Digestive Problems

[Vikki27]

Getting fed up with feeling ill! I understand how the digestive issues happen. I mean, if exercise helps your digestion function properly and I can't really move much, it makes sense I'd have some digestive issues, but I'm fed up with feeling..well..just plain icky! I feel all gurgley and queasy and bloated and horrible.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to keep things ticking over properly?

[Graham]

Have you tried acidophillus? That seems to help when I've had this problem. Cider vinegar tablets also seem to help.

[RICHO]

I went and saw a dieitiain which helped a lot. Due to PVS/CFS we get intloerances to some foods we were ok with pre illness. She put me on wheat free and lactose free diet and fructose free diet. Then slowly re introduced certain foods to see what triggers the upsets.
I also thake lots of pro bitoics which help.
I had and still have occassionally your problems Vikki but the revised iet and pro biotics seemed to help a lot.

[Helen82]

I suffer with nausea loads too, every night it wakes me up.
Richo, what do you eat if you dont eat those? Can you tell me an average day of that diet?
I am eating more veg and pulses than I used to and soya a fair amount instead of cows milk but I would struggle to give up cheese and wheat.

[RICHO]

Hi Helen 82.

There's plenty of Wheat free and gluten free alternatives in cereals and breads etc. There is also a great range of lactose free milk. All these at local supermarkets. In years gone by you could only get them at health food shops.
Also if you google low FODMAP it will give you what foods you can or cannot tolerate due to fructose. Tyr this website <a href="http://shepherdworks.com.au/disease-information/low-fodmap-diet[url]link</a>" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://shepherdworks.com.au/disease-information/low-fodmap-diet[url]link</a></a>

I eat wheat free corn flakes, lactose free milk, lactose free yoghurt. You can have hard cheeses as the process to make them hard gets rid of the lactose anyway. Eat fish, chicken, red meat, most vegetables. Wheat free biscusits, muslei bars etc. Most fruit etc.
edited by RICHO on 2/21/2011
<em>edited by RICHO on 2/21/2011</em>

[RICHO]

Hi Tishtash
Have to agree the bread is probabaly only good if toasted

[Vikki27]

Hey Tish Tash. I've been Coeliac for 6 years now and the only comfort I can offer is that your tastes do change a bit! I used to hate all gluten free food to begin with but I love the Genius brown bread (albeit toasted). The only bread I've come across that I think is amazing untoasted is Tesco's own brand gluten free white bread rolls. They are gorgeous, so maybe see if you can find those?

Other than that, if you want to eat gluten free for a while, the best advice I can give you is to try to learn to cook the food yourself if you can. It's harder to do when you aren't coeliac, because we get flour on prescription which I use for all my baking, but Dove's Farm do some great gluten free flours, so maybe look those out?

[TJ]

Hi

I was on a wheat and dairy free detox before all this and have kept some of it going - am generally wheat and dairy free at the moment but haven't gone fructose free at any point. Fruit salad with a bit of soya cream is good for breakfast or for pudding. Alternatively go Atkins and do grilled bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms, or use a bit of leftover rice a tin of fish and some curry powder and hey presto - Kegeree. I eat a lot more dried fruit and nuts at regular intervals in the day - and shove some in a bag for when I go out. Lunch can be tricky, particularly if out, although a baked spud is usually on offer everywhere, but at home I will whizz up a beggie soup and put some beans in it for protein and for fibre. Or do veg sticks and make some hummous. In the evening I find I eat a lot more Thai and Chinese food - using wholegrain rice and rice noodles gives you the bulk you get from wheat products but without the problems. The veg are all just dipped and cooked, so keep theiur vitamens and taste gorgeous. And it's quick to cook too - no standing at the stove for hours. I'm still baking - I try to adapt recipes - you can do a lovely carrot cake using honey instead of sugar, rice flour instead of ordinary flour which helps with sweet cravings. Also things like sesame seed snaps to crunch on when the others are tucking into their chocolate digestives!

TJ.


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TJ

[Helen82]

I have been continuing to have lots of digestive problems, a lot of my other symptoms have eased now. Just fatigue and stomach problems mainly now. Nausea, cramps, spasms, constant uncomfortable feeling.

I saw the CFS specialist today, she wants me to go back to the GP and talk about it there, in case its seperate from CFS, she wants me to get a coeliac test and a range of blood tests again and possibly to talk to a dietician about food intolerance. I guess its worth a try.

Havent sorted internet properly in new place, so not on here very much, hope your all ok xx

[Vikki27]

Haha Tishtash, I've never bought them because I suspected as much!

Waitrose sells the best gluten free range in my opinion. It's even more expensive than the other supermarkets, but the food is brilliant. In case you really fancy a pudding....they do a gluten free chocolate truffle roulade, and a toffee and pecan roulade. They also do packs of fresh gluten free chick pea spaghetti. £1.99 and it lasts easily for two meals. And it's SO good!!