Pancreatitis is a serious disease of the pancreas, characterized by a violation of the production of digestive enzymes. The main symptoms of the disease are pain after eating in the left or right hypochondrium, heartburn, nausea, vomiting, and discomfort in the stomach.
Strict adherence to dietary guidelines is the key to treating pancreatitis. After all, the development of the disease often occurs due to an improper lifestyle, the use of alcohol and "junk" food in large quantities.
Diet for pancreatitis helps patients to reduce pain during an exacerbation of the disease and add a stage of remission. In acute and chronic pancreatitis, nutrition is different, but it still has some similarities. Let's talk about them.
General nutritional rules for pancreatitis
The main requirement of the diet is to increase the amount of protein consumed and reduce the fat and carbohydrates in the main diet (if possible, they should be eliminated altogether). You should especially give up the consumption of granulated sugar, because 99% of it consists of carbohydrates.
Fatty meals high in coarse fiber should completely disappear from the life of patients with pancreatitis. After all, they exert a strong load on the pancreas, as a result of which the organ begins to produce very large quantities of digestive enzymes, which is dangerous in this disease and can lead to serious complications.
Doctors recommend that all patients with pancreatitis take vitamin complexes that will help fill the deficiency of vitamins and minerals in the body, often resulting from limited nutrition.
Meals should be scheduled at the same time.
Eat 5-6 times in small portions a day to avoid excessive stress on the pancreas and overeating.
Diet for acute pancreatitis
As a rule, acute pancreatitis manifests itself as a sudden sharp pain in the pit of the stomach. The pains are unbearable, and therefore force a person to call an emergency ambulance. The diet for acute pancreatitis before the arrival of the doctor is "zero". In no case should you eat food. Neither "light" nor "heavy".
Before the arrival of the doctor, it is allowed to take non-carbonated mineral water, but no more than 3 glasses. And it is allowed to drink them only if the process of urination occurs normally.
Treatment of acute pancreatitis occurs only in a hospital setting. The first two days the patient is prescribed fasting. Only now it is allowed to drink rosehip broth together with mineral water. The total amount of liquid consumed should not exceed 5 glasses per day.
On the third day of treatment, the patient is allowed to eat fresh, low-calorie food, which does not contain substances that cause irritation of the pancreas and enhance the secretion produced.
After the main symptoms subside, the diet for pancreatic pancreatitis continues for one to two months. During this period, you should completely abandon:
- fried and fatty foods;
- muffins and pastries;
- pickles and smoked foods;
- pickles and canned food;
- spicy and sweet;
- onions and garlic;
- alcoholic beverages;
- fatty meats and fish;
- sausages.
All food products must be heat treated. They should be boiled in water or steamed. Do not use oil, salt and spices during cooking.
The patient is allowed to eat food only in a warm and grated form. Before going to bed, it is recommended to use laxative fermented milk products - kefir, fermented baked milk.
Duration of the diet from 6 to 12 months. And it is on how a person will adhere to it that his health in the future depends. If all nutritional recommendations are neglected, the disease can take on a chronic form and then the patient will have to be treated throughout his life.
Diet for chronic pancreatitis in remission
The chronic pancreatitis diet is slightly different from the above diet. In this case, the patient's diet expands significantly, but only in the remission phase. During the period of exacerbation, the diet is of a completely different nature, but more about it later.
In chronic pancreatitis, the consumption of proteins is allowed, which should be almost several times higher than the daily intake of a person, and the use of carbohydrates (sugar, honey, baked goods, baked goods, etc. ) is also allowed.
Foods that irritate the pancreas (hot spices, large amounts of salt, alcohol, etc. ) are a limitation.
The patient's nutrition should also be fractional. The number of meals is 4 to 6 times. The food served should be warm. You do not need to grind food before taking it.
Meat and fish products should not contain a lot of fat, otherwise it can cause liver degeneration, which happens quite often in chronic pancreatitis. Cottage cheese contains many useful substances, and therefore simply must be present in the patient's diet. However, you can only eat homemade cottage cheese, but not very fatty. Store cottage cheese is forbidden to eat.
If a person cannot refuse bread, then it is recommended for him to eat either yesterday's pastries or crackers (only from gray or black bread) during meals. You can also eat baked goods and pastries, but in limited quantities (no more than one serving per day).
In case of pancreatitis, it is not advisable to drink milk in its pure form, since it is poorly digested. It can be added to teas or made into cereals and soups. Even if the patient tolerates milk well, it should not be drunk in large quantities. The maximum dose is 200 ml.
Fermented milk products are very useful for people with chronic pancreatitis. Even cheese, which at other stages of the disease is on the list of prohibited foods, can be consumed in remission, but not in large quantities and provided that you feel well. The cheese should not be very salty or fatty.
Eggs cannot be eaten whole. Only egg white can be present in the patient's diet. It can be used to steam omelets or add them to soups.
The patient's diet should not contain a lot of fat (no more than 70 g per day). Moreover, most of them should consist of vegetable fats. They are better digested and do not burden the pancreas.
Diet for chronic pancreatitis during exacerbation
The diet for pancreatitis during an exacerbation is the same as for an acute form of the disease. The patient is prescribed fasting, and in the event of the onset of positive dynamics, he is allowed to eat fresh and low-fat food in small quantities.
If no deterioration in health is observed, the patient's menu gradually expands. After 2-3 months, the person can eat in the same way as in the remission phase.
Remember, this is just a rough diet for pancreatitis. A complete list of permitted and prohibited products should be checked with your doctor. Only he will be able to compose the correct diet, taking into account your health condition.