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Sorry - i forgot to mention that she might have a problem with wheat. We are still guessing about all this -- she had some serious setbacks after eating wheat(white flourmore so than whole wheat it seems which doesn't sound typical IBS) -- but it was also things with alot of cheese too -- like a bagel and cream cheese(not low fat), and a piece of lasagna, and one time it was pizza --- so she is trying to avoid wheat

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Unless your daughter really is gluten-intolerant, it wasn't the wheat bothering her at all--it was the cheese. Avoiding wheat is therefore unnecessary--and right now she needs to keep as many foods in her diet as she can tolerate, because on-campus eating is limited enough to begin with (I just graduated in May).

I used to eat raisin bran, frosted mini-wheats, lots of salads, sandwiches on whole-wheat bread, etc. But I was sick all the time (I'm IBS-C, but pain is my most prominent symptom), and I didn't know why. When I found Heather's book, I realized that I was eating WAY too much insoluble fiber. Also, I'm sensitive to oatmeal--it makes my stomach hurt every time, except for, ironically, the over-processed instant stuff. I can only eat instant oatmeal, and only the flavors that don't contain dairy--READ LABELS, they try to hide ingredients you're trying to avoid!

So, safe breakfast cereals include Kix, Crispix, grits, cream of rice (I used to eat cream of wheat, but it caused problems, too!), Chex and Frosted Mini-Chex (those might be better as a snack), etc. Now that I'm stable, I can also eat Quaker Toasted Oat Squares, but only as a snack, not a big bowl for breakfast.

Giving up dairy is probably going to be the most difficult for your daughter. College life=free pizza. Well, not for her. But it really is necessary. For pouring on cereal, your daughter should try a variety of soy and rice milks until she finds one she likes. Edensoy is the most natural brand on the market; Vitasoy Creamy Original is my favorite; Rice Dream is also very good, and the chocolate Rice Dream is quite a treat.

For snacks, I eat a lot of applesauce cups such as Mott's Healthy Harvest (they come in fun flavors and don't have added sugar) and canned fruit packed in juice. I can also tolerate citrus fruits, but that's an individual thing. Also, now that I'm stable, I can eat a handful of baby carrots now and then. I also used to eat Nature Valley granola bars all the time, but I haven't tried adding them back.

For dinner in college, when I was a freshman and on the meal plan, I ate pasta with marinara sauce and a grilled chicken breast pretty much every night. It was as bad as it sounds. But my cafeteria had notoriously bad food--they failed the health inspection one year!--and I can only hope your daughter's school is better. Some schools offer rice bowls, soups, sandwiches, and other safe choices.

After freshman year, I moved into a dorm with a kitchen and my significant other and I took turns cooking dinner every night, so I was in complete control of what I ate, which was really nice. Your daughter might seriously consider this for her next three years. Sure, we still ate out, but we ate a lot of sushi and other Japanese food, a lot of Mediterranean food, a lot of healthy Mexican food (burritos with non-refried beans and no cheese), a LOT of cheap sandwiches from Jimmy John's...in other words, there are healthy restaurant choices out there--do a search for past posts on restaurants.

Good luck, and if I think of anything else I'll post again.

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