I recently received this email from a reader (we will call her Alicia) who had just finished 6 weeks on the IBD Remission Diet – and her results are amazing! It reads:

I did your IBD remission diet for six weeks. I followed every single instruction from your book. Before that, I had inflammation and ulceration and a stricture! I was in so much pain because food couldn’t go through!

I recently had a colonoscopy, and my doctor was amazed! No ulcers, inflammation gone – and he was able to open up the stricture 13.5mm because inflammation was down!! Before he thought it was Crohn’s, and now he doesn’t think it’s Crohn’s! I’m excited to eat real food again, but your book healed me!!! I’m amazed!!!

What would you suggest I take for maintenance while eating real food? I don’t want this to come back! Thank you again Jini! You’re amazing!

If you’re not familiar with it, The IBD Remission Diet is a liquid-only, bowel rest diet that combines elemental shakes with bone broths, veggie broths and a specifically targeted supplementation plan to induce disease remission and heal the gastrointestinal tract. People often use this program to:

1. Stop bleeding and heal inflammation
2. Give intestinal fissures, fistulas and ulcers time and space to heal
3. Heal the mucosal lining of the intestine with targeted amino acids and herbs
4. Heal leaky gut syndrome
5. Clear intestinal obstructions
6. Replace bad or imbalanced intestinal flora with good bacteria
7. Provide a layer of good bacteria to coat and protect the mucosal lining from toxins, parasites, fungus and damage
8. Ensure long-term, ongoing health in the entire gastrointestinal system
9. Heal and balance the entire immune system with proven supplements
10. Gain solid weight (muscle, not fat) if underweight or malnourished
11. Thoroughly test for food intolerances and allergies with a food reintroduction program
12. Achieve emotional healing
13. Prevent relapse with a Maintenance Diet

Alicia, this is just fantastic!! And to answer your question, here are the supplements I suggest for maintenance while eating normal food:

Natren probiotics – take daily for at least a year. And unless you can culture your own yoghurt, kefir, fermented veggies etc for a continual dietary supply of probiotics, then stay on Natren for life. That’s what my whole family does.

Vitamin D3, K2 – and unless you’re growing your own veggies (with healthy soil microbiota and worms) and eating pasture-raised eggs/meat, then you need a full-spectrum multi-vitamin. I’m working on formulating my ideal multi-vitamin now (for Imix Nutrition) so stay tuned!

QuikPlus Bone Matrix – for your bones and teeth. I also take extra QuikPlus magnesium and trace minerals and sometimes extra silica (if I’m doing lots of physical labor). Take a peek at the feedback we received from a reader who uses silica for the same purpose:

“I LOVE this Silica. I have a thumb that gets sprained regularly as I over work it in the garden. I wear a thumb support when this happens. I read Jini’s similar experience and tried it and it works nearly instantly its amazing. I have already reordered. I take a squirt of it daily regardless and I believe it is improving steadily along with my thumb support. Its amazing how fast it works. – C.H.”

Good Fats – cod liver oil, fish oil and flax oil (high in Omega-3 anti-inflammatory fat) are a must. The cell membrane is 40% fat, so we need a lot of good cold-pressed, and/or pasture-raised fat to stay healthy. Pasture-raised, organic butter, ghee, cheese are all good if tolerated. Make sure ALL oils you eat or cook with are cold-pressed and ideally organic.

Antioxidants – it’s always a good idea to ingest antioxidants like Vitamin C, CoQ10, grapeseed, pycnogenol, etc. I also take bioflavanoids like quercetin – especially during allergy season. Again, I’m currently formulating a multi-vitamin that will contain all these plus immune strengtheners all in one blend. I’ll let you know when it’s ready!

And if you want a list of well-tolerated foods while you continue to strengthen your gut, then check out these low-residue foods.

In good health!