Food Irritant Solutions – Part 2
The below table highlights some of the irritants that are known to cause common stoma problems and suggests some alternatives. In this part we are focusing on vegetables, low residue vegetables, condiments, drinks and miscellaneous items.
Foods Not to Eat with an Ileostomy or Colostomy
| Vegetables | Raw vegetables, including salad e.g. lettuce, celery, raw bell-peppers and spring onions.
Hard to digest vegetables, including beans like butter beans or green/runner beans, sweetcorn, peas, mushrooms, cabbage, brussel sprouts, spinach, kale and spring greens. |
Peeled and well-cooked vegetables without seeds e.g. onions, carrots, swede, butternut squash, avocados, broccoli or cauliflower florets (without the stalk), beetroot, parsnip, courgette, aubergine, bell peppers and cucumber. Cooked, de-skinned and non-seeded tomatoes e.g. sieved tinned tomatoes or passata. |
|---|---|---|
| Condiments | Wholegrain mustard, chunky jam, nut butter or spreads, pickles. | Apple sauce, non-chunky fruit coulis, smooth jams, smooth nut butter, honey, syrups, sugar, mint sauce, mayonnaise, smooth mustard, smooth chutney, ketchup, non-chunky cooking sauces like soya or Worcester sauce, flavourings e.g. stock cubes/powder/liquid, garlic, herbs and spices (coriander, turmeric). |
| Drinks | Fizzy drinks, including colas, lemonade and sparkling water. Smooth soups. Caffeinated tea and coffee. | Up to 150ml of fruit juice or smoothie a day (without ‘bits’). Decaffeinated teas and coffee. Water, flavoured-water (still) squash or cordials. |
| Misc | Bombay mix, nuts and seeds, chilli flavoured foods, cake or biscuits with nuts or seeds in e.g. fruit loaves or garibaldi biscuits. | Olives, pastry, batter or breadcrumbs, crisps (potato or other types), smooth nut butter, jelly, jelly with suitable fruit in, chocolate, ice cream, sorbet, butter, margarines, ghee and oils.
Soups that have well-cooked and easy to chew vegetables and other components. Biscuits and cake (without dried fruit chunks, nuts or seeds in) e.g. custard creams, fig rolls or madeira cake. Crisps, prawn crackers and poppadoms. Custard powder, semolina, tapioca, cornflour. Chocolate spread, tahini, tzatziki and other smooth dips or spreads. Coconut milk or cream. TIP: Is it easy to chew and isn’t stringy, gritty or tough? It’s probably OK to eat! |