finished break-the-cycle diet -- OUCH!
#173210 - 04/24/05 06:44 PM
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zebras
Reged: 04/15/05
Posts: 31
Loc: Vermont
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We put our 10-year-old on a 3-day break-the-cycle diet, and he felt much better. Today we broadened his diet, and I think we did it much too fast, because the result was much worse pain. Here's what he ate today:
Breakfast:
apple juice w/ Citrucel
pancakes (made w/ egg whites & soy milk) with maple syrup
strawberry puree
turkey bacon (low fat, nitrite-free, from HFS)
Lunch:
coffee soy milk
white toast w/ safe margarine, honey, cinnamon
sliced turkey
steamed green beans
popcorn w/ a little olive oil (ouch!)
mixed roasted nuts (ouch!)
He felt much worse right after lunch. Was it the popcorn and nuts? I had reservations about him eating those, but he was so excited to be off his super-restrictive diet.
We backpedaled and gave him a white dinner. Did we advance his diet way too fast? We were certainly careful with eating SF foods first and avoiding anything on the trigger food list.
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or checked out her trigger food list? Popcorn is majorly difficult for most everyone with IBS, and for many without for that matter! I haven't had popcorn in years and probably will never touch it again! Love it, but no way can I handle that food!
Also, hard nuts are another food Heather lists as very difficult for us to eat. Finely ground is a bit easier, but still difficult for a lot of us. Too have combined both those foods in one meal would have killed me too! Those are both pure insoluble fiber, plus he had the IF of the green beans! And one piece of bread was not enough of a soluble fiber buffer to eat for all those insoluble fiber foods. Poor kid! 
Also, coffee soy milk contains, coffee. Yet another major trigger for IBS. No one with IBS should consume coffee of any sort, even decaf. Plus, if he isn't used to soy, that could cause bloat and cramps as well.
Finally, the apple juice for breakfast is also on Heather's list of trigger foods. Juice is very difficult on our tummies.
I think all of these foods in a short period would have me doubled over in bed with a heating pad!
I think you need to slow way down! And check out Heathers Eating for IBS diet book or check out that portion of the website to get the complete list of trigger foods. Not just the Cheat Sheet which doesn't include the popcorn and nuts, or the juice, but the book definitely does!
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~ Beth
Constipation, pain prodominent,cramps, spasms and bloat!
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The first step after the "white" diet should be to add the other SF foods in as well as safe protein. So stuff like cooked carrots, applesauce, squash, chicken breast, fish, etc.
That was a major amount of triggers he ate for his first day!
Can't go crazy yet!
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I ordered Heather's books a few days ago and am waiting eagerly for them. I have spent literally hours combing through the info on this website. My impression was that after eating SF foods for 3 days, you could add some IF foods from the yellow list on the cheat sheet. Popcorn and nuts are both on that list. I was worried that we were progressing too quick, and clearly my worry was well-founded, but I thought if they were on the cheat sheet as OK, they would probably be OK. They are certainly NOT listed as trigger foods on the cheat sheet. I obviously still have a lot to learn.
The good news it that he is better today, though not as good as he was. He went to school today for the whole day, his first since March 4th (last week was vacation).
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Hi,
I don't know the serving sizes you gave, but that seems like a lot of food for both meals! (At least till he gets his teenage growth spurt! -he, he).
One major trigger for me is eating too much food, whether or not it's "safe".
Hope this helps,
Myra
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IBS-D
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Yes, he was pretty eager to chow down after three days of boring bland food. I will be certain to hold him back and be MUCH more careful from now on!
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If you check this page, you'll see Heather's recommendations for how to begin adding other food after a few days on the Break The Cycle diet.
As a general rule, the tougher a food is, the harder it is on IBS, so stuff like popcorn, nuts, and bacon are going to be for later, when he's more stable. In addition, nuts and bacon are relatively high in fat. Even green beans can be tough - think of the "strings" in them.
Some people on the Board cannot tolerate popcorn because of the hulls. If it's a particular favorite of your son's, try doing a search on "hull popcorn" and see if you can find some of the information posted on where to buy popcorn without hulls. Even then you should still be cautious - it's an insoluble fiber even without the hulls.
Also, be sure to "wrap" protein and insoluble fiber in lots and lots of soluble fiber. In the beginning it's easiest if you hide the unsafe stuff inside safe stuff, which is why Heather's recommendations for easing off the BTC diet include stuff like fruit and vegetable breads and smoothies. If you son is eager for "good stuff" after a few days of just soluble fiber, foods like the pumpkin apple spice bread and Heather's Chocolate Silk Pudding should be right up his alley. And don't forget angel food cake.
It's very encouraging that the BTC diet made your son feel better. It seems like you're on the right track. Good luck going forward.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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Because in her books they are listed as a trgger food. Especially the popcorn. Wierd.
Glad he's feeling better. 
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~ Beth
Constipation, pain prodominent,cramps, spasms and bloat!
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Thanks for the good advice. That makes sense to me.
I've been skeptical about this diet because Zane's symptoms don't fit IBS criteria; he has generalized abdominal pain, chest pain, headache, and dizzy spells with double vision and other visual disturbances, but normal BMs. The GI said he had IBS or functional dyspepsia. But after seeing what has happened with the diet, it seems like we are on the right track. We just need to learn to live with it. Well, we're in the right place.
I just checked Amazon and Heather's books won't be here until next week! Arrgh! I was hoping they would be at the P.O. tomorrow.
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Beth,
I found both nuts and popcorn listed under "Insoluble Fiber" in Heather's book. In Eating For IBS, Heather warns about the kernels in popcorn (pure insoluble fiber) and suggests just eliminating it since it has no nutritional value. In the same section she warns that nuts can be high in insoluble fiber and are definitely high in fat. Nonetheless, she recommends eating them for good health, but VERY carefully.
I think this is the confusing aspect of Heather's diet. Most of the foods that trigger an attack we have to just avoid totally, like red meat and dairy. Then there are insoluble fiber and fat; those can trigger attacks, too, but those we have to learn to eat and be very careful while we're doing it.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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