Patient/caregiver was educated on dietary recommendations for individuals with ileostomy as follows:
- Individuals on ileostomy poorly process foods rich in fiber. Fiber rich foods can clog up the ileostomy resulting in severe abdominal pain. Fiber rich foods can also produce lot of gas, leading to symptoms of abdominal fullness and discomfort and necessitating the individual to frequently burp their bags. So, avoid or exercise caution with foods such as, brown rice, brown bread, green leafy vegetables, raw fruits with skin, raw vegetables with skin, and most of foods on the salad menu.
- While eating fruits, pick fresh fruit over dried fruit, as dried fruit is rich in fiber content. With fresh fruits, make sure you peel off the skin. The skin of fruits has rich fiber content and is poorly tolerated by individuals with ileostomy. Picking canned fruit can be a good option for individuals who have difficulty with peeling the skin or who hardly have time for the task of peeling the skin. Among fresh fruits, cantaloupe, watermelon, honeydew melon, and nectarines can be good choices for low fiber. Avoid or exercise caution with fiber rich fruits, such as, apples, banana, mango, and strawberries. The golden rule for these individuals regarding any fruit in general is peel the skin off.
- Individuals with ileostomy must avoid or minimize eating dried fruits, such as, prunes, raisins, apricots, dates, and figs. Thoroughly chewing them can be difficult and the gritty nature of residue from chewing can pass unchanged through the stoma and increase the risk for blockage of stoma, thus precipitating an emergency. Also, the high fiber in these dried fruits can be poorly tolerated by individuals with ileostomy.
