Dietary and lifestyle guidelines for Crohn’s disease
Given the prevalence of malnutrition in patients with CD, it is recommended that patients consume a daily diet formula that is high in calories, high in protein, low in fat, and rich in vitamins and essential micronutrients, and that 2-3 supplemental or enteral nutrition be added to the three daily meals. Although no balanced diet formula has been universally accepted, the general principle is that a balanced diet should be consumed in small portions. From the perspective of controlling disease activity, the addition of enteral nutrition is safer and more effective in controlling the disease than eating a regular diet.
Most people with CD are aware that specific foods may cause a relapse or exacerbation of the disease, so patients should create a dietary profile to record which foods aggravate GI symptoms. If these “offender foods” are well avoided, certain GI symptoms become relatively easy to manage. For most patients, eating more of the following foods may aggravate the disease or even cause a relapse.
1, grilled meat, bacon, fried foods (such as Western fast food).
2, red meat (steak, etc.) and poultry with skin.
3. butter and other animal oils, margarine, bread spreads, mayonnaise, etc.
4. dairy products (if there is lactose intolerance, it is more important to avoid them).
5. alcohol consumption (beer, white wine, cocktails, etc.).
6, carbonated beverages, coffee, strong tea, chocolate, popcorn, etc.
7, unripe fruits and raw vegetables (such as vegetable salads, etc.).
8, gas-producing foods (lentils, soybeans, cabbage, cauliflower, onions, etc.).
9, foods containing more wheat bran (for conditions such as having intestinal stenosis).
10, spicy food (spicy hotpot).
Among them, for patients with intestinal stenosis/incomplete intestinal obstruction, they need to enter a low residue diet and avoid high-fiber foods such as coarse grains, tortillas, nuts, vegetables, etc., so as not to aggravate the obstruction with excessive food residues. Enteral nutrition should be considered for such patients.
For intolerant foods, a change in cooking method may reduce this intolerance; for example, if eating a vegetable salad causes diarrhea, it does not mean that it is intolerant to that vegetable and may not cause gastrointestinal symptoms if cooked vegetables are eaten instead. Assuming steatorrhea from eating beef or pork, you can switch to low-fat fish as your main source of protein.
In general, grains and the following foods are suitable for people with CD.
1. vegetables (leafy vegetables).
2. high-fiber foods (potatoes, etc.).
3, fish (deep sea fish is better).
4, eggs (egg whites are better).
5.Olive oil/seed oil.
6, fruits (please peel)/nuts.
7. rice/pasta.
Smoking is an independent risk factor for CD, elevating the incidence of CD, increasing the likelihood of strictures and intestinal fistulas, increasing the rate of surgery, counteracting the efficacy of maintenance remission medications, and increasing the risk of disease in passive smokers; smoking is also a major risk factor for postoperative recurrence, with the postoperative recurrence rate in smokers being 2.5 times higher than in nonsmokers, and the recurrence rate of CD after 4 years of smoking cessation being the same as in nonsmokers. Therefore, patients with CD should quit smoking early.
A moderate amount of physical activity and healthy living habits can help a lot in maintaining remission and preventing recurrence. Studies have shown that low-intensity exercise can reduce disease activity, increase body weight, correct malnutrition, prevent bone decalcification, and improve quality of life. And mental factors such as exertion, staying up late, emotional stress, depression, anxiety, and autism are triggering and aggravating factors for CD, so maintaining a positive and optimistic state of mind is good for controlling the disease.