You may have noticed that I have not been publishing as many recipes lately. It’s simply because I have been cooking plenty of SCD food, but not that much new stuff. Sometimes it’s nice to stick with the old standbys when things get busy.
Anyway – I wanted to write this post because I get a lot of questions about whether certain foods are legal or illegal on SCD. It can be very confusing, especially when you are first starting out.
It can also be easy to forget that something is illegal, like pinto beans (I forgot this one at one point) or plantains (I eat these anyway, but that are NOT SCD legal).
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| Ripe Banana – SCD Legal |
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| Plantain – Not SCD Legal |
What prompted me to write this was a post on the Facebook Page about an SCD cookbook saying Blue Diamond almond milk was legal, which it is not.
That leads me to my main point in this post:
It’s important to stay diligent on looking up what foods are okay to eat at what foods aren’t.
The best source is book Breaking the Vicious Cycle and the official website, which has a fairly comprehensive legal/illegal list.
The list does not include every food there is (obviously), but as far as I have been able to tell it does not say anything is legal that isn’t.
I have been on this diet for 12 years and I still consult this list and look at my BTVC book all the time.
When I started this diet there were not many websites on the subject, so the book was the definitive source. Times have changed, and with all the websites (including this one!) that cover the diet and offer recipes, I have come to realize there are people embarking on the diet without reading the book.
I implore anyone who wants to try this diet to get the book and not rely on website information. I have seen too many recipes online (especially on Pinterest) labeled as SCD that have illegal ingredients.There are some foods that there is a lot of confusion over – that some assume are legal when they are not. The best source is the book, and then the official website as a resource. After that, all the blogs out there are great, but it’s good to have a solid background on the diet before looking at those (that includes this site – I have been known to make a mistake or two on legal/illegal confusion).
I love that people read this site, and enjoy the recipes. I’m glad to share my successful 12 years (and counting) on the diet, and I am happy to answer any questions people have about my experiences. I just wanted to give a shout out to the original source for SCD – the book by Elaine Gottschall.
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Hi- I dont have facebook, so I am commenting “Anonymous”, but you can call me Jenny.
I have been on the diet for 30 days and I am in complete agreement with Sherry about adhering to the book and website by Elaine Gottschall. (Breaking The Vicious Cycle)
I think you need to be a bit OCD about the list, but it has been worth it for me. I am learning to cook with nut flours and I am sure my journey will be frustrating for awhile to find comfort foods that satisfy me.
If you are on the SCD diet to heal; then I say “good for you”. If you are trying the diet just to lose weight; then I say to incorporate some of the foods, but enjoy all foods in moderation.
Thank you Sherry for an excellent resource website.
I love your website. I found the book by Elaine on line and ordered it for my husband. He has Crohn’s. This diet works! Yesterday, I fixed split pea soup (soaked for 12 hours) and pumpkin walnut muffins. Today I’m fixing the red pepper-tomato soup. 2 days ago I made the homemade tomato sauce for pizza and froze it. It’s exciting to try the recipes. My advice is don’t give up. Yes, it’s kind of hard if you are not used to cooking and planning, but you can do it! I allowed myself to work up to the 100% diet. The homemade yogurt is great seeing that I’m lactose intolerant. I can eat as much as I want and the ice cream I make from it is gooooood! I tried your banana-walnut ice cream recipe and loved it. I also use cherries sometimes and it’s good, too.
Hello, thank you for all of the much needed information and tasty recipe ideas. I suffer from Crohn’s disease and ordered the book. I was wondering when it is appropriate to start eating cheddar cheese (raw/aged), nut flours (for bread/muffins), and the homemade yogurt while on this diet? I can’t seem to find when to add these foods. One reading said wait 2-3 months of being on the diet before adding the yogurt. Is this correct? I have been eating cheese since the start of the diet and am wondering if that is okay? Thank you, Alisha
According to Breaking the Vicioius Cycle there aren’t really ant stages after the intro diet for introducing new foods. If you’ve been eating cheese wtihout problems, then that is ok. You should be able to start eating the homemade yogurt at the beginning as well. Nuts, nut flours, and nut butters can be a litte more harsh on the digestive system. I didn’t start those until about six months and I started the diet already in remission after surgery. Be particularly careful with baked almond and coconut flour things because it’s easy to eat too much! Start out slowly with something simple once you start using almond or coconut flour to bake with. Personally I recommend being symtom-free for a few months before adding nuts or nut flours.