Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Suggestions for EmmasMom

In terms of how often you're eating and how much, things looks pretty good. I'd do better with less than 3 hours between my breakfast and my morning snack but if you're not feeling hungry before your snack then leave it the way it is. The only thing I see that gives me pause is the amount of fat you may be getting. I can't really tell because I don't know quantities but you talk about fried zucchini and what looks like a fair amount of IBS-safe sour cream, cream cheese, and margarine. So just keep an eye on that, but remember that too little fat isn't good either - I think especially for C's.

Other than that one possibility, though, it looks like what you really need is to get more IF and to expand your food choices.

If you're eating "Kellogg's� Rice Krispies� With Real Strawberries" you're just not getting much IF. If you look at the ingredient list, you'll see that this cereal contains more sugar than it does strawberries. My first suggestion is to add some fruit (fresh or frozen) to your cereal yourself. Don't go crazy. Try adding one sliced strawberry or 3 frozen blueberries or a couple of raspberries to start. If that goes well for a few days, add a little more fruit, then a little more and so on. You might also consider switching to Rice Chex since that doesn't contain HFCS and some people find HFCS bothersome.

Still on breakfast, I like the idea of what you did on Day 2: one bowl of plain Rice Krispies (for an SF base, I assume) then one bowl of mixed Rice Krispies and Trix (for a little more IF, I assume). Try sticking to the same idea but bump up the IF in the "second" breakfast a little. Try mixing some whole wheat cereal with your second bowl of Rice Krispies (or Rice Chex). Start with just a little whole wheat cereal relative to the rice cereal and gradually increase the amount of whole wheat cereal as time goes by. If you haven't already, take a look at this old post. You'll see the poster eats a bagel first for SF then a whole bowl of mini-wheats.

Assuming your Snapple Nectarine Tea is the White Tea there shouldn't be any caffeine in it (very nice - I didn't know about this). I'm not sure what type of lemon pudding you're eating but if it's store bought just be sure it doesn't have any dairy in it.

Try adding fruit to your smoothies the same way as to your cereal. If you're sick of strawberries, try substituting a few blueberries or raspberries for one or two of the strawberries. There are even frozen cherries you can try - start with one.

As a higher IF snack, try applesauce mixed with Grape-Nuts. Again, start with a low proportion of Grape-Nuts to applesauce - perhaps as little as 1/4 teaspoon Grape-Nuts to a half-cup of applesauce - and gradually increase the amount of Grape-Nuts.

Instead of peeling your entire peach for a snack, peel most of it but leave the peel on maybe 1/4 of it - or even 1/8th to begin. If that goes okay, try eating more and more of the peel. The same method works for apples. Start out by eating maybe 1/4 of a totally peeled apple. If that goes okay, eat more and more of the apple until you're eating an entirely peeled apple. Once you're at that point, start leaving the peel on some of the apple and see how it goes.

Expand your veggie palette slowly, too. If there's a particular vegetable you really like - say, asparagus - try having just one stalk with dinner to begin with. You can try pureeing broccoli into your mashed potatoes. Make Skinny Mashed Potatoes. About 8-10 minutes before the potatoes are cooked, throw in just a little bit of broccoli florets. Once everything is cooked, mash the broccoli in with the potatoes. If you can tolerate onions, eventually work your way up to this recipe.

Another good source of veggies is vegetable soup. Make one you like, then have just a little bit with your regular lunch - start with a spoon or two if you feel you need to and gradually work your way up. I really like this 15-minute bean soup (and it freezes well) but there are other veggie soups on the Recipe Board you can try like this Lot O Veggies Soup.

As you're adding IF, remember to always cushion it with SF. It's in this regard that taking an SFS might help. In addition to keeping your colon full of fiber so it's less likely to spasm (it has something to "grip"), it can also provide more of a cushion for the IF you consume.

I'm not sure you're getting enough fluid. I try to get at least 64 ounces a day and I feel best if I get 100 ounces (although I rarely achieve that). In theory, at least, it should be pretty simple to do. Drink an 8 ounce glass of water and a 10 ounce cup of tea with all three meals and with your morning and afternoon snack and, presto, you're up to 90 ounces already. Easier said than done, I know.

If you haven't already done so, you might take a look at these two old newsletters for some more information on dealing with IBS-C:

Constipation Frustrations Part 1

Constipation Frustrations Part 2

I hope some of this helps.

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

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