The Intersititial Cystitis Diet

If you are not familiar with the IC Diet by now take a minute to get yourself familiar. I'll wait here. See it's not so bad. A huge part of managing your IC symptoms and allowing your bladder to heal is following a proper diet. In my latest YouTube video I address some of the items you can enjoy and the items you should avoid (in general) along with some of what I personally eat. I hope you'll take a watch! Below are some general guidelines to follow and a list of some items/brands I find safe for my bladder. I also have a blog post I wrote ages ago on some of the snacks I eat. I will share the link to that below in the "snacks" category. I tend to stick to a very strict IC diet that is safe for even the most sensitive bladders. I also plan to do some grocery haul videos so you can see more of what I eat on a regular basis. The below are the two extremes of the diet - the "safe" and "caution" food basics. If you read the actual IC Diet Guidelines, you will see many "try it" foods that you may be able to tolerate. Always start out with just a little so you don't throw yourself into a full on flare. But don't be afraid to try some of the items. You may be surprised!

IC Safe Foods:
Alkaline Water: Essentia, Eternal, Fiji, or Evian
Dairy: milk, mild cheddar, mozzarella and other fresh cheeses, cottage cheese (check for acids), vanilla ice cream
Fruits - bananas, blueberries, honeydew melon, pears, raisins, watermelon, apples (Fuji, Gala, Pink Lady)
Vegetables - broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, mushrooms, peas, radishes, squash, zucchini, white potatoes, sweet potatoes & yams
Meat/Poultry - chicken, eggs, turkey, beef, pork, lamb. Check pre-packaged meats for nitrates/preservatives, especially lunch meats (I prefer Hormel Naturals or Applegate Farm).
Seafood - shrimp, tuna fish (i.e.Wild Planet Tuna), salmon
Grains - oats, rice, wheat, etc. Check pre-packaged items for preservative or if heavily fortified.
Snacks - pretzels, popcorn (check for preservatives), plain salted potato chips, saltines, Ritz Crackers, Gorge Delights Pear Bars, almond butter, tortilla chips, Carob, items from my IC Snack Attack list

IC Caution Foods:
Coffee - regular & decaf
Tea - caffeinated
Carbonated beverages - cola, non-colas, diet & caffeine-free
Alcohols - beer, red wine, white wine, champagne
Fruits - grapefruit, lemon, orange, pineapple
Fruit Juices - cranberry, grapefruit, orange, pineapple
Vegetables - tomato & tomato Products
Flavor Enhancers - hot peppers, spicy foods, chili, horseradish, vinegar, monosodium glutamate (MSG), seasonings that contain preservatives (i.e. BHT/TBHQ) or sulfites
Artificial Sweeteners - NutraSweet, Sweet ‘N Low, Equal, Saccharin
Ethnic foods - Mexican, Thai, Indian food

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Thanks, all!

XX, A!