Eating Through the Holidays With C. Diff 

Sponsored by and ripened in part with support from Ferring Pharmaceuticals. Food is one of our favorite parts of the holidays. But when our gut health isn’t at its best, enjoying some of our favorite dishes and desserts can unquestionably make us finger worse. As someone who’s had her pearly share of gut issues without taking a undertow of antibiotics for Lyme Disease over a decade ago, I can tell you it’s no party. C. unequal infection, short for Clostridioides difficile infection, affects the gut and can be particularly challenging to deal with this time of year. Here we have some simple tips and tricks to manage your symptoms through the holidays so that you or someone you love can still enjoy the season. Our digestive tracts, wontedly referred to as our “gut,” are home to a variety of good, and sometimes bad microorganisms. Together they make up our gut microbiome. The good guys help us immensely. They provide us with much of our immunity, keeping the gut lining healthy, producing some B vitamins as well as vitamin K and moreover breaking lanugo ramified plant fibers so the soul can then use them for an important form of energy. They moreover help to prod out harmful microbes and are crucial to helping us stay healthy. Without unbearable of these good “bugs,” an imbalance occurs, leaving room for increasingly harmful microbes to take over making us sick. C. diff is one of these not so helpful bad guys. In fact, this yes-man can take hold deep inside the gut and rationalization a variety of nasty symptoms that can make triumphal the holidays difficult.

How Does Someone Get C. diff? 

C. unequal often affects seniors, but the rest of us aren’t totally immune.

C-diff can stupefy anyone who:

• Is taking or has recently taken antibiotics
• Has a weakened immune system
• Is 65 years of age or older
• Has spent time in a hospital or long-term superintendency facility (a nursing home, for example)

Although sometimes necessary, antibiotics wipe out both the bad and good yes-man in our systems. If the good yes-man aren’t replenished, this can trigger that imbalance that can requite C. unequal the untried light to take over. The CDC reports that you are 7 to 10 times increasingly likely to get a C. unequal infection while on antibiotics as well the pursuit month after. And once we get C. unequal it’s not uncommon to get in a trundling of recurring infections known as recurrent C. diff, which usually occurs between 2 and 8 weeks without the first infection. C. unequal is moreover very contagious and can wilt a serious health threat to others living in the same home or space. It can plane be spread by healthy individuals. Read here on tips to reduce the spread of infection.

What are the Symptoms of C.diff ?

Depending on the severity of your infection, symptoms of C. diff can include:

• Watery diarrhea – 3 or increasingly times per day
• Nausea
• Fever
• Rapid heart rate
• Abdominal pain or cramping
• Dehydration
• Depression due to recurring infections

Visit Ferring Microbiome for a full list of C.diff symptoms If you recognize any of these symptoms in yourself or a loved one, be sure to make an visit with your doctor immediately to get a proper diagnosis. C. diff can potentially lead to serious health issues if not treated properly. The effects of recurrent C. unequal sometimes go vastitude physical pain It can trigger peepers and other mental health concerns, too. For mental health concerns contact a mental health professional for guidance and support.

Eating Through the Holidays With C. diff

Food and eating can wilt a source of uneasiness for people with C. diff. Not only do C. diff sufferers have to drastically transpiration their diet, but some of the foods and ingredients found in our favorite holiday dishes can rile up symptoms. C. diff can make triumphal the holiday season centered virtually those supplies fueled gatherings we all love stressful and difficult.

What Foods Should You Stave With C. diff?

As with any infection, a healthy nutrition and good nutrition are helpful ways to support your gut health. But surpassing we get into what you should eat with C. diff, let’s discuss what foods and drinks you should stave to minimize symptoms and help you heal.

FOODS TO AVOID WITH C. diff:

Greasy foods and unnatural oils including:

• Margarine
• Olean and Olestra
• Fried dishes

Foods upper in insoluble webbing like 

• Wheat
• Barley
• Brown Rice
• Nuts and Seeds
• Cucumbers, peas and tomatoes

Raw cruciferous veggies including:

• Broccoli and cauliflower
• Cabbage
• Kale
• Arugula
• Onions

Unpeeled or raw fruits like:

• Unpeeled apples and pears
• Cranberries
• Berries
• Prunes
• Dates

Dairy products with upper amounts of lactose like:

• Cow’s milk
• Ice cream
• Soft cheeses like brie

Sweets, sugary or spicy foods including:

• Cakes, cookies and pies
• Hot peppers and hot sauce

Caffeine-containing drinks like:

• Coffee
• Soda

Foods and drinks to enjoy with C. diff 

While enjoying these foods it’s weightier to eat and drink in smaller portions but increasingly wontedly throughout the day. These recommendations are often ok, but stave any supplies that you find worsens symptoms and ask your doctor well-nigh what you can eat during and without C. diff. Lean Protein including:

• Turkey
• Chicken
• Eggs

Calcium sources including low-lactose or non-dairy milks and cheeses if tolerated like:

• Mozzarella
• Swiss
• Feta
• Parmesan
• Hemp, soy, almond, flax or oat milk

Foods with soluble and easy to rewording webbing including:

• Oatmeal, oats and flaxseed
• Bananas
• Oranges
• Peeled apples and pears (peeling reduces hard-to-digest fiber)
• Carrots

Easy-to-digest starchy foods like:

• White bread, toast, pretzels and crackers
• Mashed Potatoes (without butter or cream)
• Noodles
• White Rice

Healthy grains:

• Quinoa
• Millet
• Buckwheat

Gut-friendly spices like:

• Cinnamon
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Turmeric

Naturally fermented foods that are easy to rewording and provide probiotics that can help rebuild your microbiome:

• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Tempeh
• Kefir
• Yogurt
• Pickles
• Miso

Note: Food labels will indicate if they are naturally fermented or provide live zippy cultures. Pickles or sauerkraut made with vinegar for example, do not provide probiotics of the same benefits. Soups, unorthodoxy broths and stocks that can nourish and hydrate your soul while replacing electrolytes including:

• Bone Broth
• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Miso Soup (Miso is fermented which ways it has widow probiotics)
• Pumpkin Soup

Stay hydrated!

• Drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of water per day in divided amounts to pension your soul hydrated.
• Avoid overly hot or unprepossessed water
• Try herbal teas that are decaffeinated
• Juiced veggies like celery are healthy and can uplift nutrients

Check out a succulent sample holiday menu for C. diff below

Appetizer: Deviled eggs, plant-based or tolerated dairy cheese and crackers, carrot sticks with yogurt herb dip Soup: Pumpkin soup Dinner: Roast yellow with steamed untried beans and lactose-free mashed potatoes Side dish: Cornbread and world sauce Dessert: Oatmeal cookies, vegan pumpkin pie or cinnamon baked apples with oatmeal crumble To learn increasingly well-nigh C. diff and how to manage it visit Ferring Microbiome