Hi Everyone,

Consultant tells my Son that no food in particular is known to make the Crohns worse, but to stay off spicy or fatty foods too often.

Callum finds that Marmite (one of his passions!) makes him worse, as does, and wait for it ... milk chocolate or dark chocolate! White chocolate is fine.

Does anyone else know that they need to stay off certain things? I know some people say dairy products.

Thanks,
Lynn x

Hi Lynne,
We were told by our consultant that dietry aspects were not relevant to my sons crohns. We couldn't quite believe this so went to see a nutritionalist. She commenced Joe on a very strict organic diet , wheat and dairy free, no additives or sugars. It was very difficult for Joe psychologically and really was an emotional challenge. Because of this we had to take him off it after 6 weeks. I have to say I'm not sure if it did make a difference. We still experienced the same degree of symptoms.
We find now that there seems to be no pattern as to when he becomes poorly. He can have a really good healthy diet and the crohns will become worse. I have never seen his symptoms go. However we have stuck with linseeds which seems to be brilliant for him. We also give omega 3,5,and 6, multi vits and cheated calcuim as the absorbtion is (according to the nutritionalist) is much better. He also has natural yogurt. He also has a variety of nutritional substances which were advised by the nutritionalist which I am happy to give.... I'll try anything...Not that the medics agree, it's difficult to get the balance right.
Don't know if that helps or not?
Best wishes
Lisa

With me its,too much white bread,pastry,pork,spicey foods,lettuce, and fizzy drinks.

Hi,

For Ben, it's not obvious either, but coke definitely doen't help. He also seems to get a craving for milk when he's starting to get worse, not sure why, maybe it's to do with losing nutrients or something.

Lisa, what's cheated calcium? maybe this would help Ben.

Mary.

Hi Mary
Chelated calcium is just another form of calcium. Just realised I spelt it wrong earlier. Joe was fed up with the children's one and we had to watch him or he would hide it and refuse it.. The hospital would only prescribe chewable. So we discussed this with the nutritionalist. She said that the chelated was better absorbed as the one prescribed by the NHS is a cheaper product. It comes in a capsule.
I have to say the hospital dietician hadn't heard of it and was not sure. However my view is that it if Joe refuses stuff it won't be absorbed! This stuff he is happy to take. It is made by Vega and can be found in the nutri centre.
May not be right for every one but I am willing to try ANYTHING!!!!!!....well perhaps almost within reason...
Lisa

hi, am lactose intolerant so dairy products out anyway but can tolerate small amounts of mature cheddar and have been told gruyere is almost lactose free, so is tolerated , i say this as a lot of crohns paitents are without knowing, lettuce and pastry are deff no-no's, anything spicy or fatty but thats coz ive got gallstones (this happens a lot usually coz weightloss is rapid )I'm having vit b injections every 3 months plus folic acid daily yes must admit chewable calciun no different to eating school chalk and u look like u frothing at mouth (rabies lol) food is bland and boring i know but u can make alternatives at home ie pizza , , fishcakes,potato wedges instead of chips . there is a fat free fryer available on the market by tefal its expensive but  everything is less than 3% fat and that really helps take care x  

Foods that upset me during the day are peppers (any colour), tomatoes, anything wheat based, onions, sometimes cheese (especially smoked/mature versions).  I can eat them at night with mixed success, I generally don't react to small quantities but it varies.

Trigger foods.  By CCFA, that means a food item that produces more flare like problems.  Something that may produce a blockage or increase diarrhea or constipation. Something that generally makes you yucky!   Most common trigger foods are red meat, dairy, poultry dark meat or skin, fried foods, coconut milk, butter, fats, coffee, caffeine, alcohol, carbonated beverages, artifical sweetners, and high insoluble fiber foods.

I believe that we become accustom to our geographical location.  For instance, I'm in the Southwestern part of the United States and have grown up eating pinto beans, green chile peppers, flour tortillas and other mexican spices.  As a matter of fact, when I would have an uncontrolable amount of diarrhea, the pinto beans actually calmed my tummy.   But, if I were to go to UK and eat something unusual, it would probably get me!

So much for the old saying, "To each his own".  That means to me, whatever you can eat in your normal diet and you know it doesn't bother your symptoms, go for it.  Stay completely away from the things that do bother you.  After a period of time, I think we've all cheated enough in the food area to pretty much know what takes us over the edge.   I cheat with carbonated beverages.  (sodas, coke, dr pepper)  I KNOW that when I drink one of these that I WILL have a good bout of diarrhea the next day, regardless of the amount of imodium I take to stop it the next day.  But, I live with my choice at the time.   If I'm going to be out of town or a church function, there's no way that I'll put myself in that position.  The acid in the soda added to my acidic bowel is an explosion of the worst kind.  ha

Sorry that I ranted so long with this post.  I just found it interesting.   CP

A diet that is suitable for managing Crohn's may not be a diet that will be suitable when there is a stricture to complicate things.  

I kept my symptoms fairly well uinder control for 30 years on a strict gluten-free, dairy free diet, with no fizzy drinks and no alcohol.  It was an easy diet to follow, as there are so many substitutes available, so I was never tempted to 'cheat'. I used to have occasional flares of inflammation and fever, but they were related to my stressful job, and were shortlived, no more than a week.

But since developing the partial obstruction in my small bowel (which may be a stricture) I have had to change my diet radically, and am now on a low residue, low fat diet to prevent blockages. This means no cereals at all, and restricted vegetables.  While this is good news for the small bowel it is not such good news for the large bowel, as there is a risk of becoming constipated (for the first time in my life!)
on such a low fibre diet.  The only way I have found of dealing with this is to eat a lot of prunes. Being high in soluble fibre, they break down into a kind of soft jelly-like substance in the gut, so easier to get through the small bowel than insoluble fibre..

Quoted from chilledminx

A diet that is suitable for managing Crohn's may not be a diet that will be suitable when there is a stricture to complicate things.  

I kept my symptoms fairly well uinder control for 30 years on a strict gluten-free, dairy free diet, with no fizzy drinks and no alcohol.  It was an easy diet to follow, as there are so many substitutes available, so I was never tempted to 'cheat'. ..

Very good point.  What works for you may not be working for someone else.  Fortunately, I don't have to stay on a gluten free diet for my body to respond positively.  My physicians always said that I will naturally come to know what bothers me and what doesn't, especially after 33 years.  

The 'cheat' with the soda's are not a because I crave them, or that my body needs them.  It's just that when I'm having pizza with my kids, grandchildren and friends, it just tastes better to enjoy an icey, cold coke with it.  ha.  

Also, if I ate prunes, I'd be clean and ready for a colonoscopy the next day!  

Quoted from crohnsproof

.......when I'm having pizza with my kids, grandchildren and friends, it just tastes better to enjoy an icey, cold coke with it

Wow ! You are very lucky you can eat pizza and drink coke!  
I have not eaten any fast food or drunk coke since I was a teenager, so I can barely remember what it was like, it was so long ago!

You betcha I am!   But, I have had my share of very bad trouble of the past 33 years.  So, maybe I'm getting a little reprive!  

cows milk gives me diarrhoea as does tesco cheese and tango or any fizzy orange drink. sharon xx

Hi,

I have had crohns disease for 5 years.  I have been a vegan for over 12 years, but believe my problems started years ago because of dairy products.  It is not natural for tiny human babies to be given the milk from a huge creature like a cow.  Cows stomachs are designed totally different from human stomachs and so I believe that human babies with sensitive tummies who are given the milk from a cow (which is designed to make small cows grow into big strong cows) is totally wrong.  Lots of people think that crohns is linked to dairy products, and so my advice would be to cut out all dairy products.  Not only is it wrong and unfair of us to abuse the animals by taking the milk, but it is totally not designed for us.

I hope this helps.

I have a intolerance to cows milk, and everything dairy, and ive found that diary makes me worse, although i have test and they all come back negative, i still choose to be dairy free, also i have a daughter thats now 12, but when she was born she was born lactose intolerent, shes alot better now with it, but she has what i believe may be the start of this dreadful disease that we all have, im keeping my fingers crossed. But im not daft xxxsuexxx

Hi, I really can't tolerate cows milk, although can get away with goats milk, also I do a low residue diet which helps me loads. Bev x

Milk chocolate, fried food, and beer!!

Lots to be said about cow's milk, and if it is the culprit then it's no wonder I have Crohn's, it's my healing 'food', my starter, my pudding, my favourite food of all time, I would be absolutely deverstated if I had to give it up, however giving up alcohol (cold cider with Ice) was bad enough.  For years I've had problems with fruit, but not sure if that was because I had strictures (now removed) or whether fruit caused the flare up in the first place.  It would be good to be able to do an exclusion diet, although Ive read it's tough, but it would resolve a lot of the problems.

I can have cows milk and dairy products as long as not too much but I can't have anything to do with onions and I didn't realise until I found it was my trigger that so many products had onion or onion powder in them. I also can't tollerate peppers, cucumber, fizzy drinks and fried foods. I find it very difficult when we go out to eat because I can get extreme pain from food that has been prepared on the same surface as onion. Two years on from diagnoses I am still finding things that cause pain but I am also finding that some things that caused pain originally, like bananas, I can now eat. It doesn't really make sense to me!

Milk bothers me, any kind of salad, fried foods and chocolate... oh and alcohol, before crohns I loved Bacardi but can't touch it now!

I find that pasta, fizzy juice, spicy food, dairy products and greasy foods all have a reaction with me! Also, when i have a flare up, ive been told not to eat too much high fibre foods

Oh and alcohol as well, and apparently smoking worsens it...but ive got to have something i enjoy!

There's quite a few foods that make me ill:

Cheese, Ice cream, Milk (although i can drink small quantities in tea), pretty much dairy in general.
Pizza (Though that's probably because of the cheese)
Garlic Bread
Peanut butter (So gutted with this one- i love p.b on toast)
Chips
Anything cooked in trans fats
Nuts
Jelly sweets like haribo
Nacho Chips, Crisps,
Onions
Lager

Hi,

I've completely given up yoghurts and alcohol otherwise im on the toilet all day! They're the 2 main ones.

Foods that cause me pain are dairy products (except cheese which i can eat as much of as i want), pastry products, fruit and veg, anything sugary like sweets and chocolate and coca cola and anything fried.

To be honest there aren't many foods i find i can have without pain but those are the main things i do try to avoid!

Hi, I read a lot of people suffer when they eat dairy, I really don't have this problem, but I can't eat fibre. I went to see my consultant one day and he told me I would feel really unwell if I ate any fibre. As we all know food affects people in different ways (eat something one day it's fine eat it the next and it's several trips to the toilet), so I decided (silly me) to ignore this I really do need fibre in my diet, so I had cauliflower oh dear I was in agony, never again. Now I still try and get a bit of fibre but I really do limit how much I eat, but I do love my veg and can't do without completely, my body does need it,but as a rule I do stick to no fibre. I also find alcohol and red meat don't suit me. I truly believe in my case that I should eat what I want, not constantly but sometimes because I can ( back to that good one day and not the next ) but definately no more cauliflower. take care x

Hi, 11 years ago I was diagnosed with Crohn's and spent the next 3 years virtually housebound, I know you don't need me to go into the details. By process of elimination and a lot of luck I discovered my trigger and have had the Crohn's totally under control since, that's 8 years. My trigger is YEAST, that's anything with yeast, or yeast extract in it I will list examples below as some foods containing yeast are not obvious. On the rare occasions that I may accidentally consume yeast I simply eat a load of yoghurt (a natural yeast killer) and am back to normal in a few days.

So some of the things containing yeast and so to avoid are:-

Bread (only exception Tortillas though best to check the ingredients)
Beer & Wine (in fact any alcohol that is not distilled, spirits are ok)
Mushrooms and fungi
Pizza
Some processed foods
Gravy granules (certain brands)

I always check the ingredients of any processed foods, for example tins and ready meals as a surprising number contain yeast extract. Also the ingredients vary from time to time and brand to brand.

These are just a few, over time I have developed an instinct for what to check.

As I said before I have now been Crohn's free for 8 years.

I really miss Beer and Pizza but it's just not worth the cost.

I hope this is of use to someone.

YEAST = BAD
YOGHURT =GOOD