IBS -What Can You Eat When You Can’t Eat Anything
What causes Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) attacks and what can you eat when you can’t eat anything? Stress can cause flares as you all know. But coming down with a cold or a virus, eating out in a restaurant, eating food at a friend’s home, or simply eating too much of a known trigger food can bring on an IBS attack.
What Can You Eat After An IBS Attack
After the attack passes, you are left wondering what food you dare to eat that won’t cause another attack. After the flare, clear liquids are safe, such as ginger tea, fennel tea, water, and flavored water that isn’t citrus based. Clear broth not made with garlic or onion is safe. Jell-O and flavor pops are also safe. But moving from a liquid to a solid food diet is very tricky when recovering from an attack.
When Can You Add More Solid Food?
After a bad IBS attack that caused stomach pain, chills, and even fainting in the bathroom, I would stick to all of the above for a day or two. I used to move on to the BRAT diet that most moms know to give their children when they have nausea or diarrhea. (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce and Toast.) However, now doctors are not so sure about using the BRAT. Because of this, I was mostly on my own trying to find safe food choices. Then I found the FODMAP App from Monash University and a list of insoluble fiber and soluble fiber on Heather Van Vorous’s helpforibs.com website. I then started eliminating high fodmap foods. (Low Fodmap Diet), and insoluble fiber.
What About a Low Fiber Diet?
After my diverticulitis attack my doctor said I had to stick with clear liquids for a few days and then follow a low fiber diet for 4 to 6 weeks while the colon healed. He gave me The Mayo Clinic Low Fiber Plan Since then I have used that plan after every bad attack because it is very restorative. I might not keep up the low fiber diet for 4 – 6 weeks, but I follow it until I feel ready to add other foods.
Caveats About Low Fiber Diet
A low fiber diet is not as healthy as a diet full of high fiber veggies and fruits, but it allows my gut to recover from a flare-up. Once I am without abdominal pain, chills or fainting, I will try adding foods that are more more healthy. As usual, it is a bit of a crap shoot. lol.
First, I follow Monash University FODMAP App and follow a list of insoluble and soluble fibers that I download from Heather Van Vorous’s website, helpforibs.com. I also follow her advice and recipes from her book, Eating For IBS. This means I eat bakery made sour dough bread or GF bread, white meat chicken and soluble fiber vegetables such as carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes and white rice.
I stick with mild spices and salt. I don’t use pepper. A splash of lemon, a teaspoon of butter or olive oil, a bit of flour (GF flour ) or cornstarch to thicken – that is all I use in gravies or sauces. I avoid tomato sauce or anything acidic and I follow this for a few weeks.
If all is still well with my colon and gut, I might start adding in homemade tomato sauce, made with imported Italian tomatoes or homegrown tomatoes.( no tomato paste and no heavy meats such as sausage, pork or ribs.) I stick with GF pasta I have tested for its gut safety for me. I am wary of bean or lentil based ingredients in the GF pasta flour, since beans and lentils cause colon issues. But I have had good experiences eating GF pasta made with rice and corn flour.
Adding High Fiber Veggies
I can rarely eat green vegetables such as broccoli, bok choy, spinach and lettuces. Occasionally, I opt for a small salad, but it never works out for me. Right away my gut is in distress and I am in the loo. I mostly stick with soluble fiber veggies because they don’t cause gut distress for me. I know how important it is to eat insoluble fiber foods because they are so good for us, but I find it difficult even when I cushion them with rice, pasta or potatoes.
Why to Keep Trying Insoluble Fiber Foods
Keep trying though because some of you may be able to tolerate insoluble fiber foods if you cushion them. Sadly, there is no formula that guarantees you can randomly tolerate insoluble fiber foods just because they are supposed to be healthy to eat. They are not easy to eat for IBS folks who suffer from colon issues, so always try just a little at first and eat with bread, rice, potatoes or pasta. Don’t experiment if you are in the middle of an IBS flare. I experiment if I have been free from flares for several weeks.
For me, taking Citrucel and a probiotic every day does keep my gut and colon from flaring and allows me to experiment a bit with insoluble fiber vegetables. Only you can know when is a good time to try and when it is not.
What About the Monash App?
The Monash App says insoluble fiber foods are safe from fodmaps, but they neglect to mention that insoluble fiber causes as much gut distress as fodmaps. That is why I use the App AND follow the list of insoluble and soluble fiber from Heather on the helpforibs,com website. Go there and download a copy. (They do not pay me to say this. lol.) You can also Google for lists of insoluble fiber.
What About Dairy?
Since I have lactose issues, I avoid dairy and eat lactose free yogurt (Fage Lactose Free Greek Yogurt) and lactose free milk. I also love alternative milk such as almond/coconut milk and use it as a substitute in everything. I can eat aged cheeses such as parmesan and cheddar because the lactose ages out of them, but I can’t eat creamy cheeses, even though the Monash App declares them fodmap safe, because of my lactose issue. Cheeses may not contain fodmaps, but they do contain lactose. However, long aged cheeses such as cheddar and Reggiano Parmigiana (parmesan) can be safe for some lactose intolerant IBS folk.
That is “what You Can Eat When You Can’t Eat Anything,” and I recommend it to anyone trying to avoid another hideous IBS flare. Even then, it is not a guarantee. Sometimes a restaurant will claim their dish is devoid of garlic, onion, dairy, but it is not true, and I pay the price of another IBS attack. I can’t completely control everything. But what I said above works for me for the most part. Some nutritionists recommend keeping a food diary, but I confess I never could remember to keep it up; however, it might be helpful for you.
My OTC Recommendations
I take Citrucel and a Philip’s Colon Probiotic every day. At the first sign of an IBS flare, I take GasX, which contains Simethicone, a gut soother. I also drink fennel tea or ginger tea. (I find fennel tea bags at helpforibs.com.)
All these things mentioned above allow me to live my life, work as a professor without having to go home ill, and for the most part, live flare free.
*** Please Note. I have had a diverticulitis attack and a gastritis attack, possibly caused by veering away from my usual IBS diet explained above. Alas, I am human and sometimes I am tempted out of my comfort zone. Sometimes I have to trust that a restaurant or hotel did not lie about their ingredients because that was all they had on their menu.
After my diverticulitis attack, my doctor would not allow me to take Citrucel for 4-6 weeks. It wreaked havoc with my IBS C., but once I was allowed to resume my Citrucel regimen, my colon was once again normalized. I highly recommend using Citrucel and a probiotic everyday. When I do, my IBS is almost totally controlled. Lastly, I try to carry safe snacks with me at all times. (gluten free pretzels, rice crispy bars, baked potato chips, carrot sticks, hard candies like lemon drops.)
Steps to Take Now
Although everyone’s body is different, IBS folk have many things in common. Everyone needs to find out their own particular triggers and tolerances. Do the Monash Fodmap testing, take a lactose test, and test yourself about which insoluble fiber vegetables cause distress. Also try cushioning insoluble fiber with rice, pasta or potatoes.
Having more knowledge about your tolerances definitely increases your chances of remaining IBS flare free. Even more important, the more you know about your tolerances, the more you can devise a safe diet plan.
Remain Aware of Your Food Choices
Do not think that you can take your chances and just eat what you want. For those with IBS, there are specific foods you must avoid. Find out what those foods are. If you don’t, how can you avoid the thing that caused your flare? As the Boy Scouts credo says, “Be prepared.”
***NOTE: I am not a medical person and my advice is based on my own experiences. I try to follow advice from the Mayo Clinic, WebMD, and information on the Monash FODMAP App. I mention it here as it might be helpful, but it is not a substitute for your own gastroenterologist, or urologist. IBS is a serious syndrome that you should not ignore. Find yourself a great doctor who is very knowledgeable about IBS before you commit to following his/her regimen.
