Ileostomy and Food Options - Digestion Issues & Weight Loss

Currently, I am finishing chemo, so basically I am on the bland starchy diet because anything else tastes like metal and rottenness. Anyway, I know once chemo is done and my body heals, that my ileostomy and I can enjoy a wider variety of foods. But I have questions on if other ileostomy folks have had success on these foods I hope to eat..

1. Blackberry

2. Cabbage (cooked and raw)

3. Sesame seeds like on bread

4. Green onions and chives

5. Salad greens

6. Greens like collard or mustard, cooked

7. Bean sprouts like used in Asian foods

8. Bok Choi

9. Celery cooked and or raw

10. Pineapple

11. Spaghetti squash

12. Fresh raw tomato

13. Spinach raw and cooked

14. Raw onion

15. Cilantro

Also, does anyone else have issues digesting beef and pork? I can do ground meats in small quantity, but otherwise, even if I chew to death, it gives me stomach/intestine pain and slows my ostomy down/blockage. Also, pizza and spaghetti... favorite foods of mine, cause pain and either a sort of blockage where it takes longer than it should to be out of me, or at too much output. Also, do fatty foods cause issues? For me, they cause terrible pain... for days. So, I don't eat fried food, pizza, too much cheese, or cream.

But... I am wasting away! I know chemo is part to blame. But I have lost 15 lbs since I got my ileostomy in September, and I'm very thin to start with. I can't eat much protein or fat, but so far (likely due to chemo diet and my "can I eat it" list above of foods I have yet to eat), I feel like I am living off of sweets and starches. I want to go nearly sugar-free (and no aspartame or other fake sugar), but I am not sure how to without becoming basically anorexic. I have tried protein drinks but they're very sweet and chemo gives neuropathy so I cant have anything cold .. but hopefully neuropathy will be gone once chemo is done.

Thanks!

Wow, Gemd, your entire list looks to be troublesome foods for any of us. I have to do some in small amounts but having a colostomy, I tolerate most everything! I get gas but no blockage and because I irrigate, I am usually looking for the foods that slow down my output. I never had any pains from any foods! Honey Nut Cheerios are a definite no-no for me! Lol

I think your plan is good, once your chemo is done you can start working these things back into your diet little at a time! Some will be great, some not! You will know!

Have you had any chance to try the new two-piece pouches? Hope so! They should work great!

Candy

Baked beans? Cheese? Steamed veg?

First, let me say everyone is different on what they can and cannot eat. Meats, I have no problem with any of them, just cut into small pieces. Greens and salads, I eat them all. For the greens, I make sure the stems are removed and it is cut/chopped up. Raw vegetables and fruits, again cut up into small pieces. Squash, while I cut it in half and remove the seeds. Spaghetti squash, bean sprouts, and Chinese veggies I avoid due to their stringiness. Fruits are all peeled. Tomatoes, I eat in salads and have a slice on my burgers. Pineapple, grapefruit, and oranges, I eat or drink the non-pulp juice. Popcorn, nuts, and corn I avoid. You must always remember to chew everything you eat really well and drink liquids. My doctor told me I can eat anything I want, just remember some foods are more prone to cause blockage. Some people can eat anything they want, others cannot. Try a small amount first, if it works then eat it. Small bites and chew, chew, chew.

cukes

That should be squash cooked, cut in half, and remove seeds.

Living with Your Ostomy | Hollister

I had an ileostomy for a year and a half. I stayed away from nuts and raw fruits and vegetables. I chewed my food well and had smaller meals spaced throughout the day. Everything else was okay.

Hi, I've had an ileostomy for 13 years and my digestion has definitely changed over the years. Everyone is very different, so start off with small portions to see how your body tolerates things and know that that can also change over time.

I rarely eat meat, but I do eat fish and shellfish with no problems. I also eat everything else that I like. I realize I am lucky. I used to stay away from nuts, but in recent years I've been eating them with no problems...same with seeds.

I can eat all salad and greens (I used to avoid them, but now love them. I'm not really a fan of greens that are stringy or tough to begin with). I practically live on spinach. I stay away from deep-fried foods mostly as it's unhealthy, but I've never had problems when I do have them. I try to eat healthy, mostly veggies, but I do have a bit of a sweet tooth.

I find the "cleaner" my diet, then things aren't as smelly. Feel free to message me too for more info.

Not to bring you down but when I read your list, I thought you were joking. Those foods are the most problematic.

If I ate those, I'd be in so much pain 12 hours later. I was a vegan for 3 years and now I'm not because I can't digest most veggies, fruits, and salads. I have an ileostomy, more problems than a colostomy. Proteins seem to digest fine, this includes most meats. Hope this helps.

Sorry about the wasting away. After I went home 2 years ago, I thought I was an expert at gaining weight. So I made delicious crockpot meals... a beef roast with carrots, potatoes (celery and onion - bad choice) that I removed, or so I thought.

Even though the food I made melted in one's mouth, I was in the ER within 36 hours, gulping like a fish out of water. Blockages are no joke, and the remedies are barbaric. They starved me of all food and liquids for 3.5 days while pumping my stomach via a hose up my nose and down all the way into my stomach. I remember seeing the x-ray. I went in at 127 lbs and left the hospital at 107 lbs. Then I proceeded to lose another 8 lbs for a grand total of 99 lbs. I'm male and weighed 147-155 pre-cancer.

I saw my surgeon and said, "Look what they have done to me! Can you please help?" He ordered TPN, it's intravenous feeding, and it worked. On top of eating like a baby for 3 months, just my story and I'm sticking to it! Gotta go, Dr. appt. Bye for now, Donavon

Hi Gemd.

Sorry you are having such a rough go of it. I have had a colostomy for 5 years now. I remember the lack of taste and neuropathy (vitamin B6 helped neuropathy, which in my case presented as tingling in fingers and numbness in toes). Fingers got better, toes never did.

I agree with others, everyone will have different reactions to foods. I am fortunate to be able to eat most things, in moderation. I do limit my intake of salad greens and high-fiber foods. I do not eat grains, nuts, or corn. They just don't digest properly for me. I hope things improve for you as you progress and complete treatment. As far as my ostomy, I have no regrets. It is why I am still here.