DAY 20 - not much change? help (stomach pain)

[karransaini]

Hi! I have posted before but I have not had success yet in finding the problem. I am a 19 year old male (this Whole30 has been very hard in college but I've kept to it!) and I did whole30 in the first place to try to find relief for my prolonged stomach issues (i.e. abdominal pain, aches, bloating/gas, not so fun BM's). Doctor's have not 100% confirmed but believe I may have IBS.

Here are the last 3 days of all the foods I've eaten in order:

Day 18:
Breakfast: 2 egg omelette with tomatoes and chives cooked in olive oil and then black pepper
Lunch: Zucchini noodles with Bolognese sauce (organic crushed tomatoes, ground chicken, bell peppers, chives, spices like oregano, basil, cayenne, salt and pepper)
Dinner: Shrimp and zucchini noodles with bell peppers and spices (listed in lunch above)

Day 19:
Breakfast: pan sauteed potatoes with rosemary and salt, 1 egg omelette with tomatoes/chives cooked in olive oil
Lunch: leftover pasta from day 18 dinner
Dinner: ground chicken, zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, kale, bacon bits (whole30 approved of course), bell peppers and spices like mentioned

Day 20 (today):
Breakfast: 1 fried egg with ½ cup of bok choy and leftovers from day 19 dinner
Lunch: last of the leftovers from day 18 dinner
Dinner: is going to be: baked salmon (lemon, rosemary, salt and pepper) with kale and spinach

Snacks include: 1 banana, 1 orange, carrots, almond butter (trying to cut this out), kale chips (I never have more than 2 servings a fruit a day and never had dried fruit. only nuts I consume are from almond butter)

I also try to make sure all my vegetables are cooked before eating them, although I usually have my carrots raw. I have completely eliminated garlic, onion, broccoli, brussel sprouts and cauliflower

Please critique my diet and tell me if there's something I should add or take out to help eliminate my pain! I am also on the probiotic Align that I take once every night before going to bed.

Thank you!

 

[ShannonM816]

Generally for IBS the recommendation would be to do a low FODMAP version of Whole30 -- you can read about what FODMAPS are here:  https://www.thepaleomom.com/modifying-paleo-for-fodmap-intolerance/ 

You might also look into different probiotics, I've read that some people have to try a few to find one that's really effective for them. Here's an article on what to look for in your probiotics, if you're interested in looking into that. It might be something to consider when you run out of the ones you already have, or if you feel like the ones you have made a huge difference, maybe you don't want to change that, it's just something to think about. You might also look into fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, other fermented vegetables, or kombucha as a way to add some extra probiotics via food -- just start slow with them, don't jump into eating massive helpings at every meal or anything. 

[jmcbn]

I'd agree with Shannon in that IBS sufferers should follow a low FODMAP diet, however, your meals ar all low FODMAP anyway. It looks to me like it's the snacks that could be doing you no favours...

Bananas & almond butter (& most nuts to be fair) are both high FODMAP, and nuts in particular if eaten regularly can be inflammatory & hard on the gut so I'd start by eliminating those.

Are you drinking coffee? If so, I'd remove that too and see how you go from there.