Top vegetarian tips while having a stoma

Date: 11 February 2019      Category: Advice

It is important for everyone to eat a healthy, well balanced diet irrespective if you have a stoma or not. There are more people than ever following a vegetarian diet and in honour of Vegetarian Month, we would like to suggest our top tips for leading a vegetarian lifestyle if you have a stoma.

Please note: We would always advise you seek advice from your stoma nurse if you have any dietary concerns.
 

If you have a Colostomy..

You should be able to tolerate most fruits and vegetables, although you may find the following foods can cause; excess wind, colicky type tummy aches or loose stools.

• Dried fruit
• Nuts
• Onions
• Mushrooms
• Pulses
• Green Leafy vegetables (e.g broccoli, spinah, green beans & salad)

As long as you chew your food well, you should be able to try new foods in small portions and keep an eye on any adverse side effects. You shouldn’t have any issues following a vegetarian diet, but if you do - we highly recommend that you seek advice from your stoma nurse.
 

If you have an Ileostomy..

Those of you with an ileostomy may have been told to avoid foods with skins, nuts, seeds and sweetcorn. These can certainly cause problems such as a blockages. However, they are also key ingredients in many vegetarian recipes.

• We recommend that you remove skins wherever possible, such as from tomatoes, apples and potatoes.
• Tinned or pre-packaged ready chopped fruit can be a good option for a quick snack whilst being safe to eat as the skin has already been removed.

Remember: As always, chew your food well to lower the chance of a food blockage!
If you have had your Ileostomy for more than 5 years, you might have a Vitamin B12 deficiency.

What is Vitamin B12?

Vitamin B12 is a nutrient that helps keep the body’s nerve and blood cells healthy and also helps prevent a type of anemia called megaloblastic anemia that makes people tired and weak. Therefore, it is extremely important your body gets enough of Vitamin B12. This Vitamin is commonly found in a lot of the foods we ask you to avoid, such as dark green vegetable, pulses and dried fruit.

Fortunately, Vitamin B12 can also be found in the following ‘safe’ foods:

• Eggs
• Marmite
• Fortified cereal
• Bread

Vitamine B12 can also be found along with Vitamin A and protein in the following foods:

• Cheese
• Yoghurt
• Almond and coconut milk and soya products

If you have an Urostomy...

Then you can follow a vegetarian diet without any problems at all. Certain foods such as beetroot may alter the colour your urine and asparagus will affect the odour. However, these are not harmful and shouldn’t stop you from enjoying these foods if you enjoy them.
 

General tips and recommended vegetarian recipes

• Nut butters are a great way for ostomists to obtain the protein whilst reducing the risk of blockages from whole nuts.

• Mashing cooked butterbeans is a tasty alternative to mash potatoes and adding a spoonful or 2 of pesto is a tasty way to add extra protein from the ground pine nuts.

• Pulses are full of protein and used widely in vegetarian cooking. They can be mashed or softened in soups or stews making them easier to digest. 

• The majority of fruit and vegetables can be made into smoothies which are a tasty breakfast alternative, try adding cashew butter to mango and pineapple chunks. Apples and spinach blend well with avocados for another smoothie alternative or you can try using almond milk with a ripe banana, porridge oats and smooth peanut butter.

• Avocados are also brilliant when blended with bananas and chocolate to make a delicious mousse pudding, don’t just use them smashed on toast with scrambled eggs! 

• Soups are a great way to have as many vegetables as you like without causing the painful blockages they may cause when cooked in pieces. There are so many recipes out there for you to choose or simply experiment yourself and use whatever you have in the bottom of your fridge 

• Soya, quorn, quinoa and tofu are full of protein and vitamins and can be adapted in most recipes.

• Almond, soya and coconut milk are great dairy alternatives as are the nut butters that we are seeing more of. They are also a great source of magnesium and zinc which are essential for wound healing and boosting your immune system.

Shop around, look online or in books for recipes and try not to let your stoma put you off from trying all the delicious vegetarian meals out there. The Vegetarian Society website is a useful resource and have information for anyone would like to give Vegetarian month a try!