started the SCD diet

Pat · Post by **Pat** » Sun Jan 09, 2011 2:17 pm

It's only been a week or so but it does help. I am doing it without dairy or fruit. Very difficult to get enough calories! I add a lot of olive oil and that helps. I am taking an SCD legal probiotic from GI Pro Health. They don't like any with anything other than the acidolphilus. Mine are the 3 billion one and maybe I will up it as I go. I just made almond milk and maybe I will make almond yogurt if I tolerate the milk. (GI Pro Health has a dairy free yogurt starter) They have recipes galore and lots of advice on how to do this without dairy. Not much advice for me with fructose malabsorption. If one can eat fruit there are many legal fruits. I am hoping that as I heal maybe the fructose malabsorption will go away. I got the book used on amazon so it was not expensive and the websites and forums are very helpful. They have a sister site for autistic children mainly but they do address the dairy free version. It is called pecanbread.com. Don't ask me where they got that name. I have lost a few pounds but they say that is to be expected and I should gain it back as I heal and am able to add more things in to my diet. Just thought I would share this new knowledge!

Pat

tcorbett · Post by **tcorbett** » Sun Jan 09, 2011 4:29 pm

Pat,

I have been SCD for a month now - I tried it last spring too - didn't last too long. I am finally feeling a bit better, symptoms are still there, but years of damage take a lot of time to heal. I have Celiac and MC now.

Have you joined the group BTVC? It's a yahoo group - there are folks there who are dairy free, like us! Also some with fructose malabsorption etc. It's been great also. Did you get the book Breaking The Vicious Cycle? That is the original diet/info book. I've wanted to get the one you are talking about too - I downloaded the free pages - they are super helpful!

How did you make your almond milk? What supplements did you get from GI Pro Health? I want to get their acidophilus too, it's the only SCD and dairy free one I've seen.

I am so happy that you are feeling better - that is FANTASTIC! What were your symptoms? What are you diagnosed with?

Keep up the great work!

Theresa in ME

harvest_table · Post by **harvest_table** » Sun Jan 09, 2011 4:32 pm

Hi Pat,

Best of luck with the SCD and hope you continue to see improvement.

I saw a post mentioning you were dx with prurigo nodularis. Was that prior to your MC DX or after, how did you treat it, how severe was it and how is it now?

I'm just curious.... Take care.

Love,

Joanna

Pat · Post by **Pat** » Sun Jan 09, 2011 8:00 pm

Theresa,

Yes, I bought the original book and joined the BTVC forum. I have not run into any other fructose malabsorption people yet. I feel all alone there. I bought the Scdophilus 3+ from GI Pro Health. I used the recipe from pecanbread for the almond milk. I put 1 1/3 cup blanched almonds in my blender and added 4 c. water and blended for 10 minutes. Then I poured it through a sieve (it didn't remove anything) and then poured the milk through a cloth. That is where all the pulp went. I then squeezed out the remaining milk from the pulp.

My symptoms were gas, bloating, muscle aches, and relentless D. Taking away fructose and fructans took away the gas, bloating, and muscle aches but not the D. That is what I am working on now! My DX is MC (LC & CC) and fructose malabsorption.

So you have been doing SCD for a month - have you noticed improvement? Are you able to eat the fruit and honey? What are your symptoms.

Joanna,

I guess you are thinking of someone else because I have never even heard of prurigo nodularis. Sorry, not me, but thanks for your encouraging words.

Pat

harvest_table · Post by **harvest_table** » Sun Jan 09, 2011 8:47 pm

Pat,

Opps..what I meant to ask about was Granuloma Anulare.

I've read far to many pub-med citations today...my brains tuckered out.

Love,

Joanna

Celie · Post by **Celie** » Sun Jan 09, 2011 9:05 pm

Hi Pat,
I tried the SCD hoping to be able to stop Entocort, but I was unable to do so. I wish you the best with it. I had the Enterolab testing done and now avoid the foods on the sensitivity list. I tried the diet because I had a friend who was very successful controlling her son's Crohn's symptoms with the diet. I hope it works well for you!

If you can tolerate the coconut milk, it has a lot of calories. It is a sort of advanced food, but it is chemically ok for the diet.

Good luck! I am rooting for you!

Celie

tcorbett · Post by **tcorbett** » Mon Jan 10, 2011 6:22 am

Pat,

I am sorry, I thought I saw on the other board someone with Fructose Malabsorption - how did you get tested for this, or was it trial and error? That would surely make things more challenging. I do not eat honey much - it just doesn't agree with me. I make my jello and applesauce without it. I only had a little of Honey when I had a bad cough last week, instead of illegal cough drops! I will keep my eyes open for where I saw that someone had Fructose Malabsorption.

The main changes I have noticed, I feel a bit more energy, I am not bloated and crampy. The D has been the same - if I am really good and avoid foods that I tested "allergic" to, my D is not as watery and is more loose. I have to get myself to be really strict. My DO said to give it a good 3 months, some folks have said that a little longer is better, since at 3 months you can have a flare because the stronger bugs are dying off and causing issues. Each day I wake up with a better attitude and striving to keep going on this diet. I do get bored with basic foods. I haven't tried my applesauce yet, I need to see what that does to my system!

From what I've learned, it will take time for the inflammation of the MC to calm down, which will give relief from the D. It can be frustrating to not see changes, because it's all inside - not like being able to hop on the scale and see pounds drop off, which I'd still like to see!!!

I hope you start to feel better. If you don't already, keep a food journal - keep track of your symptoms too. I need to be better at this, it will help to see if a food is causing the D too.

Take care - keep posting questions here and at BTVC too!

theresa

Pat · Post by **Pat** » Mon Jan 10, 2011 6:17 pm

Joanna,

Yes, I did have Granuloma Anulare. I almost forgot all about it. I haven't seen any spots in a very long time. I don't know what to attribute this too but I would guess it has to do with eliminating something I was eating. It wasn't very severe but I did have spots on my feet, legs ( just a few), and the first ones I saw were on my chest about where my right arm connects. They did not itch or anything, just there. It took the derm awhile to figure it out but that was the final dx. He gave me some cream to put on them but it seems that that didn't really help but they just went away later. I kinda forgot about them.

Pat

harvest_table · Post by **harvest_table** » Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:49 am

Pat,

Glad to hear your rash has resolve itself and I agree, your attention to diet has likely eliminated something to help your skin cells settle down.

It's amazing how many folks have skin issues in this group.

Thanks for the update and best wishes on your diet plan- hope you continue to improve daily.

Love,

Joanna

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Tue Jan 11, 2011 12:36 pm

My sister in Hawaii has GA and always seems to have a few spots from it. Luckily it doesn't itch or hurt, it's just unsightly (hers look like ringworm). She has mild IBS and no other medical issues. She thinks it may have been caused by a bee sting.

Pat · Post by **Pat** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 1:48 pm

Zizzle,

My derm told me it was an autoimmune disease, sound familiar? I think when one has an AD one can have others.

Pat

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 4:28 pm

Pat,

I wish you luck on the SCD. I guess I thought you had made more progress than you had, before Xmas. I hope you will post your progress.

I'm the same. Had a bad spell after I was out your way, but it was caused from too many nuts and salad. A few days on Immodium and that took care of it.

Stay warm.
Jan

Pat · Post by **Pat** » Sun Jan 16, 2011 3:30 pm

Ok, well, I couldn't do it any longer. I was starving. Not being able to eat fruit or juice or honey and no dairy just did me in. I was eating only meats and vegetables and lots of fats. I was starving every 2 hours and losing weight. It's great if you want to lose weight I guess. BM's were somewhat better but I couldn't take the starvation feeling. I'm still grain free, dairy free, fructose free and eating white potatoes and buckwheat cereal. I feel much better!

Thanks, Jan, for your words of encouragement. We'll get together some time!

Pat

tcorbett · Post by **tcorbett** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 6:10 am

Pat,

I stopped SCD last week too. When my BP dropped and I was so tired, had heartburn etc. I couldn't do it - haven't told my DO yet.... But, my GI wanted me to consider going back to plain old GF eating. i do feel better - I need to lay off the dairy right now. No heartburn, I don't feel as wiped out, my face doesn't look grey and hollow. I am glad to hear you are feeling better!!! Keep up the great work!

Theresa

Post by **tex** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 10:28 am

Pat and Theresa,

Please don't feel discouraged because you decided not to stick with the SCD. I once tried going without any carbs in my diet, and I didn't last but a few days, before deciding to add potatoes and/or rice back into my diet. The lack of energy, and the taste of ketosis didn't appeal to me.

We all seem to do better on our own, customized diet.

Tex