered and full of pesticides and affects your thyroid. Use almond milk instead.

4. Gluten - It releases a protein that has an affect on your intestine causing the junction points to loosen

and food particles will pass through causing inflammation. For me I do not have an strong issue

with gluten so I still occasionally eat pasta, but I have to only eat fresh baked breads because of the

preservatives. I do try to minimize the amount of gluten products I eat in a the day.

5. Dairy - Again a lot of people have dairy allergies and don't realize it. Until you eliminate it you won't

know. I limit my dairy, but do not eliminate it. If you have acne, dairy may be why.

6. Eggs - this was a shock for me. I am sooooo allergic to eggs. Boiled, fried, deviled eggs, quiche, does not matter. I barely get it down and I have horrific indigestion. So have I given them up completely, no.

I eat them rarely, but know I will need to chew an antacid after.

7. Peanuts - Not really a nut but a legume. I have a mild allergy to peanuts, not like people that go into

shock, but with the right amount I will get bad heartburn. So I may grind them up as a light topping on

Thai food, but that's about it. Get your nuts from a tree.

I would also eliminate carbonated drinks. You do not need additional gas. I would also eliminate

processed deli meats. They are full of preservatives. Again once you have your

symptoms under control you can have some things like a soda, but not all day. Once your system has

calmed down you will find you can have an occasional egg, bagel, pizza or whatever you favorite is, just

not everyday and not so much of it. Listen to your body. It will tell you what it doesn't like. Listen to it and

adjust. It is a small price to pay to live comfortably and medication free.

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Thanks for that, thing is is that I stay away from all of that- eat fresh fruit and prebiotic yogurt every morning, never eat bread, will have stirfry/risotto for dinner, haven't felt like eating much so tend to just have roasted chickpeas, homemade chips made in the oven with no oil and melon. Use rice milk not dairy, avoid soy as its a huge irritant on my skin. I have a nut allergy, I drink tea in the morning but not all day and tend to drink just water all day, may occasionally have a diet coke. I never buy ready meals or eat pizza really, in a year of living in my flat I have ordered one takeaway. I dont have sugar or any biscuits, treats in the housr, no chocolate. If I want it I have to really want it, go out and buy one bar but never keep packets in the house. I stay away from refined carbs and eat dairy maybe a few times a week

I rarely eat meat either, its always fresh as I hate processed food. So I don't really know how I can improve on this.

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Low residue isn't difficult, just takes some getting used to, your cupboard of healthy food isn't that healthy for you, basically skins, seeds, pith, husks all need to be avoided, fibre should be drastically reduced, normal yoghurt should be fine, I believe that's always better than reduced fat but tons of sugar. You don't have to give up all veg, fibrous root veg aren't good but try Mediterranean type roast veg, then skins come off things like peppers easily. Or you can make soups and strain any fibrous parts out, then you are still getting goodness. Your doctor should be able to give you a list, if you have ever had a colonoscopy you may have got a list of foods to avoid in the days before your scope, it's pretty much the same. Water is always best to drink in general, you can get dehydrated easier with uc flare so drink plenty water. Low residue doesn't have to mean unhealthy rubbish. I was told the best way to think of it is fibre is like a brush that scrubs the colon clean but with UC sufferers that brush aggravates an already inflamed bowel, so low residue is more like a soft sponge clean!

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You may want to stay away from products with gluten. Just to note it is in a lot of items you would never

think like mouthwash.

Also what your eating seems really good, but just because it looks good there may still be something in it

that is irritating your system. I would eliminate everything but fresh steamed vegetables and maybe broiled fish. No meat. You could do a smoothie in the morning with frozen berries and rice or almond milk. Drink

lots of water.

But if your diet is that low in potential allergens and your symptoms to not improve, then yours may be

purely physical and not a direct response to your diet. In which case you need to make sure your doctor

just not just label you with something based on symptoms only and prescribe medication for something you

may not have. Have you had an MRI or something that might detect a real physical condition. I think I

would ask for that.

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Yep I've had a flexible sigmoidoscopy and had biopsies taken too so that's covered. I dunno, I might just do beige food for a bit and see how I go

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Hi Sage,sorry to hear you are suffering. I was diagnosed with uc a year ago and am still struggling with what I can and cannot eat. Certain medications seem to upset me too so as many others do,I try and keep a food diary. I think onions,sauces and processed foods upset me and I try not to have high fibre foods,sugar or crisps. Bleeding seems to be under control but I still get tummy cramps every few days. Tried Windeze last night but great urgency this am!!! So far I've found Solpedeine max the best for pain and/ or heat pad. Do you take anything for your pain?