When first diagnosed with Gastroparesis (GP), it can feel impossible to actually eat healthy due to all the food restrictions. Going on 2 1/2 years of having GP, I have gone from not knowing how to eat, what to eat or what general diet I should follow, to finally being comfortable every day at meal time. How did I do this? Patience and hard work.
Before we dive in, what are the basic dietary guidelines for a GP patient? A few articles I found had them listed as...
Eat smaller, more frequent meals
Eat less fatty foods
Avoid fiber
Avoid foods that cannot be chewed well
Foods that are generally encouraged include:
Breads, cereals, crackers, ground or pureed meats
Vegetables – cooked and, if necessary, blenderized/strained
Fruits – cooked and, if necessary, blenderized/strained
Juices, beverages, milk products, if tolerated
Small, frequent meals
Another article listed:
Here’s a list of foods that might make your gastroparesis discomfort worse:
carbonated beverages
alcohol
beans and legumes
corn
seeds and nuts
broccoli and cauliflower
cheese
heavy cream
excess oil or butter
Other foods to avoid are raw vegetables and red meat (or meat at all, for many). As you can imagine, the basic guidelines out there limit a large amount of healthy foods, ones that are packed with nutrients we need to survive and live healthy. With this, our diets can be limited even more if we have previous allergies or an intolerance such as dairy or gluten.
The question of how to eat healthy when you have GP has come up recently on my Instagram account. How can we possibly eat healthy when so much of the healthy food out there is cut from our diets? Foods that can help heal your gut include many of what we're not allowed to eat, how can we fix our gut when we aren't able to eat healing foods? These questions have made me wonder myself quite a bit the last couple weeks as I thought; How can I make sure I am truly healthy? How can I make sure I am getting adequate nutrients to help not just my GP but my autoimmune condition, my hormones, and everything in between, when so much is limited? As an example, nuts and seeds can do a whole lot for you and your health. They are good for your gut health packed with fiber to keep it happy, while also being packed with zinc and selenium which are important for your hormones, but we cannot eat them.
My overall and most important answer is to work with a medical professional. Someone who understands Gastroparesis and can help you supplement, if needed. GP is a hard one because many doctors claim to know the disorder but once you meet with them, you realize they actually have no idea what it is or how to treat it. My suggestion is to make sure you are in the right care. If you aren't happy with your primary care provider, please seek out another one. You need to feel confident in the care you are receiving, and there ARE doctors out there that can help you. I work with a naturopathic doctor and she has helped me in so many ways. If you haven't yet tried a naturopathic or functional medicine doctor, I do suggest seeing one (or at least having a consult), in addition to having your PCP and/or gastroenterologist. Naturopathic/functional medicine doctors I have found to be really beneficial when it comes to GP because they help with your overall health; your diet and lifestyle. Gastroparesis can be managed. There are extreme cases of it but I do believe that idiopathic Gastroparesis can be managed well when you dive into your overall lifestyle.
Other than seeing a doctor, listening to your body really is key. You will know when you're in good health and when you're not. I am able to feel a difference in my body when I accidentally miss out on a day of my supplements. Listening to the needs of your body is incredibly important for living a healthy life. Your body will tell you what you need, and it will tell you what to do or not to do. It takes practice, but in time you should get a better hang of it.
Now, specifically addressing the food we aren't able to eat (at least not yet). There are ways around it. Whether we have to cook them differently, supplement with the nutrients we're missing out on, blending the foods for easier digestion, or finding other foods that can give us the same nutrient(s) that we need, there are ways to eat healthy and get enough nutrients if you have GP. Working with your doctor and/or a nutritionist as well as doing your own research is very helpful. It often is not the foods we aren't able to eat that's the issue, its our bodies not absorbing the nutrients enough (that is another entire subject), as well as the foods we choose to actually ingest. I don't care who you are or what state of GP you're in, but if you think that a toaster strudel or piece of candy is the only thing you're able to eat and digest well, it's not the case and I highly recommend getting help. I'm using the toaster strudel and candy just as an example, but I have spoken to many that say such a thing and it just isn't accurate. Your body will suffer if you just consume one thing, especially one really unhealthy thing.
Now onto fiber. I could go on and on about this topic as I feel I have a different mindset on it than most people with GP (and most doctors). As you can see above, fiber is often "shunned" off or considered bad with GP... "Avoid fiber." In extreme cases as well as with other disorders or medical reasons, there are definitely times where you should be on a low fiber diet or avoiding it, but fiber is really important for your health. The reason so many people with GP suffer with chronic constipation is due to the lack of fiber in their diets. Fiber keeps our digestive system happy and healthy. So why do we avoid it? It's due to the fact that fiber doesn't get digested. It goes through your stomach, small intestine, colon and then out of your body. If you're still unaware of what Gastroparesis really is or what it does, I suggest looking as this link: https://www.gastroconsa.com/patient-education/gastroparesis/ as well as looking at the picture below:
For more information on why and how fiber is important for your diet, please check out the following link from the Mayo Clinic: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/fiber/art-20043983
So, why am I bringing fiber up? Because everyone I have spoken to that has GP are practically terrified of fiber. I understand, I too was looking at "no fiber" options for everything I was consuming but my bowels were a complete mess for almost a year. I then realized that wait, the GP diet already is low fiber. You're already decreasing fiber in removing the skins of your fruits and vegetables, not having seeds or nuts, and the fact that most everyone regardless of any diet restrictions or stomach disorder, isn't getting in the recommended daily dose of fiber in the first place. My point is to not hyper focus on counting fiber when it comes to GP and your diet. I don't eat super high fiber foods and I won't buy anything at the store that advertises high fiber, but I also don't count my fiber consumption each day. Since following this, I have been able to regulate my bowels and they are better than they were even before being diagnosed.
One more thing to mention is that there are two different kinds of fiber; soluble and insoluble. It is important to balance the two for optimal bowel movements. I suggest speaking with a nutritionist or doing some of your own research to see which foods are soluble and insoluble for guidance.
Is GP forever? Will I not get enough nutrients all my life? Will I have to eat like this forever?... I don't believe so. (Obviously I am not a doctor), but it's important to realize that everyone is so different and everyone handles the disorder differently. My gastric emptying results two years ago were after 4 hours I still had over 40% of my food left to digest. For others it's greater than 40%, for many it's only 10%. That doesn't mean they don't have symptoms, it doesn't mean theirs are less or worse than mine or that people with well above 40% have worse symptoms, GP is highly individualized. I do believe though, that idiopathic GP can become manageable with work and time. Many people have claimed to go into "remission" (a blog post to come on that topic), for months or even years at a time. Many are able to manage day to day altering their lifestyle and keeping with a GP mushy or solid food diet. In more extreme cases, as we know, it can go from an all liquid to needing a feeding tube, to death.
The important thing is to not compare yourself or your eating to anyone else. Focus on what feels good to your body. If you feel it, or can look in the mirror and see that you are not receiving the nutrients you need from your current diet, you need to contact a medical professional which will then probably have you follow up a nutritionist. If you aren't receiving enough nutrients due to just being scared of trying foods again, please see my blog post: https://www.gphealthandwellness.com/post/getting-over-the-fear-of-trying-foods-again for further help.
Stay healthy and let me know if I can be of any help for you,
Loreal
*I am not a medical professional and I am not giving out medical advice. Please seek care from your doctor before trying anything*
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