Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Re: Here are some ideas for how to get started!!!

My advice to you is start with a very stripped down IBS diet and slowly add foods to see what you can handle. So for several days eat nothing but high quality white bread (I use butter flavored cooking oil spray instead of marg -- it's lower fat and many margarines have dairy ingreds!), plain potatoes, rice. Then slowly add other safe foods like cooked carrots, sweet potatoes, applesauce, bananas. Then try chicken or fish, no skin. Some people can tolerate peas and spinach fairly well. Always eat safe foods first. Also try a soluble fiber supplement -- I have three or 4 psyllium capsules before lunch and dinner and always eat a white roll, plain pasta, or rice first. I have life cereal with soy milk for breakfast. The soy milk took a little getting used to but I read while I eat breakfast and that helped distract me till I was used to it. I am lucky as spicy foods don't bother me. A new Indonesian restaurant has opened up here and I love it!! No dairy, low fat, and lots of rice and spice.

I avoid:
beef
all dairy
carbonated beverages
caffeine
margarine
broccoli!! Just killer!!!
cauliflower
chocolate
high fat cookies (I eat loads of cinnamon grahams and gingersnaps)
bran (I have IBS-D so I avoid this unless things are going well for me)

You might also talk to your dr about antidepressants -- they have helped a lot of us. And try yoga and/or relaxation exercises. At least half of IBS sufferers also have an anxiety disorder. It's really important to work on that.

Take it one day at a time, good luck!!!

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Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

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