Should I Keep A Food Diary?

[jester]

I have been paying attention to the way I feel after I eat for the past week and I've noticed a definite difference when I eat gluten-heavy meals. I'll be tired, over-full, my heartburn is worse. Sometimes it's not very noticeable but sometimes it is - like I had a sandwich and a giant brownie Saturday for dinner and was miserable all night. Today I had two grilled cheese for lunch and I feel really bad but not as bad as Saturday night.

I have an appointment on Friday with who I hope will be my new PCP, and I have an appointment in late Oct with a GI doctor.

I'm thinking of keeping a food diary and how I feel after meals. Whether or not it's celiac disease it might be helpful in diagnostics. What do you guys think? How long should I keep it for? Would it be worth taking to either or both of those appointments?

Since I've never met this new doctor I don't want to barge in and overwhelm her with my suspicions, but at the same time if it could help I want to do it.

Sorry my posts are always so long. I feel like I need to say EVERYTHING! Oops.

[MaryJones2]

Absolutely! And don't just look at what you ate last. Take a look back a few days and see if you can see patterns there too. Sometimes reactions are delayed and it may not necessarily be the last thing you ate. Good luck!

[jester]

Thanks.

I got the idea when it was suggested that I'm just a really bad vegetarian and that's why I feel sick. I mean, I AM a bad vegetarian: processed food and carbs way more than fruits and veggies. But I don't think that would account for all of my symptoms like dizziness and constipation, just the gas and lethargy, maybe. (And I can't help being suspicious of chronic C while on a high-fiber diet!)

Would it be worth taking to the appointment on Friday or just keep charting for when I go to the GI?

[mushroom]

If you are going to the doctor to discuss your suspicions about your digestive issues, it always helps to have some information to back up those suspicions. So I would definitely take it.

[gf-soph]

A food diary is completely invaluable, I think anyone with ongoing problems should be keeping one. I am currently on an elimination diet, so have been keeping a detailed diary. You record exactly what you ate and time of day, then also write notes about any symptoms over the day, and a severity score for each.

Even if your dr isn't that interested in it, a good dietician can tell a lot from a well kept diary. This is important as a lot of food reactions can be cumulative over differnent foods and meals, and you can have food reactions happen a day or two after the problem food.

I would keep it as long as you need to. Not only can you get good information, but it's also helpful when things improve that you know exactly what was going on - it's very easy to forget over time.