Ileostomy and diet questions

Hello

I am 9 weeks post-ileostomy, and within a week I was eating proper food - but chewing well and being sensible. So no skins on tomatoes and peppers - for example. Nuts finely chopped in a food processor, pesto no problem as this is a paste consistency already. Plenty of vegetables and fruit - although peeling apples and pears.

I think everyone is different, and it is always good to try small amounts of a new food, to check that you are able to process it properly, and that it isn't causing any problems. I have not eaten sweetcorn - as I hear that causes issues for lots of people, and mushrooms are cooked then whizzed and added to sauces etc. I am fine with salad, cucumber, beetroot, chillis, etc.,

I was a bit dismayed by the advice I had in hospital and found a Canadian website, which is brilliant whether or not you're vegan (!) as the food guidance is sound.

www.veganostomy.ca

And there's a really useful downloadable document about food, on this site

https://www.ostomy.org/diet-nutrition/

I hope that everything works out for hubby, and he is able to enjoy a wider range of food overtime.

Best wishes.

Hi process 

Hope you are both ok . I have used pesto and it's ok with me . For my tomato sauce , I use either tinned or fresh tomatoes a little tomato puree , some vegetable boullion,  some fresh basil if you have I then cook for five to ten minutes then blend it then sieve it as even tinned chopped tomatoes have seeds. I usually cook enough for 3 or 4 portions and freeze the rest. I honestly don't miss the onions. I have had the ready made sauce as it's in the food parcels and it's ok with the illostomy but I prefer my own sauce

Hope this helps

Love Peacock62 xxx 

Thank you for all the information and sounds like your doing great x

Hi @peacock62 good to hear from you, we are doing ok with our new normal, he is improving a little each day, which is great.

thanks for the info, I will try the sauce, I am a bit wary of adding things to diet, just red on one site that strawberries are ok with ileostomy have you tried eating them?

we did have pesto tonight and enjoyed the meal.

he had a leak this morning and it does bother me and then I lose confidence but I try to remember it’s only happened 3 times in the time he has been home, but I can’t understand why.... I will just have to move on, but I know I worry more because of his open wounds even though they are dressed. 

thanks again xxx

thank you for your reply and your best wishes for my husband.

you sound like your doing great, sadly although my husband is almost 12 weeks post surgery he has had a rough time. And was in hospital and ICU for five weeks with lots of problems sepsis being one of them.

because he was fed by TPN his introduction to food has been slower  but he is doing really well in the last few weeks but I am cautious and a little nervous, so it’s really good to hear how well you are doing.

thank you too for the link, I’m rubbish at doing links, I find it surprising how one site says somethings are no no and other sites say it’s ok, the dieticians are the only people we have not seen.

im sure we will get there, we did have pesto though tonight so fingers crossed x

process x

Hi again , I have had a couple of strawberries but I push them through a small sieve to have on top of yoghurt . The seeds have all the fibre in and I think sometimes if you have too much fibre you get more output which can lift the bag . So I personally stick to low fibre . I'm sure a lot of people do eat them and are ok. Everyone seems to be different in what they can eat. I eat bananas pureed apples and tinned fruit not quite what I was used to before I got diagnosed but I have got used to it. 

Lots of love Peacock62 xxx 

Hi process,

I had an ileostomy on 1 April and stuck to a very plain diet for about a month and then gradually started to introduce more things

I have had strawberries a couple of times, they make my output a little more liquid that usual but they were worth it as they were delicious.

I am eating quite a varied diet, I have had salad with all the seeds removed and broccoli carrots and spinach. They do make the output quite scary green though. I haven't had a lot of fruit yet though, just peeled apples, strawberries, melon and bananas. I chew all fruit and veg for a long time.

I love fruit and would love an orange or some juicy grapes. Fruit is the main thing I miss. we have a tree full of gorgeous cherries in the garden but I dare not eat then as the skins are so tough.

This evening I made a chicken casserole with mashed potato and well cooked broccoli. This is the first time I have used onions in cooking, I cooked the onion and the carrots very well until they were soft. All well so far apart from some grumbling.

 I have also had chilli con carne -minus the kidney beans, and a mild home made curry. 

It is easier when its yourself that is doing the cooking, it must be difficult cooking and caring for someone else as you don't want to upset the balance.

I am sure you will get there and your husband will soon be eating a more varied diet that he will enjoy.

Take care and keep safe x

The links you posted look great Silver Birch - will definitely have a look through those tomorrow.

Hi ,

I have had my iliostomy since October last year, so over 6 months. It took me a long time to gain the confidence to eat a more varied diet. I make a spaghetti sauce with tinned tomatoes.  I used to sieve them but quite frankly got fed up of the faff so took the plunge and didn't bother. It was fine. I use onions but get them into small pieces using a food blender.  I don't use mushrooms.

I think I realised I could be a bit more adventurous after a visit to the cinema. I had eaten quite a few handfuls of popcorn when I realised I shouldn't be eating them! I spent the whole evening convinced I was going to have a blockage, I was fine thank goodness. It gave me the confidence to try a few more things. Not that I  would recommend that method!

With strawberries I ate one or 2 and chewed them well  the first few times. Now I eat a bowl full,  I still chew very well though. I also eat scones with sultanas in but haven't tried fruit cake - probably won't. 

I think the rule seems to be to chew very very well. Try a small amount of a new food first and chew it well!  

Good luck and bon appetit !!

Just wondering has anyone with an ileostomy tried stir fries with beansprouts ? I can live without them but I really used to love stir fry veg.

Also has anyone had steak? I think its quite hard to digest .. but maybe that just the steak I cook! 

Hi all

Just found a couple of good articles while I answered another post so thought I’d pop them into yours too

https://www.coloplast.co.uk/Global/UK/Stoma/Dietary-Advice-for-Ostomates.pdf

https://www.peng.org.uk/pdfs/diet-sheets/ileostomies.pdf

I must admit that in the early days I was quite paranoid about what I ate but relaxed as time went on and regularly had steak and mushrooms - just make sure you chew the mushrooms really well as they come out the same size they go down as I discovered while changing my bag one day - quite surreal!

Karen x