How to Eat With Diabetes & Crohn's Disease
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease caused by inflammation in the lining of your intestinal tract. This condition causes diarrhea, severe stomach cramps and malnutrition, according to the Mayo Clinic. If you also suffer from diabetes, these symptoms can cause serious health complications due to the lack of vitamins and nutrients your body is able to absorb. In order to remain healthy you will need to limit your diet by eating low-fat foods, reducing dairy consumption and changing your eating habits from three large meals to five to six smaller meals throughout the day. Your diet should also consist of vegetables, fruit and lean meat that is thoroughly cooked.
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Instructions
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Reduce the size of your meals. Large meals are hard on the stomach as they require large amounts of stomach acid to digest. A person without Crohn's would not have a problem digesting large meals, but those with Crohn's may notice cramps or diarrhea shortly after eating.
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Add more fruits and vegetables to your diet. Fruits and vegetables contain few carbohydrates, which makes them suitable if you are a diabetic. Vegetables should be cooked until they are tender to avoid upsetting your stomach and should rarely be consumed raw. Be sure to peel the skin off of fruit before eating, and always wash your fruit to remove pesticides.
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Avoid fruit juices. Fruit juices can irritate your stomach and can raise your blood glucose levels due to the high amounts of sugar they contain.
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Limit alcohol consumption. Alcohol can worsen your symptoms and is converted into sugar when consumed. This can negatively affect your blood glucose levels if you have more than one drink per day.
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Reduce fiber. Although fiber can reduce blood glucose levels for diabetics, it can also upset the intestinal tract and cause diarrhea. Eat fiber in small amounts to determine if your stomach can handle it. If you can eat it without upsetting your stomach, gradually increase the amount of fiber you consume in each meal.
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Eat low-fat foods. Foods high in saturated fat can increase your blood glucose levels and put you at risk of developing heart disease. Fatty foods can also pass through your stomach and cause irritation, according to the Mayo Clinic. Problem foods include butter, margarine and fried and fatty foods. Replace butter and margarine with vegetable oils to reduce your fat intake.
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Tips & Warnings
Contact your doctor if symptoms worsen, as you can become dehydrated easily due to a loss of water from constant diarrhea.
