Need serious help with elimination diet

I have a lot of digestive issues and just got done with 3 months of tests and doctor visits. The thing that has helped me the most is taking fiber. I also now take a probiotic everyday. It turns out nothing is wrong, well no disease or illness, I just am sensitive to certain things.

If you try an elimination diet only stop eating one thing at a time that you suspect. Go off it for a week then eat or drink that item at the end of the week. If you get sick then you probably need to stay away from it.

Elimination diets suck and they take a long time but for me it worked and I am so happy to finally know what I can eat that won't make me sick.

Hang in there!

I've done the elmination/ challenge diet with wheat, dairy, corn and eggs. You eliminate them completely for 2 weeks and reintroduce them one at a time to see which you react to. Generally you would reintroduce dairy first and wheat 2nd as those are the 2 most likely culprits. Why would you need to avoid? The have little to no gluten. As far as foods, you need to read labels and eliminate anything that has wheat or wheat starch in it. I would also avoid any unspecified "food starch". It could be corn or soy or wheat. You can't tell and you can't risk it. For lactose elimination, just avoid anything with a diary product in it. No yogurt, no cheese, no milk product of any kind. As far as the GasX suggestion, if you are truly reactive to one of these items, this will do nothing but mask symptoms. You need to find the cause and eliminate it from your diet. All other food, meats, fruits veggies are fine. Most grains contain at least some gluten, so, with the exception of your oats, I'd avoid grain and grain products of all kinds.

The only thing I can suggest, is to not do them both at the same time. Do one, if in a month that doesnt work, then add it back in and do the other.

It's like feeding an infant, but in reverse. You add in foods with babies, slowly, over long periods of time, to check for allergies. Ifyou have a wheat or lactose allergy, you'll want to find out which one.

That is not how the elimination/ challenge diet works. You need to clear your system of suspected offending substances and reintroduce to gauge reactivity. What if you elminated only one and it was the wrong one? How would you know? Finding out which one is what she's trying to do.

What i've heard is that you need to eliminate something from your diet for 21 days to get it out of your system, and when you start adding it back in to check reactivity do it in stages. maybe you can tolerate yogurt or cheese but not fluid dairy, maybe oats is fine but not wheat...don't just start eating it all again, start with the one thing you would be the most bummed out about if you couldn't have it. Also, sometimes its about how much or how often you eat the offending food, maybe you can tolerate dairy once or twice a week but not everyday. dont be discouraged, most people have a tolerance level to foods that doesn't require that you give it up entirely forever, you could still be able to enjoy your favorites every once in a while. (there is good dairy free and gluten free alternatives as well, if you can't have wheat its not like you could never have bread again)

We have daughters who struggle with stomach and GI issues. We've tried diets ranging from gluten free to dairy free to red meat free. Finally we went to a holistic doctor that ran tests on our 7yo. Her sensitivies list is depressing at best, and impossible at worst. We started the detox process 2 weeks ago, and will probably detox for another week or two before adding foods back in, one at a time, each one over a two day period, while gauging how she reacts.

Here's a list of what we've currently written off: wheat, soy, corn, grapes, apples, all citrus, pears, prunes/plums, apricots, all dairy, walnuts, pinto beans, coconuts, asparagus.

Imagine trying to do this with kids. Hell, it's hard enough as an adult!

Step one: Read EVERYTHING!!! Nothing goes unread. Anything without an ingredient list gets put back, no exceptions. The devil's in the details. Soy lecithin. Corn sugar. Corn starch. Citric acid. So many little things get items put back on the shelf.

Step two: What's around the house is NOT acceptable!!! It's only there till the diet modifications end. Or until we decided this particular item is forever omitted. Then household items get tossed.

Step three: Everybody must be on board. There's no cheating. This isn't like going low fat or low carb or something, where you can have a cheeseburger on Sunday, then climb back on the wagon on Monday. This is ALL DAY EVERY DAY. This one is particularly tough for the kids, who feel the peer pressure to have that cookie, or the ice cream or cake, or whatever else their friends are having but they can't. Getting the teachers involved has helped tremendously.

Step four: Substitutes work some of the time, but not all of the time. If a favorite food's substitute just doesn't cut it, then so be it. time to move on and find other foods.

Step five: Screw anybody who wants to be dismissive, insulting, judgmental, or in some way difficult. I don't need them, and they can kiss my *kitten*. Help or stay the hell out of the way. But don't think for a minute I'm going to let you add to the stress with your sh!tty attitude.

Step six: This isn't easy. Not for anybody - not the kids, not me, not anybody. Anybody who wants to complain or be fussy or whiny is heard, listened to, understood. Frustrations are always acknowledged. Even my own. It's the only way I know to cope with this and not feel buried by it all. Which, to be honest, I feel buried by it anyway. But not as buried.

Step seven: Allow greater time at the grocery. You've got a lot of reading to do!

Step eight: Eating out doesn't happen. It would be nice, but it just doesn't. There's no restaurant on this planet that fits our dietary needs.

Step nine: Adventure. It's your latest greatest friend. Sometimes we just have to suck it up and try something otherwise insane. Last night we made taco meat with guacamole and salsa, and used lentil chips instead of tortilla chips. The kids loved it. (Thank You God!) Don't be afraid to try something that seems crazy. It may just be your next go to meal!

I hope this helps, and I wish you luck. It can be done, although I've found from experience it's much harder to do while curled up in the fetal position. Good luck.

TriJoe.

You can't eliminate both dairy and wheat at the same time because then you won't know which one is causing problems. If you remove both and you feel better then you'll just think it's both without actually knowing if it's both. When doing an elimination diet, you need to eliminate ONE thing at a time so you know what thing is causing the effect.

And seriousness of what?

Both are easily replaced with similar substitutes. Bread with bread made of rice or corn flour. Dairy with soy or almond milk. The ingredients may change but it's not a big deal. You'll discover a lot of baking recipes.

Btw avoid canned tuna. There is whey added in there so strangely yes, there is dairy in canned tuna.

Okay, please forgive me for being lazy but I'll just answer the major points in one post.

My biggest problem is that in 2 weeks time I'm moving to another country where healthcare is not only expensive but...subpar. My doctor has been faffing about for a good couple of months now - started with 'it's probably constipation' to 'it's probably an irritable bowel' to 'lets run some tests and see what comes up.' I never realised just how bad the bloating was until lately, as I've lost weight (and body fat). There's never been any pain, change in bowel habits or anything of the like. Just a tight, big belly. So I've left myself with no time to find a resolution.

I just don't know where to start.

You may want to read wheat belly too. Celiac doesn't necessarily mean pain, bleeding, or diarrhea. It can just be bloating, which may seem normal for some people. You can eat grain and dairy free in any country. Just buy fresh veggies, fruits, and meats, with some spices and herbs. If the healthcare system isn't great where you are going, then it is important to do everything you can do be your healthiest self.

Have you thought about trying GAS-X or some kind of over the counter Maalox kind of thing? If you really don't want to give up foods or if you are unable to cut back, maybe you should consider that. Also, find out if celiac disease runs in your family.

The doctor prescribed me peppermint oil tablets to take before meals, but they're not having any effect on the bloating. I'm now just burping mint :blushing: And I have blood tests on Wednesday for celiac but I don't think it runs in my family.

Don't cut out wheat until AFTER you're tested for celiac. And if you are tested negative, know that those blood tests are not conclusive (there are a lot of false negatives). I tested negative the first time and suffered another YEAR before being retested. I should've just cut out wheat immediately anyway because I was pretty sure that was what was going on (and now that I've eliminated it, it is REALLY OBVIOUS if I cheat. I don't know if I'd gotten used to feeling like crap or if it just reacts even worse now that I'm off it).

I also recommend going to Pinterest and looking up gluten free: there are a ton of good recipes posted on there. There's also a gluten free/celiac group here on MFP.

I wouldn't eliminate both wheat and dairy. Decide which one you eat more of. I have the same problem and I cut down the wheat and cut out the dairy and go lactose free. I am better. No beans of any kind. They are a killer. How much coffee do you drink. Sometimes that's the offender. If after 2 weeks or even one there no change then do wheat. Don't give up your morning oatmeal. Just buy organic oats they will be gluten free.
Let me know how it goes.
Susan

I wouldn't eliminate both wheat and dairy. Decide which one you eat more of. I have the same problem and I cut down the wheat and cut out the dairy and go lactose free. I am better. No beans of any kind. They are a killer. How much coffee do you drink. Sometimes that's the offender. If after 2 weeks or even one there no change then do wheat. Don't give up your morning oatmeal. Just buy organic oats they will be gluten free.
Let me know how it goes.
Susan

You might want to google the Elimination Challenge Diet. The advise you are giving to only eliminate one at a time is contrary to the protocols of this diet method to identify reactive foods. I've done the diet under the direction of a physician as I'm assuming the OP is. The protocols are very specific for reasons. I mean no disrespect but this is advise based on your anecdotal opinion and not based on facts.