Friend with very restricted diet staying

Careful_with_that_Axe

I have a chicken carcass in making stock as we speak/type. Hadn't thought of spinach before it was mentioned earlier but also thought of pea shoots and mange tout etc. She was going to be asking the Consultant today if she could have tomatoes as she loves them and it'll certainly extend the possible menus.

We'll be talking before she heads down here so will clarify that all green veg is OK. Must admit I'm partial to a bit if fish baked in the oven with various veg and lemon so I will enjoy that meal too!

415SanFran

Good idea about the fruit and toms, but any teeny seeds really hurt and literally graze my insides.
Make extra care that all pips are removed, funnily enough the smaller the pip (kiwi, raspberry, toms are the main offenders) the more pain they seem to cause.

Thank you for asking, I am the opposite to your friend and tend not to eat a lot of anything so am underweight most of the time, unless I am on steriods then I bloat up and tend to eat the 2 min rice. ( I hate cooking as well so that doesn't help things)

Broomstick

Fruit can go well in salads.

Do the eggs have to be hard-boiled or is the issue that they should not be cooked with any fats? If so, a poached egg with black pepper is nice on top of a green salad (ie a hot and cold salad), or an egg could be put on a bed of wilted spinach if she's allowed that. Or maybe, if you have a non-stick pan and keep a close eye on the cooking (cooking it at a lower heat than usual?) you could try making a frittata type omelette with bits of green veg in it.

A small portion of stewed fruit eg plums, or a baked eating apple (for sweetness) might make a change from eating raw fruit.

I hope things go well for her.

Careful_with_that_Axe

I'm not sure whether the boiled eggs is so they aren't cooked with fat. That being said, I was taught by an antipodean friend to fry an egg in water, so that could be an option.

Lots of ideas here. Thank you. I'll lket you know what I cook and whether she enjoys it or not!

415SanFran wrote: »

Thank you for asking, I am the opposite to your friend and tend not to eat a lot of anything so am underweight most of the time, unless I am on steriods then I bloat up and tend to eat the 2 min rice. ( I hate cooking as well so that doesn't help things)

I feel your pain! I've been on steroids for 5 years and, despite trying to be careful about food, have put on nearly 4 stone in that time.

Merry_Wanderer

Big lettuce leaves are good as 'wraps' for a filling.
Not sure if Nori (sea vegetable) sheets would be allowed, but they are good too for this too.

I make my own 'ice cream' lollies by basically making a banana smoothie (banana plus a little water) (I add cocoa, but I'm sure it could be flavoured with something else too) and pour into a lolly mould or silicon cake-cases, and freeze.

bluedog

I've read this thread with a great deal of interest as I was put on a very restricted diet for almost a year due to colonic strictures. I hope you don't mind me posting here, but I thought it may help others to understand from a restricted-dieter's perspective. (including any readers in the future.)

It was thought I had crohns due to symptoms and test results, but the strictures turned out to be a very rare side effect from taking NSAID anti-inflammatory drugs (Diclofenac in my case, but includes over-the-counter drugs such as ibuprofen.)

After being hospitalised for a bowel blockage I was put onto a low residue diet, which basically is only foods that have and produce very little bulk and with absolutely minimal fibre. The only veg allowed was peeled potato, no fruit apart from juice with no bits in and no herbs or spices - but could have things like chocolate, jelly and angel delight in abundance! Everything had to be well cooked, so meat was like shoe leather or disintegrating .... and tasteless. Although pasta and rice were allowed, I found they caused me problems, likewise most of the other options permitted as time went on. (I never thought I'd reach a point of craving for savoury foods!!)

Eventually, it got to the point that cheese, potato and egg were my "safe" foods so its been a major relief to have the surgery to remove the strictures as although I still have to be careful of what I eat, I am now able to take a more or less normal diet again.

Its great you are taking the time and trouble to help and make meals your friend can have and am sure she really appreciates it. Likewise everyone making suggestions here.

Once grasping I wasn't being faddy, people around me tried to help with recipe suggestions but all usually included no-no foods. Invites out dried up if eating was likely as I'd have to know where we'd be having the meal to see if there was anything on the menu I could have - and usually not. Also, people were either too embarrassed to eat in front of me, or felt guilty because I couldn't share the meal fully.

Personally it didn't bother me if anyone ate in front of me or what it was because I looked at food as to whether it was going to cause me pain or not. Having gone through 8 months of bowel blockaging before getting diagnosed, it was an easy decision to make!! The pain was horrendous and I never, ever want to experience that again.

Having been ill with all this for a number of years, I feel like a different person and the light is finally emerging at the end of the tunnel. I've met some fantastic people through various crohns websites and the suffering they go through is unbelievable and how it impacts on daily life.

I sincerely hope everything goes well with your friend and wish her all the best. Having such good friends and family giving support will help her no end too.

VfM4meplse

Easypeasy! Soup for lunch, and curry for dinner. Use plenty of ginger, garlic and spices to make your dishes taste interesting. I think the restriction on veggies is completely OTT considering it is pre-bariatric surgery, I would be using her stay as an excuse to go mad at the vegetable market.

Severe CD and a BMI worthy of bariatirc surgery don't add up btw, given that the predominantly debilitating symptom is diarrhoea. Most Crohn's patients can't retain their food, storing excess calories is never the issue.

xXLauraXx

I've watched one of my friends go through a very similar experience, we made a lovely lemon and black pepper sauce to go over some grilled chicken on a bed of 'green' salad. Its something i still eat now too, so tasty.

As someone else suggested, tyr some different fish, for cheapness, we tend to buy Dabs as for £1.50 or so we get enough to feed both of us and 2 children. Can she have prawns? What about cod and prawn parcels to just add a bit of variety, cook the veg in with it too, so they almost steam themselves.

Hope this helps, if i think of anything else i'll post some more

415SanFran

Silly question but what are Dabs?

xXLauraXx

They are a flat fish, we've found them in Sainsburys and Morrisons before.