IBS with Diarrhea
The Elimination Diet
Suffering with severe symptoms of IBS with diarrhea can make your life really miserable. If you suspect
that certain foods might be responsible for your symptoms but you're not sure which, then an Elimination
Diet for a period of time might be exactly what you need to help you pinpoint the culprit(s).
At the end of this period you will be left with no doubts as to which foods are responsible for your
diarrhea, or indeed for any other symptoms that they might cause.
But you need to be warned, this Elimination Diet is quite restrictive and should not be followed for longer than ONE week.
PLEASE NOTE:
If you have any concerns about this diet, you should consult your health care provider or a nutritional therapist who can help you deal with your specific needs.
This diet is designed to help people who suffer from severe persistent diarrhea-predominant IBS.
If your symptoms are not so severe, you might want to keep an IBS journal instead.
Have a look at the Elimination Diet for IBS page for some advice on how to do that.
Diet for IBS with Diarrhea - The Basics
This diet avoids ALL IBS potential trigger foods (but, of course, that doesn't mean that all of them can cause YOU a problem) plus additional common allergens (including shellfish and eggs).
This plan is very low in dietary fibre and is based on the very few foods that most people are able to tolerate.
Fibre and nutrition will be slowly increased as you introduce new foods.
If you want to know why you need to restrict your intake of fibre on this Diet for IBS with Diarrhea have a look at the Elimination Diet page.
The problem is, of course, that pretty much ANY food can cause problems to sensitive individuals. So if
after a week on the Elimination Diet you still suffer symptoms, you are likely to be intolerant to some of
the foods included in the diet. Please, see a medical professional who can help you devise a diet tailored
to your specific needs.
How to Go About Your Diet for IBS with Diarrhea
- If you're a candidate for this extreme plan, follow it for ONE week.
- Every day choose ONE option for each of the three meals - breakfast, lunch and dinner.
- Then, once or twice daily, choose from the variety of the suggested snacks.
- Do not include any other foods!
- Eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly.
- Approximate calories have been provided to help adjust for your personal weight-management goals.
- If you find yourself hungry (and weight is not an issue), feel free to increase the portion sizes for meals and snacks.
- Stick with natural still water as your beverage, and drink at least 8 cups throughout each day.
Breakfast Options
(Approx. 300 to 400 calories)
Hot Cereal with Banana Slices
1 1/2 cups cooked cream of rice cereal prepared with water and 1 tablespoon soft tub reduced-fat trans-free margarine spread (to be found at health food stores or on line). Enjoy with 1 sliced banana.
Cold Cereal with Rice Milk
2 cups puffed rice cereal with 1 1/2 cups plain or vanilla low-fat rice milk.
Breakfast Potato with Cinnamon Applesauce
1 medium baked potato; serve with 1 cup natural unsweetened applesauce mixed with optional cinnamon. Do not eat the potato skin.
Lunch Options
(Approx. 400 to 500 calories)
Grilled chicken with Rice
5 ounces (140 g.) grilled chicken breast. Enjoy with 1 cup cooked white or yellow rice.
Turkey Burger with Baked Potato
5 ounces (140 g.) plain turkey burger. Serve with 1 medium baked potato topped with 2 tablespoons soft tub reduced-fat trans fat-free margarine spread. Do not eat the potato skin.
Turkey and Avocado on Rice cakes
5 ounces (140 g.) sliced turkey breast (or grilled chicken) divided over 3 plain rice cakes, each topped with 1 thin slice avocado. Enjoy with 1/2 cup natural unsweetened applesauce.
Dinner Options
(Approx. 500 to 600 calories)
Grilled Fish with Rice
5 ounces (140 g.) of grilled salmon (or sole, trout, or tilapia) seasoned with 1 teaspoon olive oil and pinch of salt. Serve with 1 cup cooked white or yellow rice.
Rosemary Chicken with Baked Potato
5 ounces (140 g.) grilled chicken rubbed with a mixture of olive oil, minced rosemary, paprika, chili powder, crushed coriander seeds and pepper. The chicken could also be cooked in the oven over a baking sheet lined with foil and coated with olive oil spray. Serve with 1 medium potato topped with 1 tablespoon soft tub reduced-fat, trans fat-free margarine spread. Do not eat the potato skin.
Roast Turkey with Mashed Potatoes
6 ounces (170 g.) roast turkey breast. Serve with 1 medium baked potato scooped and mashed with 1 tablespoon soft tub reduced-fat, trans fat-free margarine spread (or 1 cup cooked white or yellow rice). Do not eat the potato skin.
Snack Options
100 calories or less
- 2 plain rice cakes
- 1/2 cup natural unsweetened applesauce
- 1 small banana
100 to 200 calories
- 3 to 5 plain rice crackers
- 1 ounce (28 g.) baked potato chips (no olestra, check lables)
- 1 cup natural unsweetened applesauce
- 1/2 baked potato with 1 teaspoon soft tub reduced-fat, trans fat-free margarine spread; do not eat the potato skin
PLEASE NOTE:
As you might have noticed, this diet for IBS with Diarrhea is very restricted as to the variety of foods you can include. You might want to consider taking a chewable or liquid multivitamin supplement to insure that you get the basic level of nutrition.
What to Do Next
- After following this Diet for IBS with Diarrhea for one week, and if you are symptom-free, you can start to re-introduce new foods.
- You should add ONE new food every two to three days (it's best to stick with one portion of new food per day).
Very important: Keep an IBS diary and write down everything you eat and everything you feel.
- If any food bothers your stomach and gives you any of the symptoms you were having before, stop eating it and add it to your list of problem foods.
- Wait 2 or 3 days until you're symptom-free again before you move on to the next category. If you're not sure, add it to a 'maybe' list and retest it later.
- Move on to the next food category.
At the end of this tough assignment, you will have identified most of the foods that aggravate your IBS.
Order for Reintroducing Foods to Your Diet for IBS with
Diarrhea
For the sake of good nutrition and food variety, here's a suggested order for reintroducing new foods to your Diet for IBS with Diarrhea:
1 - Dairy (fat-free and reduced-fat milk yogurt, cheese, etc.2 - Sweet potatoes and/or yams
3 - Eggs
4 - Wheat products: Stick with white versions of bread, crackers and pasta. In the future when symptoms subside, you can slowly test small amounts of whole wheat varieties.
5 - Oats, oatmeal and barley
6 - Brown and wild rice
7 - Nut butters
8 - Cooked vegetables (non-cruciferous, no corn, no peppers, no eggplant (or aubergines))
9 - Fruit (peel fruits with tough outer skins at first; avoid citrus)
10 - Shellfish
11 - Soy foods
12 - Whole nuts and seeds
13 - Garlic and Onions
14 - Citrus fruits
15 - Cooked cruciferous vegetables (plus cooked peppers and eggplant, or aubergine)
16 - Beans and lentils
17 - Raw vegetables
18 - Corn
19 - Ketchup, mustard, soy sauce and other condiments (test one at a time)
20 - Dried fruit
21 - Chocolate
22 - Fruit juice, sugar and honey
23 - Alcohol
24 - Coffee or tea
PLEASE NOTE:
Following this Diet for IBS with Diarrhea can be very difficult due to the limited selection of food. So you need to be pretty committed from the start. But if you're currently suffering, better to put up with a week of discomfort than a lifetime of untreated abdominal pain.
ALSO NOTE:
If, at the end of the testing period, you find yourself with more than five main trigger foods, see a Nutritional Therapist or Dietitian to make sure that the rest of your diet is making up for whatever nutrients you're missing by eliminating those foods.
To have a good idea of which foods can actually speed up your recovery, please read next IBS Foods - Healing Foods to Soothe Your Colon where's there's a section dealing specifically with healing foods for IBS with diarrhea.
Recommended reading:
The IBS Miracle
How to Free Your Life from Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Treat IBS naturally, safely and permanently by giving your body what it needs. READ MORE
Products That Help Relieve the Pain of IBS
|
 Bowel Essence
|
 Peppermint Complex combines plant oils to help maintain the health
and tranquillity of the digestive system including peppermint, ginger,
fennel, chamomile and cardamom. |
IBS Related Pages:
Causes of
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome
IBS Trigger Foods - Foods to Avoid If You Suffer with Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Elimination Diet for IBS and Other Food Sensitivities
IBS with Diarrhea - The Elimination Diet
IBS With Constipation - The Elimination Diet
IBS Foods - Healing Foods to Regulate Your Colon
External source of information on IBS that I found very useful:
International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders
Search for information on this site:
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IBS RELATED
ARTICLES:
Symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome
IBS Trigger Foods - Foods to Avoid If You Suffer with Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Elimination Diet for IBS and Other Food Sensitivities
IBS with Diarrhea - The Elimination Diet
IBS With Constipation - The Elimination Diet
IBS Foods - Healing Foods to Regulate Your Colon
Foods for IBS with Diarrhea - healing Foods To
Soothe your Colon
Products that can relieve the pain of IBS:
Fibre Supplement with Digestive Enzymes
Bowel Essence
A combination of herbs designed to calm the symptoms of IBS.
Peppermint Complex combines plant oils to help maintain the health and
tranquillity of the digestive system including peppermint, ginger,
fennel, chamomile and cardamom.
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