Any Vegan/Lactose Intolerant/Gluten Intolerant/IBS Mummys to be out there?

[callypygous]

I am gluten and lactose intolerant, and have IBS. I had it for months before falling pregnant, and actually the slowing down of my digestion appears to have done me a world of good.

For those of you not getting calcium through dairy, or on any kind of different diet - what supplements/measures are you taking to ensure your baby gets all the nutrients it needs?

At the moment I am taking a normal prenatal in the morning, an omega 3 supplement 3 times a day (although I plan on upgrading to a heavier duty one I only need to take once a day with higher DHA content) - it's meant to help with baby's brain development, a calcium supplement in the evening and I'm contemplating taking probiotics as I read that dodgy intestinal flora can be passed onto your baby and has even been linked with autism (?!) but I'm just looking into which probiotics are safe to take when pregnant.

I'm studying Nutrition so the whole thing is fascinating to me, but I have no plans to be experimenting on my own body!

I'd love to hear from anyone in a similar position!

 

[ItsAWonder]

I am highly allergic to dairy and have been my whole life. Intolerant to gluten, wheat, egg, peanut, cane sugar, cranberry, and the list goes on.

To combat calcium I eat dark green leafy vegetables and I have always tested normal to a bit high so it seems to do the trick. I cannot take calcium supplements since most are derived from dairy. Some orange juices are safe so since BFP I have been drinking a small glass of oj w/ calcium and vitamin D. (Just an FYI - most anti-nausea pills, antibiotics etc also have lactose or milk derivatives so do research when you are prescribed any med.)

I used to stay away from all intolerant foods but by doing that my sensitivities became much, much worse. Now I eat them in small doses - 1. to maintain the ability to ingest them w/out it turning into an allergy, and 2. eating them will help my little one from becoming intolerant. I get a stuffy nose but that's about it. If I eat too much I can get zits and/or hives. It's a fine balance that I have worked on for about 20 years.

I also used to take probiotics but you have to be careful which ones you get when pregnant. To be safe, I get Almond based yogurt and eat one per day in the late morning.

I know tons, and tons about nutrition and am happy to share if you have questions. Just PM me.

 

[callypygous]

Wow, you poor thing! That's a lot to deal with. Eating out must be a nightmare, I know I already struggle - and now I'm pregnant too, it's an absolute nightmare!

I'm thinking about starting on green smoothies again as a way of ensuring I get my greens in daily. I do eat a lot of fruit and veg daily but I don't always necessarily have greens. I'm probably obsessing more than I should, but I just want to do my very best.

I didn't know that about calcium supplements. I also break out in spots all round my chin whenever I consume dairy, as well as hives or a rash. It used to also have a big and almost immediate affect of my bowels and make me bloat like mad, but I accidentally had a little at the weekend and that didn't happen. I don't feel like I am missing out on too much by not consuming gluten (nutrition wise) but I hadn't thought that I could be passing that on.. I might look into trying to introduce that gradually.. My tummy hurts just thinking about it!

Thanks for your informative response.

 

[Rachie004]

I'm vegetarian, coeliac and I think I'm allergic to cheese!

I seem to be okay with yogurt, it's just cheese that makes me really itchy. I have goats milk instead of cows milk because it's easier to digest - could you have goats milk or is it an issue for you? xx

 

[confuzion]

Lactose intolerant here. I do take a calcium supplement (and a bunch of other supplements that would take me 15 minutes- half hour to type lol). I take a MegaFood brand calcium supplement which is gluten/soy/dairy free. Derived from farm fresh organic foods.

For DHA and omega-3s I take high-potency omega 3 fish oil, krill oil, and astaxanathin. I'm also looking into getting a plant based omega-3 supplement.

Eating out for both my husband and I is nearly impossible as we're pretty strict with our diet. No unfermented gluten, no cane sugar, no vegetable oils/corn oil or any oil besides coconut oil and olive oil really, no fruit juices (as their high sugar content spikes insulin levels), and all food must be 100% organic. Probably more restrictions we put on our diet but I'm too tired to think lol.

We do find that raw food restaurants seem to have a good selection for us if we ever feel the need to make an occasion out of something and eat out. Vegan selections, usually organic, no dicey ingredients.

 

[aspiringmum]

I'm allergic to wheat and have all sorts of digestion sensitivities as well--I, too have found the pregnancy slows everything down for the better for me!!

Echoing what the other ladies have said by drinking calcium and vit D fortified OJ--it's been a lifesaver for me when I can't drink milk. I'm not lactose intolerant but milk often bothers my stomach. I've found that certain yogurts will work better for me too--but I'm not sure that would help your situation?

Good luck!!

 

[Night Flower]

Almond milk has 30% more calcium than regular milk. I recommend it.

I'm pescetarian (mainly vegetarian, eat fish 2-3xs a week), have IBS and am DAIRY intolerant. This all started to come about right after I got off Depo shot three years ago. I just puff/balloon/bloat right up

 

[Night Flower]

Right now Gluten products are the HARDEST to give up on. Gluten free breads are just so expensive

 

[Pix]

(Bad) vegan mommy here!

I say bad cuz I can eat chicken. So I do. But my allergies only allow me to be vegan. I take deva vegan prenatals. Which are amazing.

I find that wing pregnant everything has also slowed for me and for the better! Love it. Cuz I can get away with actually eating toast again!

 

[CantHrdlyWait]

Another Celiac here!

 

[lewood88]

I have a wheat intolerance but I still eat wheat but on the off chance but tbf I barely eat bread, my stomach bloats and hurts and my ibs kicks in summat terrible lol

 

[callypygous]

That's interesting about the almond milk, I have been drinking kara coconut milk which is fortified with calcium and b vitamins. Unfortunately I seem to be worse with yoghurt/milk than I am with hard cheese. My nutritionist actually recommended I cut out all dairy except for natural yoghurt for it's probiotic properties but it just went straight through me

I read somewhere that during your second trimester some people who are lactose intolerant discover that they can introduce dairy products with no problems. However I am still not decided whether I even want to introduce it! Despite it being an inconvenience, I do feel a lot healthier since cutting dairy out and it does mean that I automatically couldn't eat a lot of convenience rubbish which is a blessing (in my case, chocolate bars!). I now am a raw chocolate lover!

Unfortunately in Spain they don't cater to special diets, there are no raw/vegan restaurants. Or if there are, they are few and far between - and certainly none in my area.

Thanks everyone for sharing how you get round it, I learned a bit from everyone of you

 

[confuzion]

Callypygonus - also love raw chocolate as they're usually made with other than cane sugar. One of my favorites is the sacred heart brand "Mylk" chocolate. So delicious!

Unfortunately they're so darn expensive! So I only have them as a treat here and there.

 

[endlessblue]

I am lactose intolerant (since birth) and have had IBS for almost 8 years. Pregnancy has made the IBS worse unfortunately - I used to be very regular (2 or 3 times a day) but I struggle to do that in a whole week now! It's making my tummy very bloated and painful, plus trapped wind... not nice!

I get my calcium from Lactofree milk daily and my prenatals have some added calcium too

 

[callypygous]

@confuzion I ordered some raw choc pie from the UK, they're an awesome company. I'd love to try making some myself. They're also an expensive treat, but worth every penny I don't have them often anyhow. Yeah it's made with coconut oil and agave nectar or xylitol.

@endlessblue That sucks, you just can't win with IBS. On the positive side, at least hopefully that means your body is retaining all the nutrients your baby will need. If you're too regular you're at risk of not properly absorbing the nutrients from your meals.

 

[Nagazim]

I could hug you all. Someone that sees how difficult eating out or grocery shopping can be

Early in the summer I began a weight loss journey and traveled through a couple variations of eating until I landed on the Paleo band wagon. At first it was strictly for weight loss purposes but after 2 weeks of cutting grains, gluten, and dairy I was surprised at how much my tummy had deflated and how good I felt over all. So our anniversary came around and I decided to cheat on my diet with my beloved Mexican food from my favorite restaurant and got sick as a dog. Apparently I don't tolerate those foods like I thought I did. I haven't went to a dr about any of this but have tested out wheat and dairy tolerances and failed those tests.

So now I'm sticking to being grain, gluten, and dairy free. It's tough some times, but I know I feel better than convenience foods would make me feel.


My favorite chocolate bar is BOOM CHOCO BOOM chocolate bar. SO good!

 

[Rachie004]

Aw, I don't think grocery shopping is too hard - especially when you get into the routine of your safe foods, it's very difficult when just starting out. I think eating out is the hardest, we tend to just go to the same restaurants all the time because we know where is safe for me xx

I'm definitely going to give almond milk a try after reading this