Elimination diet meal/snack ideas

[leahmn12]

In an effort to reduce 3 wk old DD's terrible belly pain, I'm trying an elimination diet, and I'm starving. I'm already gluten-free (GF), but additionally I'm eliminating dairy, soy, cruciferous veggies, corn, onions, garlic, beans, chocolate (seriously, this is the hardest for me), and sadly, nuts. My usual diet is very high-fiber with lots of veggies, nuts and beans and very little refined grains. I now find myself reduced to puffed rice cereal with coconut milk, eggs on GF toast, meat, rice, zucchini, carrots, celery, avocados, potatoes and squash. Is there anything with fiber in it that doesn't cause gas?? I need some ideas please. I made some vegan, GF spice cookies last night and they really hit the spot.

[FarrenSquare]

I can offer commiseration. I'm a mirror story to yours. I'm glutenfree because it makes me so so ill, and I've eliminated Dairy, soy, egg, and peanuts. Mostly these foods cause rash, inconsolable crying, painful gas, painful poops, and reflux. I've tried cutting out garlic, beef, cruciferous veggies, beans... but to be honest, I didn't see a difference, he was still SO GASSY.

Do you eat egg and meat? Are you vegan? If you are starving, you probably need to get a lot more protein. I can't help you too much there if you are vegan (I was vegetarian but once I went glutenfree, I couldn't do it anymore.)

Can you have fruit? You can make smoothies with coconut milk, fruits, a handful of greens. Yummy! You can add agave syrup if you are craving sweets (I always am). I eat nuts besides peanut so almond milk/almonds and dried cranberries/ almond butter is awesome. If you are open to buying foods ENER-G brand foods are glutenfree,dairyfree, egg free. Cucumbers? I made a dressing with balsamic vinegar and oil and I eat a lot of lettuce with carrots and put pumpkin seeds, cucumber. I eat about 2 bowls of salad a day.

I know it is so tough, I hope I helped even just a LITTLE bit! Hang in there, mama!

[PatioGardener]

Are you sure it is a sensitivity and not over active letdown or over supply that are causing the issues? If you have a minute, read kellymom just to make sure - I'd love it if you could fix the issues on a slightly less restrictive diet!

[Lyss]

Isn't coconut a tree nut?

I am on a restrictive diet, too, for fussiness and blood in the poop/mucousy diarrhea.

I agree with the prior poster - if gas is the problem, I would look at supply and letdown and balance issues in the milk.

Kellymom debunks the myth that beans and cruciferous vegetables make baby fussy (unless baby is specifically sensitive to those things) because they give us gas.  Did you cut out things one at a time to make sure that they are part of the problem?

My favorite meal is delicious grilled burgers (plain meat with salt and pepper), grilled onions, and avocado on a lettuce bun with fries or roasted yam slices.  Arugula with tomatoes and garbanzo beans, balsamic, oil, salt, pepper.  Yum! 

I am starving, too.  I know what you mean.  I had made an awesome peanut and banana smoothie with rice and almond milk, when I had to cut out the peanuts.  I keep losing food, too.  It's frustrating.  But I went through this with my other two, too, and we all survived at the end of the day.  And that's with blood in the diapers and fussiness.

For gas, I would make sure baby is burping, boobs are empty at the end of feeding, and the letdown isn't too fast.  Good luck!  I feel you!  I'm off corn, gluten, dairy, soy, chocolate (sob), peanuts, and now will try either pork or nightshade family elimination to get blood-free poops.  It sucks, but baby does get better.  For me, with the last two, I had to use hypoallergenic formula eventually.

[leahmn12]

Just read these last 3 replies!

Update: I've added nuts, peanuts and small amounts of onion back into my diet with very little reaction from DD (who's now 2 months old). Two nights ago I had refried beans at a Mexican restaurant, and DD was MISERABLE all day yesterday! Very clear connection there.

I do eat meat and eggs. OMG I don't know how I'd survive without them at this point!

I'm still struggling to find healthy quick stuff to eat. I'm sick of cereal, nut butter on toast and chips, which seem to be the only things I can find to eat when I'm in a rush. I really want something I can sink my teeth onto. I'm leery of eating too much tuna (although I love it), and packaged meats are convenient, but not very healthy. I need a decent substitute for my former favorite snack : sharp cheddar cheese on GF crackers. Hummus sounds great, but I don't dare after the refried beans scenario.

Knowing I'm not the only one out there is a comfort!

[PatioGardener]

When I was dairy free for my little guy I discovered Larabars. I am not a processed food person, but I also needed something fast and satisfying. They are made with a few natural ingredients, and I think they taste great. I'm sure they are easy to make too, but I didn't have the time to shower, so food prep was minimal!