IBDidit Ep 2 FInal?_

In this podcast episode, the hosts discuss the topic of nutrition for individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). They emphasize that they are not dieticians and that everyone's experience with IBD is different. They share their own dietary preferences and foods that they find work well for them. They also discuss foods that they avoid, such as fried foods, dairy, and spicy foods. They mention their favorite nutrition shakes, including Pediasure, Insure, Quest, and Kate Farms. They provide their personal preferences for flavors and discuss the consistency of the shakes. Hi guys, welcome back to the I Really Did It podcast, the one and only podcast ready to spill the tea about IBD. We're your hosts, Nadia and Simona, and we're excited to have you back for another exciting episode. Today we're covering a really important topic, and it's also a popular topic when it comes to IBD, nutrition. We know how crucial and stressful it is to manage our diets when living with IBD. This is just a disclaimer, before we go on, we're definitely not dieticians or anything, so please don't base anything off of what we say, because it's just our perspective and our personal opinions. And what works for us may not work for you. So anyway, let's talk about nutrition. Okay, so Nadia, do you want to go first? Yeah. So talking about variety in our day-to-day diets, if I'm being honest, I feel like it's really hard to find variety in my diet, so I usually stick to the same list of foods and meals. Yeah. And most of these meals include a simple carb, like rice, because some of the gluten can be a little hard, or any gluten-free alternative, meat or seafood, and then veggies, but I try to avoid veggies during a flare, because I feel like they can make it worse. Wait, is it all veggies, or? During a flare, yeah, it's all veggies. Oh, got it, got it. And for breakfast, I usually like to have a big, fat smoothie with probiotics, fruit, and I saw this holistic doctor, and he recommended a bunch of stuff to put in the smoothie, like supplements. Got it. So I put it in there. And yeah, so that's basically my day-to-day diet. I try to stick with simpler foods, because I know all the ingredients, which I feel like isn't necessarily as good as trying different foods and expanding your palate. Yeah. So I guess that's one of my goals, expanding my palate. Yeah. But I just feel like I have a super sensitive stomach, and I don't know if you guys can relate, but I always feel scared when trying new foods. So what about you? So I can kind of relate to that, but I feel like, because I also have clevis, it's a little different. There's obviously not that much variety, but it's still better than before when I first got it. Yeah. So basically, I'm just going to give like a breakdown of what I would have. Okay, great. So for breakfast, I'd probably have either like a smoothie with typically like banana, or strawberry, and I can't have lactose, so I try to stay away from it. So I have like coconut yogurt, or like almond milk, and stuff like that. That sounds yummy. I know, it's so good. I have it like almost every morning. And then I have eggs. I either have scrambled, hard-boiled, sunny-side up, whatever I'm feeling at the moment. Yep. And then I have waffles. Oh my god, my dad makes these bomb waffles. They're so good. Oh my god, I love waffles. He uses oat flour or something, or rice flour, and then it's all good ingredients too. I don't have any sugar in it. It's just like honey, which I love honey. Same. I have honey in my smoothie. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so I really like honey, and just like a bunch of great things into the waffles. And I also have coconut whipped cream. We found some really solid items, but it's like so great. I'm just like inspiration for that. Yeah, yeah. And then I might have like some fruits, and bananas, or grapes, or something like that. And then for lunch, I'd either have like a sandwich, like either ham or chicken, or peanut butter and jelly. I love peanut butter and jelly. Same. Or maybe I'd have a pasta. And I totally stay away from gluten, so it's kind of like, I have this one pasta brand, and it's like a chickpea pasta. And it's so good. And then I have like the white sauce, and peas, and broccoli, and things like that. Yeah, I always say it looks so good. And then snacks that I have are like tortilla chips, or like Nature Valley bars, or nuts, because like I'm not allergic to nuts, so I can have nuts, or protein shakes, and things like that. For dinner, I probably have either fish with mashed potatoes, and homemade fries and vegetables. Or I'm Indian, so we have like a bunch of, there's this thing called dal, and it's like lentil soup, kind of. So we have that with roti, which is like a tortilla, kind of. Yeah, I love roti. I know, it's so good. And it's just like easy to digest, too. Yeah, yeah. And also, one of my favorite dinners, I have tacos. My dad makes them like almost every Sunday. It's so, so, so, so, so good. That sounds so good. I know, it's really good. I want to come to your house and try it. When I say it out loud, it sounds less restrictive than it is, but that's because I definitely have gotten better and been in remission. But all the stuff that I typically eat is homemade, unless we order takeout like once in two weeks or something. So thanks to my grandma and my dad for making all that food for me. It's so good. And then about variety, I'm not necessarily scared to try foods, but I feel like I'm a little bit scared if something looks a little too like junk food-y, that it might mess up my stomach. But I'm not scared. I know exactly what you mean. Yeah, yeah. Okay, so speaking of that, let's move on to our next question, which is what foods we can't eat and notice that bother us. Nadia, do you want to go first? Yeah. Okay. So for me, I've noticed fried foods, which kind of goes along with processed foods, like you said, or junk foods, and foods with just a lot of oil in general. My stomach just has a full fit when I eat oily fried foods. Yeah. I also feel like dairy can be difficult, like you said, lactose. Yeah. I'm not sure if it's the lactose or dairy itself or the creaminess of it, kind of relating to the process. Yeah, yeah, I don't know. Yeah. But that usually makes me super nauseous. One big thing, too, is fiber, like I mentioned before, so veggies and fruits. And some greens like quinoa. Those are a major no-go for me during a flare because they just make the pain a lot worse and the symptoms worse. Yeah, because they're so small and they just like, I don't know, hurt your stomach. For me, they just hurt a lot. Yeah. This is really specific, but when I have too many carrots, my stomach cannot handle it, even on a normal day without a flare. Yeah. The sad thing is I am such a fruit girl. I love fruits. Mangoes, strawberries, grapes sign me up. I know this might be controversial, but sometimes I feel like it's worth the occasional pain to eat the fruit. Yeah, I see what you're saying. Yeah. Yeah. The pain that I can handle, you know? Yeah, yeah, obviously. It's not harmful. Yeah. So, yeah, I don't know if that's harmful or bad, but I think it's good for the soul sometimes. That is so fact. So for me, kind of same, fried foods, I try to stay away from. I'd have pan-fried foods sometimes in moderation. Yeah. I'd have pan-fried French fries, which kind of doesn't work, but you know what I mean. Or sometimes I have chips and French fries, like normal ones. And then I stay away from spicy foods because anything spicy really is like a no-go for me at all. Same. I think it just burns. I don't know what it does, but it like burns my stomach and it hurts. I literally feel it burning. Yeah, me too. And then I also stay away from dairy too. I eat cheddar cheese, but other cheeses like American cheese or like mozzarella cheese are not the greatest for me. And I typically have substitutes for yogurts. I know yogurt is a probiotic, which is good for you, but the yogurts I have are like nut yogurt, oat yogurt, you know, those kinds of coconut yogurt. And then I have this really good ice cream. I'll talk about it later. Cool. It's dairy-free and it's so good. Okay. And then I have these foods that I don't need to stay away from, but I like to stay away from because I don't think they're the best for me. First is tomatoes. I don't know why. Something about them. Do you like citrus? Like citrus in general? I don't know if it's happened when I have oranges or anything like that, but maybe it is. I'm not sure. And then seeds, because like you were saying, seeds are just not, like, working well. They're just hard to digest. Yeah, I know. And then too much junk food, we were talking about, and anything with not natural sugar. Yeah. Like granulated sugar, confectioner's sugar, like other stuff like that. Uh-huh. Yeah. But sometimes I do have those things, obviously, because I think, in my opinion, everything in moderation is okay, because you need to just feel good sometimes. You need to give your craving what it needs. Exactly. That is so true. Yeah. So the next question is about nutrition shakes, if anyone knows what those are. They're these drinks where they're protein drinks that a lot of people have because they cannot get the nutrition they need from other foods. So there are so many different types of brands and types that we have tried some of them. We're going to talk about them. Yeah, we're going to talk about which ones we like. So do you want to go? Yeah. So basically I've tried both Pediasure and Insure, which are two of the brands. There are more. Uh-huh. And I prefer Insure. I don't know if it's because I just associate Pediasure with the hospital or I'm just that type of person that finds alternatives fun and stuff that's different from what's recommended to me. You're so different. But I insisted to my mom on getting Insure. I feel like Pediasure is too sweet for me, but I know some people really like Pediasure. So it's definitely up to you. My favorite flavor of Insure is strawberry. I became obsessed with it for a while. After having vanilla for a long time, I kind of got bored of it, but vanilla is really good. And for me, I feel chocolate is too strong, but it's definitely still fire. That's controversial. Chocolate is my favorite of Insure by far. But the other ones I've tried, I've tried Quest, Insure, and Kate Farms. Insure is definitely my favorite because I think the consistency just makes it feel like an actual drink. It's so good. I know. Because Kate Farms, it's really thick in my opinion, and it feels like a mix between a drink and a soup. I know that sounds disgusting, but it is kind of disgusting in my opinion. And I remember I had Quest, but I don't remember it. But I remember I just did not like it. And then for the flavors, strawberry, I used to really like strawberry-flavored milk and stuff, but now it just seems really artificial to me, and I don't like that. I don't know. I love how we're off of it. Yeah, we're literally off of it. And vanilla kind of gives me like a milky taste. I don't really like that. And so my favorite is obviously chocolate because chocolate is the best one. I don't know what you're talking about. But yeah. And the drink I drink right now is Insure Max Protein Milk Chocolate Flavor. Yes. Okay, so now we're going to talk about what we eat at school and what that's like. Simona, do you want to go first? Of course. So basically I feel sometimes that since UC is less synchronous, you might feel different, but I feel like I have less restrictions. I always bring my main meal home for lunch at school, and I typically bring snacks from home throughout the day that I can eat. And there's a joy in going to the cafeteria and getting something to eat. So I do that sometimes. It's not the best, but what I get is like cookies sometimes, and there's gluten-free ones. Yeah, that's really nice. I know. Our cafeteria is so bomb for having that. And sometimes I get Cheez-Its or crackers, and then I get grapes or bananas. So it's not like too much junk food, but I'm still getting things from the cafeteria. And I know I should probably be a little more careful because I know the cafeteria food is not the healthiest, but I just like to, you know, have some fun sometimes. It's so fun. I know. And also, like how we feel when we're eating. I know some people might feel like judged by it, but I feel like bringing it from home is fine. I'm not like that embarrassed to do it or anything. But the only thing I hate doing is sitting at my lunch table alone because everyone else is in the cafeteria. I know. And I'm literally sitting there alone, and I look so awkward, and it's just like crazy. I know exactly. It sucks. I get so excited when I see you. I know. I get so excited. I'm like, oh, my God, thankfully somebody's here. But, yeah. What about you? I always thought eating differently than my friends would become easier. But if I'm being honest, it really hasn't. I kind of hate bringing my lunch from home because it means I don't go to the cafeteria to buy food with my friend, like Simona said. Yeah. Which is really fun. And I sometimes get snacks, and I really miss doing that. And I don't like feeling different and being the only one who brings food from home. But I do have some friends that do that, like Simona. Yeah. Which is really nice. Sometimes when I forget my lunch from home, I eat food from the cafeteria. And when I do, I try to read everything on the food labels. Yeah. Which can be stressful, especially when you're with friends and you don't want to keep them waiting. Yeah, yeah. And you want to seem like a go-with-the-flow person. So, I remember a couple weeks ago, last time I ate food from the cafeteria, it bothered me so much. Even though that doesn't usually happen, the extent to which it bothered me. I don't know if it was my ABD or if I got another stomach problem, but I spent the rest of the afternoon laying on the couch with stomach pain and feeling super nauseous. Oh, my gosh. Are you okay now? Yes, much better. Okay, that's good. But I have to say, the food was absolutely bomb. Even with all that pain, it was still good. Now, moving on to restaurants and eating out. We're going to talk about what we eat from restaurants, what kind of restaurants we eat and we look for. So, do you want to go first? Yeah, I can go first. Okay. So, basically, I have begun to try more things from different restaurants, but obviously I still have restrictions. So, for example, when I'm ordering, I typically ask for no chilies or toppings or chilies on the side and things like that. And I also tend to stay away from more complex food and stay towards more plain foods because I'm not sure what restaurants do with the foods and how they make it or anything. Yeah, that's so real. Yeah. And the types of restaurants I really like going to are like Mediterranean or Greek restaurants. Mmm, yummy. They're so good. Japanese, I love Japanese. I love sushi so much. Yes. And then sometimes like Thai food, but it depends because Thai food can also be like oily and stuff. But if I were to go to a Thai restaurant, I'd get like pineapple rice and like chicken skewers and things like that. That sounds so good. Yeah, I know. I really want Thai right now. And I try to stay away from like American restaurants or like fast foods because I definitely know those are like not the best for me. Yeah. And one of my favorite foods to get at a restaurant is definitely fish. Me too. I know, fish is the best thing for us. Yeah. It's perfect. So just like some restaurant suggestions if anyone wants them, Go Fish Pokey Bar is so good. I love Pokey so much. It's so good. And Nobu, it's a little more expensive, but it's so, so good. And it has great sushi. Yeah. Yeah. And typically I'll find something to eat in most restaurants. And this is all in the U.S. Oh, yeah. But I think, sorry. And typically if I'm trying to find something at restaurants, I definitely can because they'll most likely have a fish option. So I'll just end up getting that. Yeah. But, yeah. Nadia, do you want to go? Yeah. Okay. So I'm usually that person that orders all the boring dishes, I have to say. I've kind of embraced that a little bit. Yeah. But it's not that fun. I like to look for things that are less oily, like Simona said, and sometimes order things with less sauce or ask for the sauce on the side because I never know what's in it and if it'll bother me. I also love Greek restaurants because I feel like they have flavorful food that's still simple. Yeah. And certain Asian ones where I can order simple things. And I really love sushi. Me, too. Just like Simona. The meat is actually the best food. Like even before I had IBD, I loved sushi. Me, too. Yeah. So those are all the restaurants where I feel like it isn't hard to find something to eat, and I'm sure there's more, too, that I'm forgetting. Yeah. But, yeah. Okay, so the next question we're going to ask for is what any special diets we've tried are or any specific brands we like. Nadia is going to talk more about the diets, and I'm going to talk more about the brands because… It just reflects their personal experiences. Yeah, exactly. So let's start with the special diets. Okay. So I've tried the Mediterranean diet, and I'm still kind of on it, and I honestly really love it. It goes along well with the types of foods that my mom cooks at home because we're Middle Eastern, and I love seafood. Your household has the best foods ever. I remember I came over once, and, oh, my God, you guys had such good food. Oh, my gosh. Thank you. That's so sweet. You literally invited me over so much. Yeah. So I love seafood, which helps a lot, and I found foods that treat my stomach well in the Mediterranean diet, and I feel like it still has some flexibility. Because even things you're supposed to avoid, like red meat, you can still have one or two times a week, which is crazy, and like pasta, too. Yeah. I've also tried the IBS diet, also known as the low FODMAP diet, before I was diagnosed with IBD because my doctor and my mom recommended it to me thinking that it may help me and that I may have IBS. I'm going to be totally honest. I hated it. Oh, my God. It was so, so, so restrictive, especially not being able to have garlic and onions. Oh, my gosh. I remember when you being like, oh, I can't have garlic, I can't have onion, and you, like, looked so, like, sad about saying that. It was so bad because those are, like, the main ingredients in every single meal. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. And it's super hard to find things without garlic and onion when you go out. We can talk more about that later. But, obviously, the restrictions include a lot more than those two, but I found those to be especially hard. Yeah. It's only meant for someone to be on for, like, a couple weeks, but I was on it for months and months because we couldn't change any factors in my diet when we were trying new treatment options. Mm-hmm. So I would say that definitely before you go on a diet, make a plan for when you're starting and when you're stopping and different steps you will take to slowly come off of it so you don't get stuck on it for months and months like me. Yeah. Again, this is an IBS on an IBD diet, but I just thought I would mention it because, according to research, it's found in 40% to 60% of people with IBD, which is really, really crazy. Yeah. Wait, do you know the difference between IBD and IBS? I know it, but I kind of don't. So IBD is obviously really serious. Mm-hmm. It can cause serious health problems. IBD is, like we mentioned in the first episode, like, inflammation, which causes ulcers. Yeah. IBS is just abnormal contractions of your colon or small intestine. Oh, got it. That causes pain. Got it, got it. Okay, so now we're going to talk about the brands, or I'm going to talk about brands that I like because I have so many different suggestions. Mm-hmm. So one of my favorite brands for dairy products, I don't know how to say it, but it's Calafia Farms. It's spelled C-A-L-I-F-I-A and then farms, and I typically get almond milk from there or sometimes yogurt, but it's so good. I think I've tried it. I think you might have. It's so good. It's pretty popular. The almond milk is amazing. I know. It's really good. And then another one I have, which I literally brought to lunch today, is Banza, I think, or Banza, I don't know. It's B-A-N-Z-A, and it gives this amazing chickpea pasta that literally tastes like regular pasta. Ooh, I should definitely try that. You should definitely try it. It's so good. And then Bob's Red Mill. Ooh. It's a flour kind of company. Okay. And so there's oat flour that I have from there or white rice flour, where they're basically just, I don't know, I think they, like, grind those different substances and they make into a flour. It's really cool. Yeah. And then the last brand that I have is So Delicious, and I love it so, so, so, so, so much. Like, you don't understand how much I love it. It's so delicious. Exactly. It's so delicious. I typically get coconut milk, yogurt from there, and ice cream. Oh, my God. I need to put you guys on. There's this ice cream bar called the Dairy-Free Vanilla Bean Coconut Milk Ice Cream Sandwiches. That's a really long name. They are so, so good. I actually cannot live without them. And obviously, they have a little sugar in them, but they don't affect my stomach that much at all. Wait, that's crazy. Literally, I'll send you a link. That sounds, like, perfect. I'll send you a link. I might even put the link in the description. It's that good. Yeah. But, yeah, that's basically one of the brands that I like, and that's the diets that Nadia has tried. Mm-hmm. So that's a wrap for today's episode. Don't forget to DM us on Instagram at the IBD Did It Podcast with 1D, and email us at the IBD Did It Podcast at gmail.com. Both of those are also in our description, and we would love to hear from you. Remember, we're all in this together. We hope you guys enjoyed this episode. See you soon.