Elimination Diet

[runnerjen]

I've heard a lot of you mention an elimination diet. What exactly is it and how do I go about doing it? I've been gluten-free since December, but I'm still having stomach issues that don't seem to go away. I went to a nutritionist who is helping me figure things out a bit, but she never suggested that I have allergies to anything else. Do I basically just eat meats, veggies and fruits? Any grains?

I also have ileitis (Crohn's disease), which makes things a little worse with some foods, but it's hard to say what!

Thanks for your help,

jen

[hathor]

Here is an explanation of one elimination diet:

Open Original Shared Link

It is a vegan diet, which you may or may not be agreeable to. (I am; that's how I knew about this link )

I just typed "elimination diet" into google and there are plenty of links to peruse. The idea is to start out with a diet where only foods that people rarely have problems with are included. Then you add foods in one at a time and see if there is a reaction. It can take awhile, but it may end up being quicker than hit or miss elimination of different things to see if you feel better.

Good luck!

I tried to post once and the system wouldn't take it. So I'm trying again; I hope we don't end up with two posts ...

[Clark Bent as Stupor-Man]

there are plenty of different ways to do an "elimination diet" and pros and cons as well... the basic premise of an elimination diet is to cut your diet down to a small set of foods, which are statistically less likely to be allergenic than other foods... it's generally recommended to rotate foods every few days and avoid leftovers for the most part... most elimination diets are not simply meats/veggies/fruit and allow for such carbs as rice, maybe beans, some nuts, etc... when you start feeling better (after a week or so is what is often stated), you can add back a food every couple days and gauge your reactions..

one problem with these diets is what if you are intolerant (or simply have a leaky gut) to one or more of the foods on the elimination diet? it may be very hard to detect which one as you may still be consuming a food you are intolerant to most days, if not every day... that was a problem in my case and I didn't find an elimination diet that helpful at all.. I never got to a point where I felt consistently good enough to quantify if I was reacting to a particular food... I ended up challenging a number of foods after realizing the elimination diet was useless for me and got a food intolerance test done for 100 plus foods... personally, I wish I had done this test initially before doing an elimination diet... but each person is different and many people have had success with an elimination diet..

if you have only eliminated gluten and are having persisting stomach issues, I would recommend, at least at first, simply removing a few common offending foods for those with celiac disease or susceptible systems... such as dairy first and maybe soy as well if you want.. I would not go into a full blown elimination diet without first eliminating a few foods commonly known to cause issues..

this is all just general advice as I don't know too much about crohn's and others may be more helpful in catering to your particular situation..

[katrinamaria]

hello!

i'm doing the elimination diet right now. i posted on here a few questions about it and also googled it and found a good site with lots of info. a member here has also helped me a lot with some questions i had. on day 5 i already was feeling really, really good. but i agree with the person above...it could be a problem if you are intolerant to a food that is included in the elimination diet's "allowed foods." just from my own personal experience right now, i would recommend it. i think i was in your same shoes...went gluten free, felt better, but still not feeling GREAT. so do some research and then maybe decide?? good luck

kms