What Does “GP-Friendly” Really Mean?
If you’ve been with me for any period of time (on the blog, Facebook, or Twitter), you’ve no doubt seen me use the term “GP-friendly” to describe a variety of recipes, foods and products. But you’ve also heard me say (repeatedly) that everyone with gastroparesis has different dietary tolerances. Confused? Let me explain.
When I call something GP-friendly, I’m indicating that:
(a) It doesn’t contain anything that is known to cause bezoars or blockages. No nuts, seeds, skins, hulls, peels, dried fruit, raw vegetables, etc.
(b) It follows the gastroparesis diet guidelines, meaning it’s relatively low in fat, low in fiber, and easy to digest.
(c) It’s likely to be well-tolerated by many GPers.
Anything that meets these criteria is unlikely to cause any serious problems (i.e. it’s not going to make your gastroparesis more severe overall).
The catch? There are things that I deem “GP-friendly” that don’t agree with me personally. Likewise, there may be some that don’t agree with you. As I tell my clients, GP-friendly doesn’t always mean <your name here>-friendly. While I know that’s frustrating and it’s tempting to stick to your half a dozen “safe” foods, I encourage you to keep trying things — particularly those that are GP-friendly – for the sake of your overall nutrition, as well as your sanity!
Make sense?
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3 Responses to “What Does “GP-Friendly” Really Mean?”
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I find that as the years have passed with GP/CIP that the once GP Friendly foods have changed and become more limited. I now have a harder time balancing Nutritional needs with tummy comfort which does result in unhealthy eating. My cholesterol was the highest it has been in years and it was a direct relation to how unhealthy my choices have been. Sometimes, with GP/CIP a person will begin to avoid ‘healthier’ options in an attempt to try and avoid the reality of the illness, the discomfort and pleasantries of the side effects of GP/CIP. I admit to it but now I must go back to the highly limited diet of nutritional drinks and avoiding the ‘easy, simple’ foods that had no nutritional value and made me sick anyway. Thank you for an article that clarifies the GP Friendly diet term. I see other people list food items and think, “Gee, wish I could eat that” or I see other foods that they can’t eat and I think, “Wow, I can eat that, wonder what’s wrong with me.”
[...] I stumbled upon a recipe for Two-Ingredient Pumpkin Cake that looked both ridiculously easy and GP-Friendly. I decide to give it a try, making muffins instead of a cake (built-in portion control is one of [...]
Thanks for sharing this. Everyone is different! My go-to foods are lowfat yogurt and fat free cottage cheese. I can’t eat anything raw whatsoever even if it is pureed. I have found it beneficial to keep a food diary, times you eat the specific food, and then note the symptoms. This really helps pinpoint what foods you can tolerate better than others.