Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

I love salads, too, and I have one with dinner most nights: lettuce, cucumber (peeled and seeded), tomatoes, cauliflower, scallions, radishes, mushrooms, carrots, celery. I use a regular dressing on it, too, one I make myself with olive oil, vinegar, garlic, and spices. There are some caveats, of course:

- I was on the EFI Diet for months before I even attempted this.
- When I did first start eating salads, I started with small, really simple ones: lettuce, carrots, mushrooms, a little bit of scallion. Once I knew I could tolerate that, I added more ingredients.
- I eat it with dinner because that's when my tummy is most stable. I doubt I could handle one with lunch, although I do eat crudites (carrots, celery, tomatoes) in small portions with lunch sometimes.
- I eat it after I eat the rest of my meal, including lots of SF food. I'm in the process of experimenting with starting to eat my salad after about half my dinner is in me. So far, so good.
- I can't eat everything in it. Bell peppers, for example, I can't handle.
- On days when my tummy is feeling wobbly, I skip the salad.

And about dressing. I'd double-check what's in McDonald's lite dressing. There is something in all lite dressings I've tried that makes my stomach turn over, so it's possible it's the dressing that's doing you in.

I'm very fat tolerant by the end of the day, so I can use regular dressing. One trick to using regular dressing on a salad and not ending up with too much of it, is to serve the dressing in a separate bowl. Dip your fork in the dressing, then spear your salad. Or figure out how much oil you can tolerate and toss your salad with that measured amount rather than adding dressing at the table from a cruet. If you toss your salad with wild abandon, a little oil goes a long way.

I wouldn't give up on salads based on not being able to eat one from McDonalds. As my grandmother would say, "You just don't know where that's been." Try making yourself a small, simple one at home, eat it after a high-SF dinner, and see how you do.

Good luck. HTH.

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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]

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