The Best Foods to Eat With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: 7 IBD Diets You Can Try

1. Specific carbohydrate diet

The specific carbohydrate diet (SCD) is based on the idea that complex sugars may cause more mucus and inflammation in the intestines. If you have frequent flare-ups of ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, it may be a useful diet to follow. To reduce inflammation, this diet recommends avoiding:

• Grains

• Dairy

• Processed meat

• Beans

• Legumes (except lentils and peas)

• Canned fruits and vegetables 

This diet is very restrictive and may be difficult to follow for most people. It also may increase the risk of developing a calcium or vitamin D deficiency because it restricts dairy products. The SCD diet also doesn’t appear to be better than the Mediterranean diet in preventing Crohn’s symptoms.

2. Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean diet can be similar to the SCD (see above), but it’s much easier to follow for most people. This diet encourages eating:

• Fresh fruits

• Vegetables

• Healthy fats like omega-3 fatty acids that may help reduce inflammation

• Low-fat dairy

• Eggs

• Yogurt

• Poultry

This diet recommends very little to no red meat, processed foods, or foods with added sugars.

3. Paleolithic diet (Paleo)

The paleolithic (paleo) diet is based on the idea that the processed foods of the modern Western diet aren’t a good match for the human gut. This diet promotes eating lean meat from animals not raised on farms, as well as plant-based foods, in specific proportions.

The paleo diet recommends avoiding:

• Most grains used to make foods like bread, pasta, or cereal

• Some starchy vegetables like potato, corn, and yams

• Dairy

• Legumes

• Refined sugars like table sugar and artificial sweeteners

This diet may also be difficult to follow long term due to its restrictions. And there’s no current evidence that it’s specifically beneficial for IBD.

4. Low-FODMAP diet

FODMAPs are foods containing carbohydrates in the form of fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols. When these carbohydrates are digested by the gut, they can cause intestinal symptoms for some people. This diet eliminates high-FODMAP foods for 6 to 8 weeks and then reintroduces them slowly. 

High-FODMAP foods include:

• Gluten

• Nuts

• Legume

• Dairy

• Certain fruits like apples, pears, and mangoes

• Certain vegetables like onions, broccoli, and cauliflower

This diet is very restrictive and is only meant to be temporary. A small study of people with IBD shows that this is a helpful diet for people with Crohn’s disease.

5. Anti-inflammatory diet

The anti-inflammatory diet is another popular meal plan. This diet is based on the idea that some carbohydrates can stimulate the growth of bacteria and increase inflammation. This diet recommends the use of probiotics and avoiding:

• Certain carbohydrates like white bread, cereal, and pasta

• High-fat, processed foods

• Red meat 

• Most dairy

• Alcohol

There’s some limited evidence of success with this diet among people with ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease. 

6. Semi-vegetarian diet

A semi-vegetarian diet might be useful to follow for people with Crohn’s disease. In this diet, your meats are limited but not eliminated. This may help to cut down on inflammation-related fats found in meat. This diet includes:

• Fruits

• Vegetables

• Beans

• Legumes

• Nuts

• Eggs

• Dairy

Following this diet limits animal protein, allowing fish once a week and meat only twice a month. 

7. Low-fiber diet

A low-fiber diet may be recommended temporarily during a flare-up of Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. It may also be useful if you need bowel rest due to complications of IBD like bowel obstruction or bowel surgery. A diet low in fiber helps to reduce foods that may be hard to digest. When following a low-fiber diet for IBD, you avoid foods like:

• Leafy vegetables

• Whole grains

• Raw fruit

• Nuts

• Seeds

• Popcorn

References