Eating with stricture - what should I avoid?

Morning all. I'd love some advice please. I have just spent about 10 (successful) weeks on Modulen dealing with a very bad Crohn's flare. At the beginning of May I need to start introducing food. Previously I have followed the Lofflex diet very well, it was only a period of intense stress last year that unraveled things. I only have 157cm of small gut left and have a narrowing - which may have been partly inflammation and partly scar tissue. Now that the inflammation has gone, they want to see if I can tolerate eating. I know a lot of us have strictures and are able to live with them. I want to make sure I avoid any food which is going to give me a problem. I can't face any more emergency admissions into hospital with partial blockages. I will start one food at a time - with things like fish, rice, carrot soup, chicken, rice cakes, etc. From all your experiences is there anything I must absolutely steer well clear of and any really "safe" foods. To date I have tried a little bit of fish, with no ill effects. I am really grateful for any advice you have, I know this is the best place to come and my dietician, whilst helpful, is a bit inexperienced. Thanks again. Liz

Anything with fiber is dangerous but soft, mushy, liquid foods should be safe as a general rule of thumb

I echo staying away from fibre, this was the advice of my GI and surgeon while mI was waiting for surgery for a stricture. The surgeon noted it was important to get enough protein also.

Yeah, with strictures they usually suggest to stick with a low residue diet.
This is many times opposed to the general recommendation ... but this is us.
So I'd recommend white rice and white bread ; grilled/baked chicken ; veggies only well steamed or cooked ; be very careful with fruits - always peel them and dont eat too much, stick with low fibre fruits.
Bread is sometimes bett tolerated when toasted.

TOTALLY AVOID nuts, peanuts, seeds etc !

Eat small to mid-size meals. If you eat too much you regret it later for sure.

Some of us use juicing a low-fibre replacement for veggies/fruits menu; when fresh it may provide you with plenty of the vitamins and minerals ina liquid form.
You may want to check out the juicing forum we have got here.

What else ? ahhh... well, sometimes scar tissue is not a good friend of greasy food. But that you'll find out how much you can tolerate ....

Good luck with your new diet I hope it helps you get back to normal

Thanks for the advice. I am going to start introducing small amounts of food, so won't eat a lot at once. And probably if I can get to 50% food and 50% Modulen, I'll stick with that for a while so I'll definitely get the vitamins and minerals I need with the Mod. Do you all avoid red meat - I used to eat beef and lamb and both were well tolerated. My last partial obstruction came after eating broccoli soup, but the broccoli wasn't very well broken down and I think it was too much. I will take it VERY steady and hope I can learn to live with it, the thought of more surgery is not very welcome.

Eating a small steak sent me to the hospital with an obstruction for 5 days. When I feel that my last meal did not go through completely I drink Ensure half a bottle it always goes down easy.

I avoid anything high fiber or heavy on my stomach, for example Mexican food. Raw vegetables avoided too.

I have steadily lost some weight, taking 2 bottles of Ensure a day. Works great for me.

Hi There! I am currently waiting to get in to the surgeon for a consult and to schedule my third bowel resection. For me, what my intestines could handle a few months ago and what they can take now is totally different. I used to be able to eat just about any cooked veggie, now I'm very limited. My words of advice, if you want to try something - take a few bites and chew it well. If you tolerate it, then you can try a little more next time, but definitely limit the amount of anything that is risky. Also, it depends on how it is prepared.

For me, I can't even eat white rice now, unless it is cooked with too much water and is mushy. Chicken can be a no go, while beef is ok in very small amounts. Dried out chicken, or too charred on the grill, my body doesn't like. Marinated, medium-well, tender beef, I have ate a few bites of without pain/blockage.

Safe foods are eggs, cooked potatoes, bananas, pasta (limited amounts), chocolate, ice cream, cottage cheese, cheese, dumplings, creamy soups...

I love cooking, so it kills me not to make full meals and cook with colorful, tasty foods. I started making my soups as I normally would, but strain out the ingredients I can't eat (celery, onions, thyme, basil), then put the broth back on and add in what I can eat (carrots, peeled potatoes). When I grill chicken kabobs, I'll put all veggies on in between the meat for flavor, and just pass off anything (read: just about everything) that I can't eat.

Today for a family cookout, I volunteered to make potato salad. I am making a big bowl as normal, then a small bowl for myself. In mine I am only putting in the peeled potatoes, eggs, and dressing.

So... Listen to your body and follow your instincts. Everyone is different. I think it depends on where the stricture is located, how long it is, and how severe the narrowing is.

Edit: My stricture is at the site of my previous two resections, at the terminal ileum. I have no active Crohn's, and have tried dilation without success. Everything runs through my system very quickly, unless taking Imodium, which I no longer can take because of the stricture severity.

I avoid nuts, salad and anything with seeds. I chew everything very well. I won't swallow steak but sometimes if I really crave it I will just chew it. I know that sounds gross but I do it privately. Oh and I don't eat skins from anything. Potatoes or Apple skins..,I peel my fruit. If I have popcorn I am in pain for a week so just not worth it. Hope this helps. This is just me. Not what doctor said to me.

For me the no no's are cellulose matter, i.e. vegetables. Mushrooms are the worst! Look at the cell walls of the veg, if there are large amounts of cellulose cell walls , avoid. Some veg, if well cooked, mushy, may go through.
Everyone is different. My Gastro consultant says his Crohn's patients are a pain as each of them is totally unique, no one has the same as the others, each one reacts differently to diets and treatment, he sometimes wishes he were a cardio consultant, as if a patient presents with a heart problem, then 99% of the time a specific treatment regime always works, but no such luck with Crohn's.
I have had Crohn's for 56 years, and it is still evolving and changing, and I have to learn to adapt and modify my habits constantly if I am going to avoid an ileostomy.
Good luck, and don't let the the Crohn's win.

Call me crazy but I really do like Ramen noodles.

Seedy peppers that leave residue have caused trouble with my stricture.

The Real MC said:

Seedy peppers that leave residue have caused trouble with my stricture.

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I try to avoid things with seed altogether. And nuts for that matter.