Today I got a blog comment from a woman who's interested in trying the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) but has concerns about getting enough calories and nutrients to continue breastfeeding her 8-month-old daughter. Here's her blog comment and my reply, for those who are interested in this topic. Keep in mind that the food list I included in my reply is enough calories for me when breastfeeding only FOUR times a day with Cassidy eating a lot of solids too. When I was nursing Cassidy 8-10 times a day I ate more almond flour baked goods, probably 2 more muffins or what-have-you per day.
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November 11, 2008 10:03:40 AM
Hi Amy,
Just found your blog on a search of "scd diet + breastfeeding" on
google. I'm inspired by your story. I have ulcerative colitis and have
been flaring on and off since I was diagnosed 1 1/2 years ago. I flared
throughout my pregnancy, was hospitalized for a week, and then gave
birth 7 weeks early after a placental abruption. Anyways, my daughter
is 8 months old and healthy as can be, but I am still flaring. I'm
thinking of trying the SCD diet, but not sure I'll get all the
calories/nutrients required to keep breastfeeding. Are you still breast
feeding Cassidy? Had you talked to your doctors about this at all?
Thanks for any help you could offer.
Sincerely,
Audra
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November 11, 2008 9:01:32 PM
Hi Audra,
I'm sorry to hear about the health issues you've been having. I know how hard it can be to feel sick while taking care of a baby. I hope that I can give you some answers about my journey with SCD to help you decide if you want to try it. First off, I am still breastfeeding Cassidy four times a day, and I'm for the most part feeling great on the diet. I did have a flare several months ago when I cut down on feedings. I think this flare-up was related to hormone fluctuations. So I went back to the intro diet from "Breaking The Vicious Cycle"" (BTVC), and stayed on that for a few weeks. That got me back to a healthy place, and I've been feeling great since. I spoke with a nutritionist when I was pregnant, and she agreed that the SCD is very healthy as long as one includes enough fruits and veggies. She also said the homemade yogurt (I make it from whole milk) and the almond flour baked goods are a great source of calcium, calories, and vitamins. I also take a prenatal vitamin, calcium citrate, and Omega 3-6-9.
My doctors are all thrilled with how I'm doing and say that I'm eating healthier than most of their patients who eat a "normal" diet. I've had no trouble keeping enough weight on and actually am up about 5 lbs over my pre-SCD weight. You may lose a little weight at first with the intro diet, but once your body gets adjusted and you figure out how many calories from foods other than bread products you need to eat during the day, it should get better. Here's what I ate today as an example of what you might need to eat in order to get enough calories to breastfeed and keep your weight up (I won't include water in my list, but I do drink a lot of it all throughout the day):
breakfast:
2 eggs
1 cup homemade whole milk yogurt mixed with...
1/2 cup frozen wild blueberries
8 oz apple cider
snack:
banana with peanut butter
lunch:
2 slices of Lois Lang's Luscious Bread (from BTVC) with butter & honey
1oz cheese
1-2 cups homemade tomato soup (canned tomato juice, with homemade yogurt, salt, pepper, & honey)
handful of baby carrots
apple
snack:
cashews and raisins
dried prunes
dinner:
Parmesan Walnut Encrusted Chicken from Raman Prasad's "Recipes for the Specific Carbohydrate Diet"
1 cup pureed butternut squash (with honey, butter, salt & pepper)
asparagus
1/2 c applesauce
snack:
homemade Peanut Butter Brownie
1/2 c homemade yogurt
Let me know if you have any other questions about anything at all. Starting the SCD is a really big deal and it helps to have a support system, whether it be family, friends, or Internet buddies like me. :)
Take care,Amy
November 29, 2008 - 3:21 PM
I'm so proud of you big sister.
December 17, 2008 - 8:46 AM
Amy, I was wondering what omega 3-6-9 you take. I think this might be a helpful addition to my daily regimen!
Emily
December 18, 2008 - 10:13 AM
I use Whole Foods brand OmegaForce 3-6-9 Complex. It seems to be the least expensive of the Omega supplements that Whole Foods carries, yet comparable to the pricier brands.
August 17, 2009 - 3:22 AM
Hello Amy,
I am following the adventures of your beautiful family for a while now (especially since i became pregnant on SCD) but now i need a little bit of your advice.
I couldn't find your email on the blog so i am writing in the comments. I am also brestfeeding on SCD and 5 months into breastfeeding i started to flare (exactly on my 2 year SCD anniversary). It has been going on for 2 weeks now and i stayed on intro first week and now i added few simple foods but basically it is still a lot of broth, pureed vegetables and meat and fish. I also started 2 g Pentasa when consulting my doctor.
Can you share with me how your flare when you breastfed looked like (how severe it was) and how long it lasted? And what you ate because i am starting to loose weight witouth nut goodies. I am also suspecting my hormones but at the moment it is not really important, what i need is to stop the flare so that i can continue to take care and hopefully breastfeed my soon to be 6 month baby boy.
Thank you in advance for your answers,
Janja
August 17, 2009 - 2:47 PM
Hi Janja,
Sorry to her you are flaring. I know it's really hard to take care of a baby when you aren't feeling your best. I hope you have a quick recovery.
I also flared when my baby was 6 months old. I was having intestinal pain, bloating, frequency (but not diarrhea--that's never been one of my symptoms), and fatigue. I was on the intro diet plus cheese, applesauce, and yogurt for about 2 weeks, and after that I began to add in more cooked fruits and veggies. I think it was about a month before I added back small amounts of nut baked goods. It was very hard to eat such a limited diet, but I was able to keep the weight on with the yogurt and cheese. Not sure if you are able to handle those but if so it might help a lot. I never did go back to medication, but if I had needed to my gastro doctor had said he'd do a round of prednisone to calm the flare since Pentasa never worked very well for me. Have you tried coconut oil? I've heard that can have anti-inflammatory properties. Here's a link about it: http://www.comfytummy.com/2009/08/14/coconut-oil-health-and-digestion/
I've not tried it myself, but I do eat Jennie's Coconut Macaroons every day.
Let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you are feeling better soon!
Amy
November 8, 2009 - 9:37 AM
Hi Amy,
My baby is 5 wks old and I've been breastfeeding... I have been on diet 9 years and it has been very successful for me. After I gave birht though I went into flare and I cannot tolerate much.. mostly cooked pears, squash, beans, zuchini, carrots, all meats and fish, DCCC. I just don't have enough calories for us boht... I've been actually taking the boost drinks to give me more calories cuz I"m starving! I just don't know what to do, I can't tolerate yogurt or cheese... any advise?
November 8, 2009 - 8:44 PM
Hi Kerri,
It's got to be really hard with such limited options while breastfeeding. You said you cannot tolerate much, so the foods I'm suggesting are probably ones you've already tried...my thoughts would be to add fatty, calorie-dense foods like avocado, olives, coconut (maybe the oil would be easier to tolerate?), lots of butter, peanut butter, eggs...could you tolerate any of those? If you are unable to eat any of those and are feeling like you can't get enough calories, it might be useful to consider a round of prednisone to get the flare under control, and then you might be able to eat more SCD-legal options. Sources say that prednisone is fine to use while breastfeeding, for example: http://www.kellymom.com/health/meds/aap-approved-meds.html . My gastro doc told me that's what he would suggest if I had a flare that I couldn't manage with the diet (he supports my choice to do SCD and wants to help me stick with it). I hope you find a solution that works for you, even if it means going on medication for a while. I had some postpartum flares that in my opinion were related to hormone shifts. I was able to control them with a modified intro diet that included yogurt and cheese, which helped me keep my calories up. It's got to be difficult without the yogurt and cheese. Let me know how it goes for you--I am expecting baby #3 in March and would love to gain the knowledge of other Moms' experiences.