Sensitive Dieting

Having a sensitive stomach is very difficult when trying to eat healthier or diet. You read up on every food that could possibly be healthy for you, looking at all of them with worry because they make your stomach hurt, so what do you do?

Figuring out exactly which foods upset your stomach, when, and even why is the first step to learning to eat correctly for yourself.

There are typical foods such as veggies, fruits, cheeses, meats, and nuts that are good for your mind and body. These foods don’t always settle well for people like me, and as crazy as it sounds, some unhealthy foods sit better with me!

And it may sound crazy that fruits, of all foods can upset one’s stomach, but it is a true reality for me. I have found that if I eat too much fruit in one sitting it causes my stomach to turn because of it’s natural sugars. Indeed, fruits are very good for you, and are a key component to what your diet should be on a daily basis, but in limited quantities.

It is important to look at how foods affect you during certain times of day, as it is important to get your major food groups into your diet, which even with a sensitive stomach you can do carefully.

There are many people who struggle with sensitive stomachs, especially in the dairy realm. For me, this is another food category that I struggle with. Every time I eat dairy, whether it be cheese, milk, or any type of cream my stomach screams at me, and sometimes I truly regret ever eating dairy due to the pain I go through.

Actually, 75% of the world’s adult population have trouble breaking down lactose, the main carbohydrate in dairy, states a Healthline article. This happens when our body’s digestive system doesn’t produce enough lactase (not to get confused with lactose) to break down dairy products.

I’ve noticed that these foods that upset my stomach (but are supposed to be good for you) only negatively affect me during certain times of day, which is very helpful for me.

Foods that affect me poorly during the morning are dairy and fruits, and this is because of it being the first thing I put in my body. My body doesn’t do well with sugary items in the morning, hence why I have never really enjoyed cereal, donuts, or syrup on my pancakes. On the other side of things, dairy doesn't sit well with me in the morning solely because dairy simply just doesn't sit well with me, but also because if it is going into a body that has an empty stomach, that is all my body has to work with. If I have cheeses or such after or with a meal later in the day, it doesn’t turn my stomach as much.

Along with fruits and dairy, veggies actually can upset my stomach too, but this is usually only due to the seasoning. If they are cooked in a healthy way, such as steaming (opposed to frying or cooking with butter), and limited salts and seasonings, I actually really like veggies.

This is the same with meats. I can eat any meat as long as it is later in the day and is cooked correctly (for me). I like my red meats to be pretty rare, and any other meat to be very well cooked, sometimes even overdone, and never fried.

After carefully thinking of all of my sensitivities, I decided to make a meal plan for myself that will generally help my stomach stay sane, but at the same time staying healthy.

My first step would clearly be the morning, and what I would start off with for breakfast. Since the morning time is the most crucial, and the most difficult for me, I have to stat light. The best meal for me to have in the morning would be a lightly sweetened oatmeal or bread. I chose this for the morning because it is something filling that will set my day off on the right foot, but is also still healthy and won’t upset my stomach due to no dairy, and low sugar. I especially believe oatmeal is a great choice because oats are one of the most nutritious grains you can find. They are filled with vitamins, fibers, minerals, and antioxidants that our bodies and minds love.

For my next meal I like to stay light so my stomach doesn't get full too quickly in the day because that is something I struggle with as well. An important part to eating healthy is portioning correctly.

So, for lunch is where I will add my dairies, to keep them in the middle of the day, balancing everything out. This (for me) would consist of some light cheeses, such as a few slices of cheddar. With this I like to go light with a soup with chicken or beef to add meat to my diet, in a way that isn’t overpowering. Lastly, for lunch I like to add a veggie of some sort like carrots or green beans to, again, make sure I have all of my components.

I like to have a snack in between meals, since I tend to not eat dinner until late at night due to my work schedule. I want to include a fruit into my daily snack. A favorite snack of mine is mixed berries.

A great way to eliminate unnecessary sugars in fruits is eating them completely fresh. A lot of packaged fruits have juices or sugars added into the fruit to make them much more unhealthy and unsettling for someone like me.

I like to go to the market and pick the best fruits. I pick out strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and some other fruits such as apples and plums. Having these as a mid day snack not only boost my energy with their natural sugars, but it also will balance out what I have been eating for the day.

Lastly, when dinner comes around I typically like meat to be the main dish. I like to eat heavier at dinner so that I don’t snack on unhealthy foods for the rest of the night, and so my body doesn’t have to work hard during my sleep schedule.

I love fish, and fish is a very healthy form of protein due to being low in fat. I typically like to have salmon for dinner with a veggie on the side, or sometimes I go even heavier with a steak. I would also like to add a rice or pasta as a small side dish to my dinner to make it a little heavier, and give me more taste. I think eating these things at dinner time will set me straight for the rest of the night.

All in all, I believe setting this meal plan for me will keep me balanced, healthy, energized, and satisified.

Being healthy is very important to me because of how much it affects mental health and the way your mind operates. Mental health has always been a huge part of my life, and something I take seriously. So, if eating well will help my mental health, I think of that as an easy way to help yourself out in a huge way.

Unfortunately for people like me, it is hard to stay healthy with the right foods portions, but if you set your mind to it, meal planning is a perfect way to enhance your diet!