Pepper, Butter, Margarine...miracle whip

[TerryEllen]

In the IC Chef section, many of the recipes have pepper, butter, oils etc. But I thought I saw pepper on the bad list...and hydrogenated oil. I'm to avoid meals high in animal proteins...what on earth does that translate to, if chicken is ok.

Also, the bad lists all show mayo and salad dressings as bad...what about Miracle whip, and if all are bad, what goes on those salads you all say are great?

[Annie2]

TerryEllen,

Trying to master the diet and decifer the recipes is quite confusing and frustrating! Our reactions to many things are very individual and it takes some time to sort out your own personal triggers and sensitivities.

Some people tolerate pepper, others do not.
Mayo and salad dressings contain vinegar and are, therefore, very acidic so many of us cannot tolerate them at all. Some ICers can occassionally use a very small amount of salad dressing if they take Prelief with it. I believe many of us tolerate olive oil well and it is a "healthy" oil to consume. That is what I now use on my salads. Sometimes I combine a little garlic, salt and basil with the oil. You can add whatever seasonings your bladder tolerates to the olive oil to make your own homemade dressing. I keep a small leak-proof bottle of olive oil in my purse when we go out to eat so that I have my "safe" dressing with me and can enjoy salads in restaurants.

Many cooking oils are made from soy. Like so many other things, our tolerance for soy and soy products varies. If I can't or don't want to use olive oil for cooking, I find canola oil is fine for me. Margarines are fine for some ICers but those very sensitive to soy have to stick to real butter.

Chicken is usually good for most ICers as long as it hasn't been injected or treated with additives. If eating in a restaurant, however, you need to ask if the chicken (or any meat) has been marinated. Most marinades are acidic as well as being highly seasoned and are irritating to many of us. Today many restaurants buy their chicken in bulk packages and the chicken is soaked in marinade before being packaged.

We all react so differently to various foods so you really have to test yourself, one thing at a time, to find your personal triggers and tolerances. I'm sure others can offer many more suggestions to you. It takes time (and a lot of label reading) to sort it all out but is worth the effort to discover what does and doesn't work for you!

Annie

[TerryEllen]

This is very helpful! My husband and I intend to try to go out to dinner for the first time, and I didn't even know what to put on a salad...excellent! I've been all over the site looking for these kinds of eating out tips...I suspect it's here, there's so much info, just need to find it. thanks!

[Annie2]

Glad this helped you. Hope you and your husband have an enjoyable evening out!

It may be a bit late for your use tonight, but I'll pass along a few eating out tips that might be useful to you. When in a restaurant where I don't know the menu well, I always tell the server I have to follow a rigid medical diet and would appreciate their help in ordering. Then I ask about ingredients, marinades, tenderizers, seasonings, etc. Usually the servers will have to check on this and I make sure I thank them profusely for their assistance. At this point I usually have them on my side and they frequently check back to make sure everything meets my needs. Most places will bend over backwards to please the customer if you politely let them know your situation at the very beginning. After the meal I make sure I thank the server again for all the help they have given me and also make sure I leave an adequate tip.

Especially in the beginning of this confounded diet when you are just learning your triggers, I found the safest thing to order in a restaurant is a steak that has not been marinated or tenderized and I ask for it to be prepared without any seasoning. Hamburgers are usually safe, too, if you ask for it to be prepared without seasoning. Chicken is great but the problem is finding a restaurant that has not marinated all the chicken (or had it delivered already marinated). Chicken by itself has little flavor and almost all chefs will marinate it before using it in any dishes.

Eating in some chain restaurants can also be a problem. Some (certainly not all) have most of their dishes prepared in a "central kitchen" and the food is then shipped out to the individual restaurants. At that point, you have no idea what is in the food. Some of the chains maintain websites and you can check ingredients there before even attempting to eat in the restaurant. When in that situation, it helps to ask what is actually prepared "in house" and choose from those items.

A huge help to me in learning about this diet was the cookbook "A Taste of The Good Life" available here in the ICN Shop. Not only are there recipes in the book, but also you will find a ton of info on food reactions, reading and understanding labels, etc.

As stated so many times before, we are all different in our reactions to foods. What worked for me when I started out was to stick strictly to the "usually ok" foods for several weeks. I noted what I ate and any reactions so I could tell if I had problems with any of these usually safe items. After I had gone through that I slowly, one item at a time, started trying the "maybe" foods, again noting my bladder's reaction to each item.

After being on Elmiron for 8 months and having much success with it, I am starting, ever so slowly, to try some of the "problematic" foods again.

We all understand how difficult all of this is, especially in the beginning, as we've all been there before. Hope this has been helpful to you. Please feel free to PM me if I you have any questions. I am certainly no expert but have benefited so much myself from this great website and remain here to offer any help I can to others!

Annie

[Dixiefireball]

i had to go threw the diet and make my own. there is alot of things there i can eat. THANK YOU GOD! its really an inv. things threw trail and error the diet is what people have reported that did hurt them threw a study. I don't believe fish is on the list but i can't eat fish it really tears my bladder up.
Good Luck in making your own diet list. I stay away from all hot and spicy things no fish no tea. things like that for me. oh and no tomatos either unless they are home grown.