Food for thought

[Joseph14612]

So...I have been on high dose prednisone for almost 6 months, along with my 4th shot of Actemra..for PMR and GCA....I started at 60 mg pred., and have been on 35 mg for the last two weeks. Next week I start on 30 mg. So, today I decided to forgo my veggie breakfast and go out with my spouse to a restaurant where I had bacon and eggs, 1 piece of toast and a little home-fries with black coffee. Boy, am I paying for it now! Headache, pain in eyes, etc.... Am I to be on veggies forever? has anyone else experienced this? thank you for any responses...

[HeronNS]

I switched from a high carb breakfast to a high protein one when I started pred, but only ever at a PMR dose (highest was 15 mg). I do find even now that eating too much bread makes me burp a lot, which never happened before! Perhaps there was too much fat as well as carbs in your breakfast choices and because your body is no longer used to so much at one time it objected! Next time maybe have only one treat and mostly stick to your current diet you're used to for the rest? For what it's worth I eat: an orange, 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds (high in protein and iron), and two fried (in very little olive oil) eggs. And a big mug of tea with milk. It's a very satisfying meal.

Your gut microbiome adapts to what you are eating, so it's possible that microbes which enjoy bacon and fries and toast are no longer dominant, but veggie lovers have taken over!

[SnazzyD]

I suspect you just overloaded your unaccustomed body with high carb, fat and salt that it isn’t used to processing. When I was on a very restricted diet due to being on the higher doses of Pred a relatively blow out treat never ended well.

Are you getting enough protein? Pred causes loss of muscle and as you’ve been high doses for so long, your requirement may be higher.

[Bcol]

Morning Joseph, I've been lucky and missed GCA and that medication and high doses. 30mg for a week is my highest. Also, I've never had a problem with food or diet. but I would guess that after a lengthy period of time with your veggie menu your body has just got used to that type of food and the sudden intake of something totally different was a bit of a shock. Gently, gently does, it I suspect next time, just add one or two different items over time until your body/gut reorientates itself to a more varied intake. Hope you feel better soon.