Don't Let Ulcerative Colitis Get in Your Way of Enjoying Grilled Food

If you loved grilled food, such as chicken or fish, you should know that your ulcerative colitis doesn't prevent you from enjoying your favorite meals. Although any food can make your gastrointestinal system react, the way in which you prepare your meals has an enormous effect on how your bowels deal with it. If you're going to be eating lots of grilled foods, follow these tips.

1- Watch the Marinade

I've always loved chicken marinated in lemon pepper and steak marinated in Teriyaki sauce, but grilled food can have a negative impact on your ulcerative colitis if you use too much marinade. These sauces have high concentrations of acid, sodium and carbohydrates, all of which can set your bowels on fire.

To avoid this, brush your favorite marinade on the meat rather than soaking it for several hours before cooking. This means that it will only be on the surface - rather than soaking into the meat - but it will taste almost as good and won't disrupt your digestion as easily.

2- Ease Up on the Spices

In addition to marinade, you might enjoy grilled food with a wide variety of spices, but this can also increase your ulcerative colitis symptoms. Rubs, for example, that you might use on pork chops or roast, can upset your stomach for days, so try to use these sparingly. Pepper is another substance that can trigger a flare-up, so try not to use it at all if you can help it.

If you find that you can't do without the spices, however, you can reduce the impact on your ulcerative colitis by adding spices that help aid in digestion. Ginger root, for example, can encourage the digestive process and reduce inflammation in your bowels. If you're going to use lots of spices, add one of these helpful spices as well.

3- Remove Fat

Certain things can inhibit digestion and increase the symptoms caused by ulcerative colitis. Fatty meat, for example, is difficult to digest and can trigger tremendous bowel pain. To avoid this, cut out strips of fat before you eat grilled food, preferably before you even stick it on the grill. You should also remove chunks of chicken that become too overcooked, and are thus more difficult to digest.

4- Add Other Foods

One of the best ways to enjoy grilled food while suffering from ulcerative colitis is to combine the meat with other foods. For example, stir-fry a skillet of easy-to-digest vegetables, such as carrots, potatoes and green beans, then add pieces of grilled food to the mix for a healthy and satisfying meal. This helps to quicken digestion, but won't be hard on the bowels.