What Easy To Digest Foods Should My Wife Eat?

[Rudi]

My wife has been having the following symptoms for a number of years: bloating, gas, severe stomach pain, cramps, etc...she is lactose intolerant, iron deficient which she has been given iron meds to bring the iron levels to normal. We recently married and fortunately my medical insurance is good and we starting seeing a GI doctor. Last week she underwent a endoscopy and colonoscopy...doctor said her intenstines were fine, and we are waiting for the biopsy results which we should get this week. In the mean time, my wife and I have been via trial and error eliminating dairy foods/products, she eats a lot of high fiber foods, fruits and vegetables, but everything we try seems to aggravate her symptoms, even if she is not eating, she feels the symptoms...we are frustrated and I really want to figure out what she can eat in the mean time while we get the results if she has celiac disease (we feel she does, but need to know for sure).....what kinds of easy to digest food can she eat????

She is accustomed to eating wheat bread with fiber and sandwhiches to work, and salads, fruits??? I know that gluten is a protein found in grains, but maybe we can eliminate this from her diet, but what can she eat??? Help please!

does anybody have a recommendation for: breakfast, lunch and dinner and what she can take to work?? Thanks in advance!

[jlr]

I am sorry to hear of your wife's GI distress. When I was first diagnosed, I lived on grilled chicken, rice, baked potatos, canned peaches, applesauce and water.

To help soothe my stomach, I also drink a cup of peppermint tea after each meal. This has helped significantly with the cramps and bloating.

Good Luck.

Janet

[LDJofDenver]

Did they also do blood panel to test for celiac disease, and not just relying on the biopsy (there can be false negatives with biopsies)?

In the meantime, applesauce, mashed potatoes -- the keep it simple approach.

There are gluten free breads, so I'll typically have a scrambled egg and a piece of toast for breakfast. An applesauce cup as mid morning snack (or an afternoon snack). Maybe Progresso Chicken & Wild Rice soup for lunch, or a small salad with cubed chicken or tuna in it. I like Lundberg Rice crackers, to have with soup or salad. Sometimes I make a dish of cooked rice, peas, and sliced chicken, with some chicken broth (gluten free broth, of course!) -- and that will make several nice sized lunches. I still can't eat a lot of nuts (and it's been a year since diagnosis), but find peanut butter to be just fine so I keep a few packets of Justin's honey peanut butter in my desk -- sometimes add that to the rice crackers. Keep bouillion in my desk as well, find that to be a soothing afternoon snack.

Ginger is good for calming the stomach. You can buy small bags of candied, cubed baby ginger root (I'm sure you can even get ginger capsules, if you don't like the taste of ginger)- have a piece or two of that with a cup of tea. Green teas are particularly soothing, I find.

I hope you get some answers with your wife's test results, I wish her well.

[Rudi]

Did they also do blood panel to test for celiac disease, and not just relying on the biopsy (there can be false negatives with biopsies)?

In the meantime, applesauce, mashed potatoes -- the keep it simple approach.

There are gluten free breads, so I'll typically have a scrambled egg and a piece of toast for breakfast. An applesauce cup as mid morning snack (or an afternoon snack). Maybe Progresso Chicken & Wild Rice soup for lunch, or a small salad with cubed chicken or tuna in it. I like Lundberg Rice crackers, to have with soup or salad. Sometimes I make a dish of cooked rice, peas, and sliced chicken, with some chicken broth (gluten free broth, of course!) -- and that will make several nice sized lunches. I still can't eat a lot of nuts (and it's been a year since diagnosis), but find peanut butter to be just fine so I keep a few packets of Justin's honey peanut butter in my desk -- sometimes add that to the rice crackers. Keep bouillion in my desk as well, find that to be a soothing afternoon snack.

Ginger is good for calming the stomach. You can buy small bags of candied, cubed baby ginger root (I'm sure you can even get ginger capsules, if you don't like the taste of ginger)- have a piece or two of that with a cup of tea. Green teas are particularly soothing, I find.

I hope you get some answers with your wife's test results, I wish her well.

Thank you for sharing your outline of your meals. I will share this with my wife and I'm sure she will want to model it. She did have a blood test done and it came back negative. She was told to stay off dairy foods for 2 weeks and the symptoms were not reduced. She went back to eating regular foods, she eats a lot of wheat products, high fiber foods and fruits and vegetables and drinks lots of water. Her symptoms were the same. That's when her GI doctor decided to do an endoscopy and a biopsy. Dr. told her that she was allergic to foods but wasn't sure what and is waiting for results to determine if she has celiac disease. In the mean time, she has been eating soups, salads, some fruits but her symptoms persist and are very painful. She has been missing a lot of days at work because of her pains. She is so frustrated that she doesn't want to eat out of fear that her symptoms will become worse. Thanks again for your advice!

[jststric]

I was lactose intolerant for years and years before other foods kicked in. At first, it was just as you say your wife is....everything digesting badly. I discovered I had what is called a "leaky gut". Basically, lots of holes that couldn't heal becuase of all the foods continuing to keep me "sick". My doc suggested I eat yogurt daily for 2 wks for the acidophilus it has---the good bacteria that is suppose to replenish and keep our intestines healthy. But because of my lactose intolerance, I couldn't eat yogurt. I could easily find supplements, but most of them had casein or milk product in it in some way. I finally stumbled across Kirkman Labs online. They have vitamins/supplements and many have allergen-free options. Not just gluten-free, but many other common allergens. Go to www.kirkmanlabs.com. I took 2 of those daily for 2 weeks. I stuck with things like baked potatoes, grilled chicken, etc. I stayed away from anything that had much fiber to it at all....salads, whole fruit, etc. to give my "gut" time off. I could tell a marked difference in that 2 weeks time. I continue to take 1 pill a day just to keep things as healthy as possible. LITTLE by little I added in more fiberous foods that weren't my intolerant foods. Still too much, too fast will cause some problems, but not near the problems I have when I'm "glutened". Best wishes!! I know the whole family lives with those of us with digestive problems!! You're a peach to try to help!!

[txplowgirl]

First of all, sometimes, the tests will be negative. Even though she has tested negative on the blood test, I am also about positive the biopsy will come back negative as well. That does not mean that she dosen't have a problem with gluten. She may be gluten sensitive. Since she has had her blood tests and biopsy. I would suggest she go gluten free immediately. That means NO WHEAT products at all. No gluten. I bet she has other food allergies as well. I would suggest an elimination diet and keep a food journal.

I would suggest grilled chicken, brown rice, mashed potatoes, applesause, etc

[bluejeangirl]

My wife has been having the following symptoms for a number of years: bloating, gas, severe stomach pain, cramps, etc...she is lactose intolerant, iron deficient which she has been given iron meds to bring the iron levels to normal. We recently married and fortunately my medical insurance is good and we starting seeing a GI doctor. Last week she underwent a endoscopy and colonoscopy...doctor said her intenstines were fine, and we are waiting for the biopsy results which we should get this week. In the mean time, my wife and I have been via trial and error eliminating dairy foods/products, she eats a lot of high fiber foods, fruits and vegetables, but everything we try seems to aggravate her symptoms, even if she is not eating, she feels the symptoms...we are frustrated and I really want to figure out what she can eat in the mean time while we get the results if she has celiac disease (we feel she does, but need to know for sure).....what kinds of easy to digest food can she eat????

She is accustomed to eating wheat bread with fiber and sandwhiches to work, and salads, fruits??? I know that gluten is a protein found in grains, but maybe we can eliminate this from her diet, but what can she eat??? Help please!

does anybody have a recommendation for: breakfast, lunch and dinner and what she can take to work?? Thanks in advance!

Whenever I'm having digestive problems I follow this diet Open Original Shared Link

It seems to help and gives me the guide lines I need. Its basically a bland diet.

Hope that helps,

Gail

[Jana315]

If she's really having trouble with just about everything, look up information on the GAPS diet. It is designed to allow and help heal your digestive system. On bad days, I revert back to that and start with homemade broths - always very soothing to my system. It is really a trial and error, but you'll find some things that she can eat and then slowly add one by one new things to her diet.

[Korwyn]

My wife has been having the following symptoms for a number of years: bloating, gas, severe stomach pain, cramps, etc...she is lactose intolerant, iron deficient which she has been given iron meds to bring the iron levels to normal. We recently married and fortunately my medical insurance is good and we starting seeing a GI doctor. Last week she underwent a endoscopy and colonoscopy...doctor said her intenstines were fine, and we are waiting for the biopsy results which we should get this week. In the mean time, my wife and I have been via trial and error eliminating dairy foods/products, she eats a lot of high fiber foods, fruits and vegetables, but everything we try seems to aggravate her symptoms, even if she is not eating, she feels the symptoms...we are frustrated and I really want to figure out what she can eat in the mean time while we get the results if she has celiac disease (we feel she does, but need to know for sure).....what kinds of easy to digest food can she eat????

She is accustomed to eating wheat bread with fiber and sandwhiches to work, and salads, fruits??? I know that gluten is a protein found in grains, but maybe we can eliminate this from her diet, but what can she eat??? Help please!

does anybody have a recommendation for: breakfast, lunch and dinner and what she can take to work?? Thanks in advance!

Hi Rudi,

Please see my post(s) here: https://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showtopic=61726 as I just finished kinda outlining for someone else somewhat how my daily diet goes including some meal preparation ideas. I cannot eat dairy, soy, or gluten, in any form (and soy seems to be in everything that gluten isn't in), and I react very badly to all artificial sweeteners, sucrose (sugar), maltose (another kind of sugar), and all corn syrup. RAW honey is very good for you in a number of ways and very beneficial to the digestive tract. You will need to find it at a farmer's market or whole foods/health food store though.

Corn tortillas make good sandwich material On another note, have you considered that she may be getting too much fiber? Much of the 'fiber' in our diets is actually the wrong kind of fiber and can act as an irritant, especially if you are gluten and/or dairy intolerant, or if you have a compromised digestive system.

The green drinks I refer to in my other posts, plus a good ongoing healthy regimen of probiotics provide an extremely easy to digest meal as much of the matter is broken down already and eases the work your stomach and upper small intestine have to do to break it down. Just don't blend the probiotics in as the cell walls on the cultures are quite fragile and the point is for them to get into your small intestine intact. Many fruits actually have quite a high acid content, and I find that I can't eat too many of them for an extended period without causing problems. Also eating too much of the same food or same type of food for more than two or three days in a row tends to create problems for me as well.

Additionally, don't mix your fruits and meats. Fruit should not generally be eaten with meat as the enzymatic response to fruit causes your body to have trouble breaking down the meat properly. Try to eat fruit an hour before or two hours after eating something with meat in it. Also read up on gluten and the zonulin enzyme. Open Original Shared Link