# what can people with IBS-D eat?



## wildhorses (Dec 19, 2011)

I cant use the library near me cause they will charge $40.00 or more for a membership card so i can check out books and so I wanted to get a list from other people who have IBS-D on what they eat, I am desperately needing a full list of foods and please be specific not just meats please put what type of meats, I am looking for a way to help me manage my IBS better by eating better. Thx for all the helpWildhorses


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## CJ78 (Jan 12, 2012)

Hi WH.I'm new to IBS-D (IBS in general also), but my understanding of IBS-D and diet is one of trial and error.There is an 'individuality' factor in the diet - essentially what aggravates your digestive tract.What is not ok for some, can be ok for others. It is always worth, from reading on the topic and on others experiences here, is by keeping a food diary.It is worth having a read up on the longevity required to be off such foods before making an impact, and as such, ruling them out of the diet too quickly.I guess the best places to start are the common aggravators - wheat/gluten (if not already tested), dairy/lactose and caffeine. Certain fats also seem to be an aggravators.Sorry - I don't have the answers, but hopefully can offers some advice.CJ78


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## jmc09 (Oct 5, 2009)

There are two types of fibre,insoluble fibre which passes through the body largely undigested like Bran.brown bread,brown rice and Lettuce for example which are bad for IBS D sufferers.andSoluble fibre which can be absorbed in water and passes through the body slowly and is digested much better than insoluble fibre,examples include white rice,bananas,white bread and lean white meats like chicken,which is mainly a protein but is a good source of energy if skinned and baked or boiled rather than fried.Try to drink non fizzy drinks too like water and teas if you can.


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## arizonasooner (Oct 30, 2011)

I have found out that if I limit the *amount* of food I eat, I am able to manage my symptoms much better. I had a greasy cheeseburger from In-N-Out this week, but passed on the fries and had no onions or lettuce on the burger. No problem!


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## Sasky (Jun 19, 2011)

Try looking up the FODMAP diet. They have had some success.


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## CJ78 (Jan 12, 2012)

arizonasooner said:


> I have found out that if I limit the *amount* of food I eat, I am able to manage my symptoms much better. I had a greasy cheeseburger from In-N-Out this week, but passed on the fries and had no onions or lettuce on the burger. No problem!


Interesting as my IBS-D has developed during a period of my life (around a year now) where my diet has changed and become worse, alongside eating much much more.I am refusing yet to diet, and instead, introducing exercise whilst cutting out (or at least down) on the rubbish.Hopefully the former may also help (although I am yet to start, but did only join a gym yesterday







)


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## catarific (Oct 6, 2010)

I think the hardest thing to admit to is that you have a real problem. I know for myself when my IBS turned to IBS-D on a regular basis, I thought to myself - this will soon pass - it is probably an intestinal virus or food poisoning. It may have started that way, but the end result is - that the problem is here to stay and not going anywhere soon. Realizing that you have to give up the foods you love is devastasting. So instead, you try eliminating some things but still try and eat those foods you cannot live without. Funny, I have never been a big eater - but I certainly loved chocolate - I definitely was a chochoholic. I loved my morning coffee, and I love pizza. But with IBS-D, if I eat it, I suffer later. At first, I thought let's give it a try - and of course, I should have known better. With IBS-D, you lose a lot of weight and it is not easy to put back on - not if you are having consistent flareups caused by diet.And what makes IBS-D harder - there is no formula about what you can eat. Each person is different and reacts differently to foods. For instance, I have a hard time with raw vegetables - so I now avoid them. I can no longer eat chocolate or desserts made with chocolate. I avoid foods that are fried and foods that are very rich. I eat a lot of chicken now and some fish. I try to avoid red meats but once in awhile I may have a small piece of steak - but not often. If I eat french fries, they are baked in the oven instead of fried. If I stay to a diet I can manage, I usually have many good days and feel good. But if I cheat, I pay for it.So in the long run - IBS D can win and you can fill terrible or you can learn how to eat better to feel better. Keep a food diary - avoid the foods that can really bother you. Here is a list of foods that most people with IBS-D try to avoid:[Edited: List of foods removed as it is copywritten information]


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## Korga (Sep 8, 2011)

Eliminating Dairy, Gluten and excess fats is a good place to start. I also as a rule do not eat any processed foods; everything I eat is made from scratch from whole foods without any additives. Beyond that diets for IBS seem to be very individualistic. You can keep a food journal and do elimination diet testing on suspect foods (eliminate the food for 2 weeks, then re-introduce and see what happens) if a lot of what turns out suspect is also on the FODMAP list, then you can do FODMAP testing the same way.Good Luck.


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## catarific (Oct 6, 2010)

Korga said:


> Eliminating Dairy, Gluten and excess fats is a good place to start. I also as a rule do not eat any processed foods; everything I eat is made from scratch from whole foods without any additives. Beyond that diets for IBS seem to be very individualistic. You can keep a food journal and do elimination diet testing on suspect foods (eliminate the food for 2 weeks, then re-introduce and see what happens) if a lot of what turns out suspect is also on the FODMAP list, then you can do FODMAP testing the same way.Good Luck.


Not everyone with IBS has a gluten intolerance so going gluten free may not be the answer unless, of course, testing positive for celiac disease. As a matter of fact, when flaring, if you are not gluten intolerant or do not have celiac disease, eating fresh white bread (not processed - but made fresh from the bakery without seeds) works very well to curb diarrhea and fill you up if nothing else will work. I thought I might have celiac disease - but was tested through bloodwork and colonoscopy/endoscopy but all my tests came back negative. I went the whole route, eliminating all foods with gluten but to no avail. Many of the whole grains used in gluten-free products can actually be very hard on digestion and can worsen the diarrhetic symptoms. I tried going on a gluten free diet for 6 months. Plus, if you are not gluten intolerant, the cost of buying gluten-free foods is quite expensive.


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## jmc09 (Oct 5, 2009)

catarific said:


> Not everyone with IBS has a gluten intolerance so going gluten free may not be the answer unless, of course, testing positive for celiac disease. As a matter of fact, when flaring, if you are not gluten intolerant or do not have celiac disease, eating fresh white bread (not processed - but made fresh from the bakery without seeds) works very well to curb diarrhea and fill you up if nothing else will work. I thought I might have celiac disease - but was tested through bloodwork and colonoscopy/endoscopy but all my tests came back negative. I went the whole route, eliminating all foods with gluten but to no avail. Many of the whole grains used in gluten-free products can actually be very hard on digestion and can worsen the diarrhetic symptoms. I tried going on a gluten free diet for 6 months. Plus, if you are not gluten intolerant, the cost of buying gluten-free foods is quite expensive.


Very good comment about the cost of gluten free foods,its simply the reason I couldnt try it even if I wanted to.Its a shame a couple of weeks worth of foods couldnt be subsidised on the NHS.


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## wildhorses (Dec 19, 2011)

thx for the answers, wondering if i should have my doctor test to see if im gluten intolerance, what else should I have her test for that she may not of tested for.


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## Mr 100 (Aug 1, 2011)

I have been on the low fodmaps diet for around six months with good success. After some time, once you have better control of IBS-D, you can try individual excluded foods again to see if they are tolerable.I have also stopped eating most high fibre foods and high fructose foods, but I am now allowing small amounts of these again.I take half a calcium tablet after meals and drink lots of green tea.The easy way to adopt the low fodmap diet is to take a gradual approach, start with fresh, then move onto storecupboard foods. Exchanging bread and pasta for LFD equivalents is easy. Swapping cows milk for oat or rice milk is easy. Good luck.


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## XXXBerto55 (May 4, 2010)

Mr 100 said:


> I have been on the low fodmaps diet for around six months with good success. After some time, once you have better control of IBS-D, you can try individual excluded foods again to see if they are tolerable.I have also stopped eating most high fibre foods and high fructose foods, but I am now allowing small amounts of these again.I take half a calcium tablet after meals and drink lots of green tea.The easy way to adopt the low fodmap diet is to take a gradual approach, start with fresh, then move onto storecupboard foods. Exchanging bread and pasta for LFD equivalents is easy. Swapping cows milk for oat or rice milk is easy. Good luck.


I agree the FODMAP has been great for me so far. I have been doing it about two weeks now and am much improved. I cooked a bunch of rice, 12 pounds of chicken on the grill, and green beans. I cubed the chicken, mixed it with the rice and green beans and froze containers. Yes, it is difficult eating mostly chicken and rice, but I will add mustard or soy sauce or tomato puree (not so great) and that's how I get some variety. I also was losing weight at first, but the biggest struggle I have is sweets are disallowed for the most part, so I have been eating a spoon of natural peanut butter here and there. I believe that is mostly why the weight loss stopped/slowed (losing weight would be good for me BTW).


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## Heather Van Vorous (Oct 2, 2001)

Hi - please the credit the list below with its original source, as it's copyrighted information excerpted from the book Eating for IBS. The list was copied and pasted over from the Help For IBS website, which is also copyrighted. The original website source is in the IBS diet section, under IBS Trigger Foods. The excerpt should have an actual link to the original source but this site doesn't seem to let me post live links.Thanks!~ Heather


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## Jeffrey Roberts (Apr 15, 1987)

Heather,Thanks for alerting us to copywritten material. We'll remove it right away.Jeff


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## wildhorses (Dec 19, 2011)

XXXBerto55 said:


> I agree the FODMAP has been great for me so far. I have been doing it about two weeks now and am much improved. I cooked a bunch of rice, 12 pounds of chicken on the grill, and green beans. I cubed the chicken, mixed it with the rice and green beans and froze containers. Yes, it is difficult eating mostly chicken and rice, but I will add mustard or soy sauce or tomato puree (not so great) and that's how I get some variety. I also was losing weight at first, but the biggest struggle I have is sweets are disallowed for the most part, so I have been eating a spoon of natural peanut butter here and there. I believe that is mostly why the weight loss stopped/slowed (losing weight would be good for me BTW).


this is gonna sound really stupid but what is the FODMAP diet? I have google it and everything I find is confusing on how it explains it maybe someone can give me a list of food on teh FODMAP diet? please.Thanks Wildhorses


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## Jeffrey Roberts (Apr 15, 1987)

Wildhorses,Please take a look at our Diet page for an explanation of what a low FODMAP diet is.Jeff


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## jmc09 (Oct 5, 2009)

Heres another link with some simple diet tips for IBS.http://ibs-care.org/pdfs/diet_sheet.pdfHere is some info on fodmaps too.http://ibs-care.org/pdfs/Fodmaps.pdf


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## wildhorses (Dec 19, 2011)

jmc09 said:


> Heres another link with some simple diet tips for IBS.http://ibs-care.org/pdfs/diet_sheet.pdfHere is some info on fodmaps too.http://ibs-care.org/pdfs/Fodmaps.pdf


thx for the links


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## wildhorses (Dec 19, 2011)

Jeffrey Roberts said:


> Wildhorses,Please take a look at our Diet page for an explanation of what a low FODMAP diet is.Jeff


thx for the link


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## JSolo (Jan 27, 2012)

CJ78 said:


> Hi WH.I'm new to IBS-D (IBS in general also), but my understanding of IBS-D and diet is one of trial and error.There is an 'individuality' factor in the diet - essentially what aggravates your digestive tract.What is not ok for some, can be ok for others. It is always worth, from reading on the topic and on others experiences here, is by keeping a food diary.It is worth having a read up on the longevity required to be off such foods before making an impact, and as such, ruling them out of the diet too quickly.I guess the best places to start are the common aggravators - wheat/gluten (if not already tested), dairy/lactose and caffeine. Certain fats also seem to be an aggravators.Sorry - I don't have the answers, but hopefully can offers some advice.CJ78


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## JSolo (Jan 27, 2012)

As others have noted, I've had to learn what I can tolerate through trial and error. Eating several small "meals" a day and being careful not to take in too much fiber has helped me. I also avoid very fatty food. Finally, I've had to learn over time that my symptoms can fluctuate daily and that I need to "listen" carefully to my body. There are days I can only eat a little bit and days when I can tolerate having more. It's an ongoing work in progress. Jeff


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