Start by following a beneficial diet for your bladder for two weeks. Then, slowly add up other foods to the diet in order to determine which of them increase IC symptoms and in what proportion. Try eating and drinking different things and keep record of those that cause you difficulties. Also keep record of how often you can eat different foods or drink different liquids. This will allow you to design a diet that suits you the best.
Step 1: prepare yourself
Step 2: begin with foods and beverages that are beneficial for your bladder
Step 3: after a few weeks try eating foods on the “Try it” list
Slowly add foods to the “Try it” section. Only add one new thing at a time in small amounts. This will help you to determine if one specific food or beverage worsen your IC.
Try eating greater quantities of foods that do not worsen your symptoms. It is possible that you find out you can eat foods from the “Try it” list in small quantities without this worsening your IC symptoms.
Harmful foods from less to more
The following list includes foods that many patients with IC have classified in one of the following categories:
Less harmful (benefits for the bladder)
Can be eaten (Try it)
More harmful (caution)
The list is not a food guide or a food plan, instead it constitutes a tool to help patients with IC to determine, which foods are harmful, and which ones are beneficial.
| Benefits for the bladder | Try it | Caution | |
| Beverages | Water – Try until you find one suitable for you
Juice – blueberry, pear Milk Milk substitute – almonds, rice, Lactaid, Milk shakes – vanilla Tea – Chamomile, mint None lactose cream substitute – check the label Eggnog – without alcohol |
Juice: Not so sour orange, grapes, some apple, baby food
Coffee – herbs, decaffeinated not so sour, toasted carobs Soda – Root beer with ice (decaffeinated, none diet) Sports beverages – try until you find one suitable for you (ex: Blue Gatorade) |
Alcohol – it not only irritates the bladder, but it is also contraindicated with lots of IC medications
Water – with gas, vitamins, with flavor Juice pulp – cranberries, orange, azai Milk – chocolate, soy Coffee – regular and decaffeinated Tea – regular, green, herbs, iced tea Sodas – colas, citric, orange, diet Juice powders – such as Kool Aid, lemonade, orange, or powders to prepare iced tea Sport beverages Energizing beverages – guarana, mate |
| Grains | Breads – corn bread+, oatmeal bread+, pita, potato bread, + white bread+, Italian sweet bread, whole meal bread (ex: Ezekiel)
Cereals – the majority of cereals without problematic ingredients, oatmeal cereal, rice cereal (warm or cold) Salt cookies – corn Grains – cuscus, semolina, millet, quinoa+, spelt Flour – buckwheat, wheat Pasta Rice+ |
Breads – rye, fermented mass
Salt cookies – without problematic ingredients Grains – maca |
Breads – made with unsafe ingredients or/and processed or fortified
Cereals – with too much preservatives, sweeteners, fortified products or artificial flavors Flour –soy Pasta – prepared or canned pasta Rice – canned |
| Fats and nuts | Dry fruits – almonds, cashews, peanuts
Butters – almonds, peanuts Oils – Canola, coconut, corn, olive, peanut, sunflower, soy, sesame Margarine Lard Salad dressings Home made without problematic ingredients |
Nuts – macadamias, pecans, walnut
Mayonnaise Sesame pasta Seeds – sesame seeds Margarine – butter flavor |
Nuts – hazelnuts, pecans, pistachios
Oils – check the label Salad dressings – the majority of them |
| Eggs, meats, fish and birds | Eggs+
Birds – chickens+, turkey Fish+ Meat+ Seafood – clams, crab meat (none canned), lobster, shrimp Lamb Pork Protein powder – serum Egg white Beef Liver – cow or chicken |
Vegetarian hamburgers – without soy derived products
Beef – canned meat Sandwich meats – liver cold meat, jam (fresh or boiled, without too many preservatives or artificial flavors) Pancetta Anchovies Caviar Prosciutto Cold meats – without problematic ingredients |
Smoked meats – mortadella, hot dogs, salami
Crab meat Canned Frankfurts Cold meats – the majority Smoked fished Soy derived products – vegetable soy empanadas, protein powder, tofu |
| Farm products, cheese, frozen desserts. | Cheese – American, mozzarella, cheddar (soft), fetta, ricotta+, cheese in strips
Cream cheese Cottage cheese+ Ice creams+ – the majority Milk+ Milk substitutes – lactoides Sugary powders – non citric or chocolate flavors Rice Dream dissert – vanilla Whipped cream – Cool Whip |
Cheese – blue cheese, brie, parmesan, camembert, cheddar, edam, emmenthaler, gruyere, hard jack, Monterrey jack, parmesan (fresh and canned), Roquefort, Swiss stilton
Butter serum Sour cream – on baked potatoes or soups Pizza – regular, chicken or garlic, vegetarian or made with white sauce, without peperoni Sorbet Yogurt – blueberries, vanilla, natural |
Cheese – processed, Cheez Whiz
Ice cream – caution with citric or chocolate flavors Soy products – soy milk, soy cheese |
| Fruits | Apples – Gala, Fuji, Pink Lady
Apple puree – home made with Gala, Fuji or Pink Lady apples Blueberries+ Coco – without preservatives Date – without preservatives Pears+ Watermelon |
Apple puree- commercial or for infants
Damask Bananas Berries – blackberries, raspberries, custard apple Cherries – fresh Maraschino Citrus peel Currants Figs Mangos Cantaloupe – Crenshaw, sweet Peaches Plums Raisins – brown Rhubarb |
Berries – cranberries, the majority
Citrus fruits – lemons, lime, oranges, grapefruit Dry fruits – with preservatives Grapes Guavas Kiwis Cantaloupe Nectarine Passion fruit Papaya Persimmon Pineapple Star fruit Raisins – golden |
| Vegetables and dry beans | Asparagus
Avocado Beans – broad beans, chickpeas, lentils, white beans, the majority of dry beans Beet Broccoli Brussel sprouts Cabbage Carrots+ Cauliflower Celery Scallions Wheat+ Cucumber Eggplant Green beans Leaves – sprouts, curled sprouts, kimbombo, Swiss chard, Spinach, Chinese cabbage Lettuce and the majority of salads Leafs Mushrooms+ Olives – blacks Parsley Beans –greens+, peas, snow peas, split peas potatoes+, white, sweet potatoes squash Radish Rhubarb Turnip Pumpkin+, summer, winter Zucchini Turnip |
Beans – red beans, broad beans, black beans,
olives – green Greens – escarole, dandelion, purslane, turnip leaf Leek (cooked) Onions – white, red, cooked onion bulb, raw leafs Tomatoes – low in calcium Watercress |
Chili
Onions – raw onion bulbs Pickles Sauerkraut Soy beans – edamame, tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato juice Tofu |
| Soups | Soups and homemade soup broths – beef and allowed vegetables | Soups – canned, low in sodium, organic soups (without problematic ingredients) | Broths – in cubes, powder
Canned – the majority Soups in packages – the majority |
| Snacks | Almonds
Carrots Celery Fried products (the regular ones) – corn, potatoes Cookies – crackers or soup Fruit bars – blueberries, pears Milkshakes – vanilla Oatmeal bars Peanuts Peanut butter Pop corn Salt cookies – regular |
Donuts – frosted,
Graham cookies Fruits and fruit bars Dry –with safe ingredients Licorice Pizza – regular, chicken and garlic, vegetarian or made with regular sauce, with no peperoni |
French fries – (grilled seasoned)
Cake for dessert – fast food restaurants |
| Desserts and candies | Berries –blueberries
cakes – pancakes+, angel cake+, white/yellow homemade cake, carrot Toppings, homemade vanilla caramel topping, carob, whipped cream Little cookies – oatmeal+, Sugar shortcake+, Cupcakes – carrot Cheesecake Crème brulee Flan+ Cakes – cream flan, homemade apple cake (with allowed apples), squash, Gizzard – homemade zucchini bread+, Candies – licorice Maple syrup Cakes – regular almonds, pears, Ice creams – mint, vanilla+, Pudding – tapioca, vanilla+, rice Sweeteners – golden sugar, honey+, sugar |
Artificial sweeteners – Splenda (Sucralose)
Sweeties – candy Chocolate – white Ice cream – caramel, coconut, mango, mint, butter pecans Sorbet – coconut Cake – blueberries, cinnamon Ice cream in a stick – some Gizzards – bananas Yogurt – ice cream |
Artificial sweeteners – acesulfame K aspartame, NutraSweet, saccharine, Sweet-N-Low, sweet herb
Sweeties – red cinnamon Chocolate Ice cream – chocolate, coffee, rocky road Sorbets – with problematic fruits Cakes – pecans, sliced beef Desserts – with problematic dry fruits Fruit cakes
|
| Spices, dressings and flavor enhancers | English pepper
Almond extract Anisette Basil Caraway seeds Cilantro Dill Fennel Garlic+ Mace Marjoram+ Oregano+ Poppy seed Rosemary Sage Salt in small amounts Thyme Tarragon Vanilla extract |
Black pepper
Celery seeds Cilantro Cinnamon – powder Citric acid – in small amounts Cumin (small amounts) Dry parsley Dry chervil Ginger Lemon extract Mayonnaise Powdered malt Nutmeg Powdered onion Orange extract Turmeric |
Ascorbic acid
Approved yeast BHA and BHT Benzoate Ketchup Bell pepper Cloves Powdered chili Hot radish Powdered curry Hydrolyzed protein Meat softener Miso Mustard Bell pepper´s oleoresin Bell pepper Pickles Red sweet pepper Soy sauce Tamarind Vinegar Worcestershire Sauce MSG – Monosodium glutamate Metabisulfite Sulfite
|
| Fiber supplements | Acacia fiber
Benefiber Metamucil – regular psyllium bulk – not sugar free |
Colace
Metamusil – cinnamon ice creams |
Metamusil – orange, berries explosion
Psyllium fiber – sugar free due to the presence of artificial sweeteners sena |
