I'm afraid to eat anything new

[Nezumi]

Hello,

Thank you for this support group, reading these posts meant a lot to me. Also, I want to apologize for any errors as English is not my first language.

I'm almost 30, female, and the last time I remember I was sick and took antibiotics was 10, or 15 years ago. So, all this came to me as a great shock.

It all begun with UTI (E. coli) last month. I started taking Cefixime on 10/10/2019 and after 5 or 6 days I've got the D. After a few days my temperature was above 39 C (102 F). My doctor gave me sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim and at the same day my temperature dropped and WD went away. So I thought everything is fine again, my stool seemed normal and few days after I decided to have a tangerine. It all started again. My doctor took me off the antibiotics, and again, everything seemed normal for a while (but I didn't eat that much at the time). I started to notice blood and mucus only and they tested my stool. It was positive for CD toxines.
I started taking Metronidazole, for 10 days, 3x500 mg, starting 11/31/2019. D went away, and the last time I had it was about 12 days ago. But I was very afraid to eat anything. I cooked apples, potato, carrot and chicken breasts. I was afraid to eat anything else. Because of metronidazole, I felt sicker and sicker and could not eat anything. I went to work for 3 days, but as I wasn't eating properly I went back home. I even vomited, but once per day, usually in the afternoon.
For these 3 weeks,since the first D, I lost 7 kg (15.5 pounds) (my BMI is too low now). I took the last Metronidazole on Sunday and tomorrow I'm going to work again. I'm not feeling sick anymore but I'm afraid to eat anything new. Every BM makes me afraid.

I eat only raw bananas. I cook apples, chicken, potato, pumpkin, carrot and celery. I'm afraid of eggs, should I be afraid of eggs? Because once, before I started Metronidazole, I ate boiled eggs and got D day after. I don't even know if this was a relapse since I wasn't taking Metronidazole at the time. Was it?

Can I eat oatmeal? Kefir? Fresh, low fat cheese? When is the right time to try raw fruits and veggies? Oil? (I'm cooking everything at the moment and I hate it). What about Chocolate? Pizza?
I'm two days off Metronidazole, finally not feeling sick, and I would eat everything.
About 20% of people have a relapse, can it be induced by food? I'm afraid to try, and if anyone has some order of food introduction they followed, I would be very grateful.
And is this true? https://www.mdmag.com/medical-news/calc ... -treatment
Should I be afraid of calcium as well?

[D1dad]

Many opinions vary around here but can tell you what my specialist told me. If you can eat it eat it. There’s speculation that cdiff feeds off of sugar so I’d avoid that. This forum had me so scared to eat anything but bland foods that I didn’t and in the end there was nothing to be afraid of. Spicy food went through me after just like before. Of course everyone is different but your young and should recover very quickly. I’m not saying to eat a bowl of jalapeños and black bean salsa but oatmeal is a prebiotic and would be beneficial towards recovery. I really tried to stick with whole grains and clean foods to gain strength back.

[AllisS]

Food choices have no bearing on C. diff recurrence whatsoever. It's solely a matter of what you, as an individual, can tolerate. The calcium link is to an investigatory study; you can disregard its findings, which are in the hypothetical stage, until or unless proven otherwise.

I don't know how old you are, but I was around back in the day when food choices were thought to directly cause or aggravate ulcers. Doctors recommended bland, boring diets for ulcer sufferers. It took a few decades before the food link to ulcers was scientifically disproved and it was discovered that a bacterium caused ulcers. I think you should eat what you enjoy, as long as it doesn't trigger GI discomfort, which is not at all the same thing as C. diff.

[roy]

Food choices might aggravate your gut if its sensitive from the infection but food does not cause a relapse.
Obvious things like spices and alcohol should be avoided but if you fancy something give it a try in small amounts.
The faster you return to a normal diet the faster your normal flora returns.
Expect some bad days and dont panic into treating or testing unless D returns.
If you do relapse ask for Vanvomycin.

[Ril]

Nobody here said any foods cause a relapse. What we have said is that after c diff your gut is usually sensitive and irritated from the recent infection so to add foods slowly to find out what you can tolerate and see what bothers you. If you have PI IBS, which many do, there are a whole set of dietary concerns because of that condition. You can follow them or not depending upon your situation. It’s up to you.D1Dad has more adventurous opinions than most and it has worked out for him. We have not tried to scare anyone but only to share our experiences. We have found avoiding foods we mentioned and adding things slowly have worked for us and for most people.

[georgina]

I don't think oatmeal will cause you any issues. I had lots of oatmeal porridge for breakfast when i had Cdiff and never irritated my gut . Don't even think about chocolate or pizza unless you wanna spend more time in the toilet. You need to eat easy to digest foods until your gut heals and after awhile , when you feel that your recovery is complete you can resume a normal diet.

[Nezumi]

Thank you very much for your replies.

I have tried kefir and it went fine. I have aslo tried almond milk, but after a few sips I felt sore throat (could it be that I developed an allergy?).

[beth22]

I use rice milk. Try that unless you don't tolerate rice. They also have oatmeal milk now. I've never tried it.

[georgina]

Rice milk , oatmeal milk , almond milk are tolerable by most people. Glad you are able to have kefir , some of us can't take a spoonful without getting bloated.

[Ril]

I have been lactose intolerant since before c diff and have used lactaid milk with great success. You might consider simply trying that.

[D1dad]

I don’t know if I had a “more adventurous” eating regimen. I listened to the specialist who said he rarely sees food allergies as a result of cdiff. I’m sure an older person who couldn’t tolerate certain foods before would have exaggerated issues post. I remember the wife and I going to Lou malinatis a few months after and there was no way I wasn’t eating a deep dish pizza. I loaded up with pepto for the next day as we were going to the cubs game and I was sure it’d be just a horrible day but nothing..no different. That boosted my confidence and I started eating different things and have gotten back to a regular diet. I pay for taco Tuesday on Wednesday and beer and wing Friday on Saturday but that was always the case. The one thing I cannot tolerate and makes me feel like death is oikos triple zero yogurt and have no clue why? All other yogurts are fine but that stuff makes me feel horrible.

[beth22]

D1dad you are doing better than many. Lots of yogurt brands. Don't eat the one that upsets your stomach. I don't think c diff causes food allergies, just intolerances. Some people become lactose intolerant, for example. Sounds like you did pretty well. After my first bout of c diff, I could eat pretty much anything, but not after the relapses.

[D1dad]

Beth, you’ve been through a lot and I admire your attitude. You really seem to have taken all this in stride, or so it seems. Your posts are the ones that truly made me think that I’d get past this. I know if it wasn’t for your info about using pepto I probably would have been at the urgent care begging for vanco. Thanks for being you around here!

[Nezumi]

Thank you very much, I will try lactaid milk.

How do you know you are having a relapse?

I had 2 BM during the day, and 3 D in the afternoon, with some gas and cramping.

I ate Butternut squash for lunch.
I had Hokkaido pumpkin few days ago, and everything went fine - I doubt they are that different.