Re: still working on helping my suffering college girl - thanks for any help
10/18/03 09:17 AM
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TessLouise
Reged: 01/21/03
Posts: 540
Loc: Nashville, TN
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Quote:
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
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! ![](/messageboards/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif)
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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