Personal note

     Yesterday, my Mom just got out of the hospital. She's ok now, but it was a 2 week ordeal. What sent her there in the first place were pains in her stomach and diarrhea. She of course feared the worse. The CT scan showed a good bit of colitis. I asked my Mom what she had been eating lately. She said that she had been having a lot of corn on the cob; delicious and in season. Can't blame her. This may have started it. They also found a kidney stone which may have caused some of the pain. Then they told her that she had a bladder infection and started her on antibiotics. She also had a colonoscopy and endoscopy. After she had been in there a few days with the diarrhea, they started giving her glucerna to get her calorie intake up. This made the symptoms even worse. The hospital then began testing her for c diff, a very nasty bacteria that you can catch in the hospital while on antibiotics. It causes extreme dirarhea and is very hard to stop. First they said she had it, then they said she didn't, then did... Back and forth for a week. Finally they concluded that she never did have it; it was colitis all along.

     Now I'm sure that there may be a genetic link here. My Mom is going to work with her diet and see which foods she has a sensitivity to. This thing does seem to run in families. I'm not sure if I can get my Mom to change her diet too much, but we'll see. She's 74 years old, it's going to be difficult. She's going to start by eliminating corn products and see if that helps. Thank goodness she is home now and recovering from her ordeal.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to write:
lynne1408@earthlink.net

Pepsi Throwback

     I was very happy yesterday when I found Pepsi throwback in the store. It had been out last year for a limited time. It is made with sugar, instead of corn syrup. This is a real treat for me. If you can only make one change in your diet, this may be a good place to start, especially if you drink a lot of soda pop. Enjoy! (:

homemade apple sauce

     As part of the BRAT (banana, rice, applesauce, toast) diet, applesauce seems like an excellent choice for when you're flaring or having diarrhea. But if you have a sensitivity to corn syrup, as I do, the applesauce can make the flare even worse. I make homemade applesauce using my crock pot. This batch was made using July apples, which are slightly tart. It's nice and chunky and tastes really good when served warm. It freezes very well too. I just took a batch out of my freezer and couldn't tell the difference.

-10 medium apples (mixed variety)
-1/4 cup sugar
-1/2 cup water
-cinnamon to taste (I like a lot)


     Peel and cut up the apples into the crockpot. Add the sugar and water. Cover the pot and cook on high 3 hours. Open and add cinnamon. Stir and use potato masher for desired consistency. I like mine to be really chunky; but it can be worked with to make a smoother consistency.