Hello! how are they? I am new to the disease and I still have a hard time controlling my diet, so do you have any recommendations? Thank you

[Florencia93]

🌸 Flor

[piglette]

As you probably know, a vasculitis diet is a healthy, balanced diet that can help with the symptoms. It can also help manage weight gain, which can be a side effect of steroid treatments. Are you taking steroids? We should all be aiming for a healthy diet, so this is a good opportunity. Also most of us give in occasionally, I know I do. I use an app called MyNetDiary. There is a free version. mynetdiary.com planning what I am going to eat does seem to help me think more about what I eat. Good luck.

Here are some suggestions:-

Foods to eat

Fruits and vegetables: Eat a variety of colorful fruits and vegetables, including berries, cherries, leafy greens, and broccoli

Whole grains: Eat whole grains like bread and pasta

Lean protein: Eat skinless poultry and fish like chicken, salmon, mackerel, trout, and sardines

Low-fat dairy: Eat low-fat dairy products like yogurt, skimmed milk, and cheese

Nuts and legumes: Eat nuts and legumes

Omega-3 fats: Eat foods like flaxseed, walnuts, and green leafy vegetables, or take omega-3 fish oil supplements

Calcium: Eat foods like yogurt, skimmed milk, and cheese to help prevent osteoporosis

Foods to limit

Sugar

Fat

Alcohol

Processed foods

Grain-fed meat

Starchy foods like bread, potatoes, rice, and pasta

Supplements

Your doctor may recommend calcium or vitamin D supplements to help prevent osteoporosis

Your doctor may recommend zinc supplements to help support your immune system

You should also get enough rest and exercise, and maintain a healthy weight.

[Florencia93 in reply to piglette]

Thank you so much. It helps me a lot. ☺️

[Chocolate78 in reply to piglette]

This advice is brilliant and mirrors what I've read esle where. I've also been struggling with my diet as I'm the type of person who comfort eats. Stressful day equals chocolate for example.

I've started to pull together my own collection of recipes that are centred on the food list shared above. This has helped me to increase the amount of leafy greens I eat for example. I plan my meals in advance using my recipe collection and go to the supermarket with a list I try to stick too. It helps me make healthy decisions but of course you still need a treat once in a while too.

I've found it takes months to slowly convert and adapt my diet. Building new habits takes time. I started with breakfast recipes and I'm now experimenting with homemade soups and slow cooker recipes. Some days the disease and drugs make me so tired I don't have the energy to cook.

[19bear67 in reply to piglette]

Hello piglette,

This is absolutely spot on! Eating healthy like this has helped me to lose the 2 stone that I put on with heavy doses of steroids . It’s not easy to exercise due to mobility problems but a walk everyday helps too,

[piglette in reply to 19bear67]

I do go swimming every so often too.

[Obscureclouds]

Piglette has given an excellent reply. Home made food from scratch really doesn’t take a lot of time and you know what’s gone into it . You can always batch cook and freeze for another day and/or add extra ingredients to make a slightly different meal.

My issue seemed to be more drug related where I think your brain can be stimulated to think you need more food. I was Ok when on a high dose of Pred but had the urge to eat more as the dose decreased, particularly between 30-20mg when I fancied lots of less healthy stuff such as bread and jam and biscuits etc . even after I had just eaten a good meal. I found drinking water or tea made from root ginger helped quell the pangs. Also a few nuts or seeds would usually do the trick. I have a mixture of pumpkin, sunflower, flax and Linseeds and sesame seeds that I sprinkle on my breakfast cereal/porage which are healthy bulking agents and eating a few on their own are also good for taking the edge off if you have hunger pangs between meals. Thankfully the problem seemed to go away but not sure if that was due to educating my brain that I wasn’t really hungry or down to reducing between 20-15mg of Pred. Good luck

[pmrdec112014]

My friend told me about a free app called Yuka.You scan the bar code on the food item and it tells you how healthy it is out of 100 and lists all the additives protein salt etc and comes up with a rating of poor good excellent etc!!!

It's brilliant as easy to eat healthily using that.

Amazing what risky additives are in surprisingly supposedly healthy food! Often it will give you a healthy alternative.

We use it all the time now.

Won't hurt to try it.

[Investigator1]

Yep. Piglette spot on as usual. When I was diagnosed I was already 2 years into a lower carb lifestyle, with high dose steroids and the like I just kept away from as many carbs as I could without being anal about it.

I still am limiting my carbs but still have the odd treat. I have to admit of a weekend I do like a few glasses of dry white wine but there are drinks that are a lot worse. It kept and still does my weight has stayed constant.