Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group Diarrhea Monster

Hi Sue,

My docotor has always said cabbage is for pigs only. It is so gasey and impossible to digest. I would really give up slaw.

Janet

with my possibly neurogenic bowel problems, I have to be really careful that I don't go the diarrhoea end of the spectrum - hard is much easier to get rid of. So, if I find things getting loose or undigested for me the protocol is:

- first get rid of anything in my diet that has corn or cornstarch in as that always causes problems for me.
- then really reduce all other grains (except rice in small amounts) and things with too much fat in one go (small amounts of good fats are fine and necessary)
- make sure I thoroughly cook, to the point of overcooking, vegetables, and just eat pretty mushy stuff. Also avoiding things like tomato skins, or in fact any vege or fruit skin. That way I can tolerate most veg and a lot of fruit.
- I seldom give up dairy, though would have more yoghurt than milk (easier to digest)
- I seldom give up hot spicy foods (chilli, curries) - may sound weird, but actually I think the capsaicum is probably helpful for me, and my problems don't seem to be the kind of irritation that most folk find hot spicy food aggravates.
- also often my digestive problems resolve if I add more acid to my food (lemon juice drinks, balsamic vinegar on vegetables or salad, pickles) - though I'm sure this wouldn't work for your stomach Sue.

My strategy works for me for dealing with undigested food, but of course it may not work for other people or other causes.

I guess everyone needs to figure out what will work for their own body. I've had IBS most of my life - frequent diarrhea, gas, abdominal pain. I just lived with it.

But I started the autoimmune protocol of the Paleo diet on July 1st, and within a week my intestines cleared right up, and for the first time in my life I can go weeks without any problems. The only time I've flared up in the last 9 weeks was after I ate some off-plan food.

Hope you find out soon what works best for you!

I don't have any answers. I just wanted to tell you all how sorry I am you are having these problems. The different problems are never ending aren't they.

Just wanted to send my love and hugs. (and some psyllium)

Possi

Sue, I Googled the low residue diet. No cabage! Chicken is good, canned green beans, soups, jello, bananas, applesauce. No spices. Do you have a GI? Mine always puts me on pred. Pred will knock down a flare in about 3 days.

I hope you are feeling better. Since my GI put me on 6-MP, I rarely flare unless I pig out on fiber foods.

HI lon,

Hoping you are healing or healing soon. Make sure you have good doctors helping you. C diff is to be respected.

As for the hunger, when my gastritis used to flare, that made me so hungry, all that acid in there i think.

But now, no gastritis, not yet, hoping not later either. So for me, i'm hungry because i'm just not eating as much because there doesn't seem to be a lot i can eat. I am eating meats and rice and some other starches. But those starches aren't good for the metabolic syndrome. But I guess its treat one thing at a time, whichever is the bigger problem.

But I did go to the grocery store today and got a few things that i think i can eat. Hubby went yesterday for me, but i realized i needed more variety in my diet.

Saw a nice big beautiful butternut squash. I think i can make that into a soup with chicken broth, apple cider, apple, maybe onion. Then puree really well. I think i remember tolerating that well.

Also saw some pumpkin butter. I can have that with the cashew butter and ginger snaps and apple sauce.

I think i could make some mushroom risotto too. I'll just puree the mushrooms before i add them. cook the risotto with some chicken broth.

I'm gonna try pumpkin custard as well, made with nut "milk" and eggs.

I also bought some strawberry "popsicles" from Edy's. Mostly just natural juice, they were really soothing this afternoon.

I just feel like i need more fruits and veggies in my diet, but without the fiber.

HI donna,

thanks for responding.

no cabbage now. i'm afraid of green beans now, even canned ones, after the other day. but as i just posted, i think i remember doing pretty well with squashes so long as they are well cooked and mashed or pureed so that's what i'm trying. Squashes, yams, and well cooked broccoli should work for the veggies. Bought some pear nectar as the canned pears have been fine. lots of applesauce and chicken and chicken broth; they are my staples.

As for the pred, that's exactly what i would be doing if i hadn't just taken it last month for a conference / trip.

I have a very good gastroenterologist and just happen to have my 6 month appointment with him today. Last week we would have had little to talk about, except to schedule my annual gall bladder / liver Ultrasound. But today, we talked mostly about all of this.

He agrees with me that for now, if I can manage it with diet and psyllium or fibercon, an antispasmodic if i want to try it, then i should do that.

If not, it may be time to try the sulfasalazine. I asked if that would help the GI stuff too, and he said it should. I thought I had remembered that as one of the reasons the rheumy and i had thought maybe it should be the next thing i try.

well, we'll see how long this lasts and how bad it gets.

i am lucky that thus far in my life, as bad as it gets and i just have a bad bathroom experience in the morning and maybe also at night. and during the day i'm ok. maybe a bit queasy, but not in the bathroom at least.

but as we get older, things change, so we'll just have to see how things go.

so far my gastritis is not flaring, just my bowels. hoping that holds true.

discussed with the GI doc a few ideas. i brought them up, but he did say "maybe" rather than saying "no".

i've been drinking more and more tea lately. mostly green or oolong. the caffeine used to bother my GI right away. maybe i was healed enough that it just took longer to show. so, no tea right now. just herbal: ginger, mint, chamomile. no reflux, so mint is actually a good antispasmodic. and ginger is always very good for me.

i had been taking lactoflamX as one of my probiotics, but haven't lately. he agreed that i might have to go back to that.

Tim,

Its funny, the last time i had this diarrhea / not digesting my food stuff, was 3 years ago, fall 2009. usually its the constipation and i have to eat tons of fiber, more than most people to keep that from happening. and lately so much success i thought my bowels were healing. but i guess not.

no cabbage or kraut or slaw for the time being.

still taking my probiotics, but we'll see about that.

just odd how it can swing 180 degrees like this.

thanks possi,

yes, it does seem if its not one thing, its another, doesn't it.

though i am thankful for the time in between flares. my doctors do have those to be longer and better these days. this is just a temporary set back!

i should have known. two weeks ago, some psoriasis on my elbows. then this week the chiro said my upper back was more locked up then normal, and i had this big red welt on my finger that i get sometimes when i flare. and yesterday and today i can feel that. i had AM foot and calf cramps this week twice. and now this.

just hope the flare doesn't get so bad that i need yet more pred. as i just took it last month.

if i end up needing it now, we'll have to consider SSZ. but i'm doing so well between flares, i hate to have to go that or the biologics route if i can help it. on the other hand, to get rid of all of this would be nice.

the GI doc did say he didn't think i was bad enough for a biologic. so we talked about that. how i often look better than i feel. and i always feel better in the beginning of the day (after i've had a shower and time to loosen up) and worse at the end. if doctors saw me at midnight, they might evaluate me differently.

but its ok, i don't want to do biologics quite yet. and my rheumy gets the whole thing very well. he seems to know this jekyll and hyde disease.

flares are still very odd to me. i still haven't figured them out. but if i ever do, i'm sure it will be very obvious as most things are once you know the answer.

But my intestines had been so good lately! I did think i had it figured out! fooey!