Frequently asked questions from newcomers

Hi Deborah and Vicki,

Perhaps Deborah whilst at the tail end of the diet may be introducing normal foods again has introduced potatoes into her diet, but initially potatoes(white or sweet), yams, parsnips are not allowed either. There are a few veges that are high in easily digestible complex carbohydrates that should be included as part of the diet also since they help your energy to last:-

Swede's(Rutagabas) and turnips, pumpkin and squash, green peas (if you can tolerate the skins, they have more energy than potatoes per 100g), Zuchini and other summer and winter squah and carrots.

I've experienced a substantial increase in energy and that means calories for those trying to pu on weight, since adding at least three of these veges to my lunch and dinner!
>

Regards,

Michael

Date: Thu, 29 Jan 1998 23:00:49 +0000
From: "Jackie Delaney" <jackied@peg.apc.org>
To: SCD-list@longisland.com
Subject: Re: Candida vs. Bacteria/Honey Consumption

I wasn't going to write this until I'm sure that I'm on the right track but here goes (I hope I don't have to eat my words - there's not much else I can eat at the moment! :) ) Anyway, I've been sick for about 3 1/2 years with extreme weight loss, sickness, nausea, unable to eat anything sweet including all fruit, and not much carbohydrate or large amounts of food. For the last few months have been afraid to eat hardly anything, as my bowel and stomach have such a bad reaction. I've been cutting right down on carbohydrates and mainly having vegie juices, and getting pretty weak.

I went to a new gastroenterologist a couple of months ago, who recently performed a colonoscopy (my 4th I think, first time with him). I haven't had the result back yet, but he also made an appointment for me at the Allergy Clinic which is attached to one of our main teaching hospitals. It was free, so I figured I'd humour him and go along for the ride, as I couldn't convince him my problem was parasites and/or yeast (both of which have been diagnosed) which has resulted in colitis. I went there three days ago, and the interview lasted just over 3 hours. I was tested for allergies (skin prick test), which came up zilch. Then I saw a doctor, who took my medical history. Lastly I saw a very knowledgeable dietician (to my ears anyway!). The longer I sat there listening, the more upright I sat in my seat. Suddenly I felt renewed hope for orthodox medical practice! I haven't read Elaine's book, but judging by what some people are eating/not eating on this list, I imagine it's something similar to what she talks about (or maybe not).

The clinic told me about how all food contains chemicals and can be divided up into three main food groups - ie. Salicylates, Amines and Glutamines, and how some people react against these chemicals and they call this "intolerance" (as opposed to "allergy"). Every food has varying amounts of these chemicals, ranging from low, to moderate, to very high. These intolerances can be very severe, and debilitating in some people, and occasionally require hospitalisation. Other people get through life just feeling unwell and have varying degrees of diarrohea/constipation etc and feel not quite right, and others sail through life and eat all they like without any effect! I felt quite happy with this explanation, and glad they weren't going to tell me that I was making it all up!! and it was only a touch of irritable bowel or some other rubbish. Anyway, I came away loaded up with explanatory books, a food diary to keep for 2 to six weeks, & diets with yummy sweet foods in(!). I thought, well if I eat half this stuff I'm going to end up in hospital! I was a bit hesitant, but it didn't take me long to try out the rice flour pancakes with golden syrup or the Golden Carob Roll, not to mention the soup with more carbohydrates than I'd had in a week! I went to bed the first night thinking I wasn't going to be able to get out of the bloody thing the next day! I had nightmares about plane crashes and being lost in fog....but woke up the next day feeling fine, just a slight headache, nothing like I was expecting. Couldn't believe it. Apart from constipation, no reaction from my stomach or bowel, two parts of my body I would rather not be so intimately acquainted with!

Apparently, all sugar has chemicals in it, but the sugars with the lowest chemical makeup, is golden syrup, maple syrup, and white sugar. Honey is very high in natural chemicals, along with all jams, fruit flavourings, chocolate, mints, peppermints, and lemon butter. In the moderate range is molasses and raw sugar. Apparently because white sugar is refined it's had most of the chemicals removed. All fruit varies in its chemical makeup and ranges from low, moderate, high to very high. Lowest are pears (ripe and peeled - lots of salicylate in the rind) and is the only fruit permitted in initial stages of the diet. This approach ranges over a wide variety of vegies as well. Now I understood why I would eat some things which were ok for me but combined with food which weren't ok and made me feel ill, so I would put all those foods on the prohibited list.

Meanwhile physically I feel fairly good, and emotionally I feel over the moon. Of course tomorrow's another story, but if I can get through to the middle of next week without a flare I know this is my problem, and my search will be over! If not it'll be a double dose of anti-depressants and a straight-jacket - I'll keep you all posted.

Jackie

Chris,
I have some advice concerning how to go about starting the diet. The book is not too clear on explaining this, but the allowable foods have to be gradually introduced at a slow rate, depending on how inflamed you are at the time. You have to realize that some foods are easier to digest than others, and sometimes you need a bit of partial "bowel rest". This can be accomplished by eating gentler foods for a week or two until things calm down, and then you can start introducing more allowables one by one to see if you tolerate them.

Start by eating a lot of the chicken soup (recipe in the book), but when cooked strain everything out, reserving the broth in one container, carrots in another, and chicken in another. Throw everything else out, including the skin and bones of the chicken. Refrigerate the broth overnite and the fat will all rise to the top and solidify so you can remove it easily. Puree the carrots and chicken and add to broth if desired for a rich creamy soup, or eat them all separately. I tell you, this is a staple when beginning on the diet. You can eat several bowls a day. Another good thing to make is homemade jello using unflavored gelatin and Welch's grape juice (no sugar added). Just disolve the gelatin in the juice over med heat, pour into little bowls and refrigerate. When I was really sick, I would eat the chicken soup, as described, the jello, lots of herbal teas with honey, and pureed spaghetti squash, zuchinni, carrots, or chicken (all well cooked first). Sometimes cheeses are good too, as they seem to firm up the stool (make sure you chew well though and experiment). You can also try yogurt made with half and half and store bought powdered culture, as it may be tolerable, and good with honey. My girlfriend who has CD and has been on the diet for 5 years tells me all the time "the yogurt is our medicine!". I think it does help a lot, but some people can't tolerate it at first.

When the gut is really inflamed, it helps to eat pureed food because it gives your digestive system a break. Not many people mention this, but it worked for me. It is easier to break down food that is already well chewed, so to speak. When the stool becomes semi-formed and the pain and gas subside, then I would introduce the same foods, in solid form. Depending on my symptoms thereafter, I would introduce scrambled eggs, homemade yogurt and sour cream, homemade applesauce, and dry curd.

From there on, you can start introducing different allowables, but do it one by one, so you can test the effect based on your stool and your symptoms. A key that I found is that you should make sure you never get dehydrated by taking in plenty of fluids, and once you find something you can eat that doesn't cause immediate pain and diarhea, eat more of it, as much as you can. A common mistake is to not eat enough quantity of the food. Think about the fact that these foods are all you can tolerate, so you must increase the quantities in order to get enough calories. It is fine to use butters and oils in the preparation of the meats and cooked vegies because you need the calories. Don't worry about variety in the beginning, give your gut a chance to heal and once it is healed, you can eat all sorts of things.

The last things to introduce are raw fruits and vegetables, nut flour, and whole nuts, anything with seeds, and beans and legumes. These should only be introduced after 1-3 months on the diet, and then only one by one to test the tolerablity. Skin and seeds of fruits and vegies should always be removed in the beginning. And remember, if you can't tolerate a given food at one point in time, stop eating it, and try it again in a week or a month. As the gut is allowed to heal (from the diet) you will be able to tolerate more and more foods. After about a month the feeling of emptiness, constant hunger and carbohydrate cravings will go away. The habit of the diet will stick if you force yourself, and this is the only way. It is NOT easy by any means to stick to this diet, but the results are more than worth it in the long run.

This has been my experience so I thought I would pass it on. I am somewhat of a veteran to the SCD and although I have never stayed on it long enough to get a permanent cure (my own fault), I have proven to myself time and time again that it works! The last time I stayed on the diet for about a year and then I went off and returned to a bad diet including a lot of refined and junk foods. My remission lasted about 9 months in spite of my poor eating habits and being medication free for over a year and a half. Then I got a flare up and I immediately went back on the diet, according to how I have described it above. The first week it seemed like I was getting worse and worse. I thought I would NEVER get better, and had to stay home in bed. After about 10 days of eating the intro stuff, my stool began to improve so I started introducing more things. I started to get better, but my energy was still zero. After two weeks in total, I was able to eat solid food (most allowables) and I felt like my old self again.

This diet is definately capable of inducing remission in many people, but if introduced wrong, it can be detrimental, leading some to think it doesn't work at all. This time I am planning to stay on the SCD for 2 years minimum, no matter how great I feel. You see, when this diet puts you into remission, and you are able to get off of all meds, after a while you get to feel so good that the memory of the pain and suffering becomes somewhat vague, tempting you to cheat. You feel like you don't even have an illness anymore, and it's easy to get lax and gradually return to a regular diet. And a lot of North American "regular diets" are full of crap, which will just cause us to get sick again. Elaine was very right in saying "It is hoped that no one who recovers from his or her problem by following the SCD ever returns to a diet high in refined sugar and refined flours." I made the mistake of doing that, and now am starting over. I am writing this so others may learn from my mistakes. Pages 51 and 52 in the book (the last 2 pgs of Chapter 8), explain some of what I said, but not as detailed. Good luck, and I hope this helps in some way.
Anna

Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 10:32:44 -0500
From: Christine Brennen-Leigh <cbleigh@biztechinc.com>
To: SCD-list@longisland.com
Subject: Deena's Son

Dear Deena:
I am so sorry to hear about your son. But I do think you have found a great place to start helping him. Last spring my mom was very sick and was diagnosed with Crohn's. They wanted to take her colon out but we decided to bring her home and try the SCD diet instead. We bought the book and found this site. Both have been a god send.

From reading all of the messages posted here daily, I have noticed a common theme. There were certain foods that a lot of people couldn't tolerate before the diet. In fact a lot of them were sure that eating certain items on the diet would send them into a tail spin, because they surely had done so in the past. It seems to me that once the diet is started and you are eating only the food that has been researched to be SCD safe or what I think of as actually digestible by someone with a digestion disorder, then previous food which you couldn't eat, now become digestible.
I think you may be surprised after removing foods you now think are ok for him (but are not SCD safe) and slowly adding in other foods on the list. All you can do is try. It is just food you are experimenting with not some synthetic chemical drug. What can it hurt to try him on the basic diet for a while and then start to slowly add in other SCD foods. This could be the answer, but you won't know unless you try.
It is amazing just hearing the members talk about the restorative powers of the home made yogurt. The diet seems to allow the body to move into a state of healing. It's kind of like a cut, the cut will heal, but not as long as you keep jabbing it with a sharp object. The gut can't heal as long as you keep exposing it to food that it can not digest.

The human body is an amazing thing. I truly believe that it has the power to heal itself, if just given the right help. Please, definitely at least call Elaine. She is a powerhouse and if she at all thinks that this diet will help your son, she will tell you truthfully. When I got off the phone from her about my mother, I was full of energy and ready to take on the world of doubting doctors. At least discuss it with her.

Christine daughter of Jean, Crohn's/Colitis

1) Do not eat any raw vegetables or fruit except very ripe bananas until the D is gone. (I didn't).
2) If you think dairy is bothering you, eliminate cheese to start with but continue with properly prepared yogurt. See how you do. If necessary you can eliminate the yogurt, but take probiotics instead.
3) Eliminate eggs if they cause problems. When you have improved cautiously try adding them back. If you still don't tolerate them eliminate them permanently.
4) Keep the amount of honey that you ingest to a minimum until the D clears.
5) Drink ginger tea with lemon juice (3-4 cups/day). Ginger contains high levels of the enzymes that break down meat (protease), and lipase which breaks down fat. It promotes good digestion. Lab studies have demonstrated that ginger inhibits the bacteria in the colon that work away at undigested sugars. It reduces the production of prostaglandins (which can cause inflamation). It kills viruses, fungi.
6) Take some raw garlic. It kills fungi, bacteria, some parasites, reduces blood sugar levels, etc. (Benefits to health are too numerous to mention here...it's good for what ails you!)

Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 18:00:14 -0500
From: "KEN N SUE" <kennsue.mattawa@sympatico.ca>
To: <scd-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Re: chat line, and diets for collitis

Would be very interesting in getting to the chat line, to learn and converse with others who have diet problems, such as collitis, etc. which I have had for the past six years.
I am trying a new diet, from the book,"Breaking the Vicious Cycle(through intestinal health through diet)".
Would appreciate any help I can get...thank you.

Ken Cowie

---------

Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 08:23:34 -0700 From: "Michael Windrim" <windrim@cadvision.com> To: <SCD-list@longisland.com> Subject: RE: chat line, and diets for collitis

Ken:

Read all the mail on this list, read the book more than once, go to the web site and you will be better educated and in better health than 99% of the people on this planet.

We all look forward to your input.
Michael Windrim

---------

Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 10:43:43 -0800
From: "Alpaslan to Xtreme" <alpaslan@2xtreme.net>
To: <SCD-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Re: chat line, and diets for collitis

Ken,

I second Micheal Windrim's motion. Read the book more than once. Read it frequently. There is a lot of concentrated wisdaom in it. Then, read the writings on this list... They really help with the practicalities of how to cope with the diet, what to eat, how to be patient, how to deal with people ...

We all look forward to your input.
Alpaslan

Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 17:44:21 -0500
From: Úquot;david emersonÚquot; <efurnitr@tiac.net>
To: <SCD-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Re: Pain - Crohn's Disease

Doug,

I have had Crohn's disease for 10 1/2 years. I started the SCD diet at Christmastime this year, exactly 10 years after my initial diagnosis.

My docs. always said diet had minimal or no effect. They gave me some really scary books which recommended avoiding a few foods, but nothing very definitive, and nothing that was really helpful.

I did have pain, usually like sharp shooting cramps. There were a few times when it felt like I could be blocked up - I thought I was going to die or explode and then die. It generally felt like there were foods, though I didn't recognize which ones, which were too bulky, and my narrowed and inflamed gut couldn't take it.

As Deanna said, the first thing to go away with the SCD was the pain and discomfort of all types. I actually experienced the beginning of this before I started the diet, because I hadn't gotten the book yet. I just went on what little I could figure out from what I'd read. When I eliminated ALL refined carbs, and especially when I figured out that sugar was a carb (duh...), I experienced a major reduction in pain.

So, even if you don't have the book yet you may get some improvement just by eliminating everything you recognize as a carb, especially sugar.

Since starting the diet completely I have experienced a major improvement in all my symptoms, as well as a return to my normal weight (almost - 3 or so more pounds would be fine, but having gained back 25 I'm feeling incredible). And there's hope - while I don't claim to think about sex even 75% pf the time, there was a while there when I felt like I had absolutely no sex drive at all. That is no longer the case.

So, this diet clearly does make a major difference for a huge number of people. It can give you your life back. Six months ago Crohn's controlled me, my emotions and many of my actions and words. Now I am in control again, I have energy again, and I am smiling again without having to force it!

Lastly, don't expect ANY support from doctors. You may get lucky, and have one who will support, or at the least accept, what you're trying. Chances are good however, that they will give you active discouragement. That is what I got. I ignored them. They obviously didn't know what they were talking about. You will know what makes a difference for you far better than they do soon enough.

And remember - this diet is not a hardship in any way when compared to what Crohn's disease can do to your life!

Good luck,
Nancy

Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 17:46:31 -0500
From: Úquot;david emersonÚquot; <efurnitr@tiac.net>
To: <SCD-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Re: Pain - Crohn's Disease

Sarah,

In my experience my doctor's recommendations regarding diet were useless. They never helped. Not in any significant way.

The SCD has not only helped, it has put my life back into my control.

Nancy

Sherilyn,

You asked: Úquot;Nancy, PLEASE tell me your secret.Úquot;

The reason I am so thankful for this mental state of mind is that when I first started the SCD last summer I did not have this advantage. And I couldn't quite adhere to it 100%. Every few weeks I would eat a bite or two of something I shouldn't have.

I stopped getting sicker, but I didn't get healthy with this approach. The memory of that, combined with the misery of this fall when I was off the diet have given me this connection between forbidden foods and pain. In other words I was so sick there is NOTHING that would make me risk ending up back there. When I think "What I wouldn't give to be able to try a little of"; some food, my next thought is "The one thing I WOULDN'T give is the health I have gained in the last 2 months."

You also wrote: "I'm happy to say that I've been fanatically on the diet for five days now. I know that's not a lot to most of you, but I'm SO proud of myself! It's really hard to avoid something you're addicted to."

No, it is not easy, but it gets easier the longer you stick with it. Really. The first days are the hardest, and as the diet changes over from being an effort to being a habit a new frame of mind sets in. The addiction is in the process of being broken.

GOOD LUCK!!

Nancy

Date: Sat, 20 Mar 1999 01:05:27 -0500
From: "Deborah Idol" <cat@cloud9.net>
To: <SCD-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Re: getting well with the SCD

Hi again,

>I have heard back from several people now
>telling me that the diet has worked
>for them. Why is it that the doctors refuse
>to believe that something so
>simple as diet can make a difference?
>Have you told your doctor that the diet
>has worked for you?

I never bothered discussing it with my doctor as he was determined that people not hear about it or use it. If most intestinal diseases can be cured by the SCD, how many gastroenterologists are going to want to tell people it works? Instead of having constant visits for prescriptions, exams, tests, hospitalizations (which are *very* lucrative - they make rounds and see all their patients who are in the hospital for about one or two minutes each, and charge a fortune) and surgeries, they would have one visit and test for diagnosis, and then all those people who were disciplined enough to stay on the diet and do the few other things that might be necessary to become well, would never darken their office doors again. Plus, there would be fewer initial visits for diagnosis as more people heard about the diet (which they would if all the gastroenterologists were prescribing it).

>Yes, the diet is a lot of work. It seems
>like I have been cooking around the
>clock. Since my son is currently on
>prednisone, he is very hungry all of the
>time. I really don't think that the
>diet will be that much work once I get
>used to it. It seemed a bit overwhelming
>the first couple of days, but I just
>keep reading the book over and over
>again so that I can get a good grasp on
>it. I think the most difficult part
>right now is going out to eat.

Going out to eat isn't all that difficult, as long as one doesn't go to bad restaurants, as they use fake food (real food is expensive, as is labor). As long as you go to decent restaurants that don't serve frozen dinners (you'd be surprised how many restaurants do this - even chicken breast is often not chicken breast - the restaurant buys packages of boned, cooked cutlets injected with things like corn syrup and other sugars, MSG, milk solids, gums, etc.).

>Also,
>birthday parties, easter, etc. These events are important
>to a ten year old
>and he feels left out.
>Is that any type of bread that is allowed?

When your son can tolerate almond flour, Lois Lang's bread recipe is great for sandwiches. Your son would be able to take a ham (made only with dextrose and/or honey!) and cheese sandwich to school for lunch if he wanted to, with fruit and yogurt for dessert, or carrot cake.

>Also, so
>far I haven't been about to find dry curd
>cottage cheese. Can you point me
>in the right direction?

I use Friendship Dairy's Farmer's Cheese which is usually near cream cheese and yogurt in the grocery store. Friendship (they make dry curd cottage cheese -dccc- but it's hard to get and you usually have to buy an immense quantity) assured me that it has no more lactose than the dccc, and it tastes much better too, as it has added cream and salt.

If your son is interested in that sort of thing, he may want to look at some sites such as http://www.panix.com/~paleodiet/ ... He might find it interesting to learn about when agriculture started, what effect it had on people's health (which deteriorated) and height (boys usually want to grow tall), and even that cancer rates are higher, the more grain people eat. It is extremely hard for children to really stick to a diet like this, and you will have to expect that he'll most likely cheat (and probably not tell you about it, if he gets an upsetting reaction), and have flare ups of the disease because of it. Eventually, he'll realize it's not worth it. Most adults go through this at first, also. It will make it easier for him if you *never* eat all those tempting "goodies" that he can't have, even when he's not around.

Take care,

Deborah

Date: Sat, 20 Mar 1999 09:02:52 -0700
From: "Brad Lait" <laitb@cadvision.com>
To: "SCD List" <SCD-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Pep talk:thoughts on starting the SCD

Hi
My husband has been on the SCD for 14 months. He was originally diagnosed with colitis in 86, then rediagnosed to crohn's in 88. in 88 he had a serious flare and had to quit university. He was able to keep symptoms at low levels until 1997 when he was hospitalized 4X with intestinal blockages. Then I put him on the SCD and within 3 weeks he was doing wonderfully.

The cooking for the diet is very hard to adapt to at first. Our culture is used to convenience foods. Learning a whole new way of cooking, especially at a very stressful time of acute illness, can be very hard indeed. When my husband started the diet, I also had a colicky 5 month old who was still waking up twice a night. Believe me, I was EXHAUSTED. I remember going to the grocery store to buy coconut, and it just seemed overwhelming, finding one package out of five that had no added sugar. I thought, "I have to do this for ALL the food I buy???? This is just too much!" I got through on stubborn determination. I didn't get any extra help, because I didn't want to hear them saying "Are you SURE that the diet is the right thing? Are you SURE?" Sometimes, comments are harder to deal with than working 18 hours a day.

But eventually, you learn and adapt. Everything becomes old hat, and habit. Making yogurt is no big deal, and you learn the brand names that are allowed. You turn your kitchen into an efficient workspace, and get the tools you need. Cooking in advance helps. Shopping is easier because there's fewer ingredients. There's still more work, but it's nothing like what our grandparents and great grandparents went through. I'd say virtually all their day was spent on their food supply, and we have freezers and fridges and grocery stores.

Since I have a small child and one on the way, I realize that there won't be much time for my interests for some time. I sneak in creative projects when there's time and things are under control. I said "OK, I'm going to devote my creative energies into cooking". I look upon this time in my life as a season, though there is a possibility that Brad will remain on the diet for life. But that's not so bad! It's so healthy and I feel good on the diet as well. I have my husband back from the valley of the shadow of death, which is the best gift of all. So fire up those food processors! Yeah!

Regards, Alison

Date: Fri, 9 Apr 1999 11:33:33 -0400
From: "dan davis" <hockley.hills@sympatico.ca>
To: <SCD-list@longisland.com>
Subject: Basic diet - Joanne

Joanne,

Since you can't find your copy of BTVC, here's the basic diet:

-homemade chicken soup
-eggs (boiled, poached or scrambled)
-DCCC
-yogurt
-homemade gelatin made with juice, unflavoured gelatin, sweetener
-other meats
-cheese cake
-apple cider or grape juice (1/2 juice, 1/2 water)

I also added very ripe bananas and other cooked vegetables. DON'T EAT AT ANY FAST FOOD PLACES!

Someone told me on the phone, I think it was Lucy, that you can get pure tylenol powder from the pharmacist if you request it. It's best to go to a compounding pharmacy for this I think.

Hope you feel much better soon, Janice

Hi Heather,

> I have just begun this diet in the past month and have a few
> questions if anyone has answers. In the book it is stated
> that one can not eat chocolate or carob. Does this include cocoa
> and if so, why? I am also wondering about canned beans ( such as
> kidney beans for chili). I think I can have the dried beans as she
> says but I am wondering what is wrong with canned beans with labels
> saying they do not contain any additives. Any other advice would be
> appreciated! Thanks, Heather.

Carob and chocolate (cocoa is chocolate with some or all of the cocoa butter removed) have the type of carbs we cannot digest. We are not allowed to eat disaccharides or polysaccharides.

Canned products can have ingredients not listed on the label, as can prepared foods. Legally, companies do not have to list anything that makes up less than 2% of the product. Plus, some manufacturers have actually been caught mislabeling their products, claiming, for instance, that they added no sugar, when they actually did.

Take care,

Deborah

Hi Paula S,
Welcome to the list.
Yes a heating pad does make a sore tummy feel better. So does a warm bath with some herbal oils added. Take good care of your spirit as you help yourself heal....
Your Gastro doctor will probably say it doesn't matter what you eat, but suddenly get an attitude when you tell him your eating healthy unprocessed foods. Ignore his advice concerning food. Nutrition is completely beyond most medical practitioners scope and knowledge as a method of healing. Most Gastroenterologist are educated about medicine and surgery.
Keep eating the chicken soup, broiled hamburgers, eggs , cooked squash and farmers cheese (aka: Dry curd cottage cheese). Buy yourself a yogurt maker quickly and start eating plenty of homemade yogurt. You won't need calcium supplement if your eating yogurt. For all vitamins and supplements I follow carefully the recommendation that Elaine gives in the book.
It has worked well for me.

In the beginning to add calories eat avocados, make the yogurt with whole real cream, or half and half from the health food store (no additives)
Create your own high calorie shakes in the blender:
1 cup pure apple juice
table spoon of walnut oil (or more)
1/2 cup high fat yogurt
very ripe bananas
blended with three ice cubes.

Don't forget
DRINK AT LEAST EIGHT LARGE GLASSES OF WATER A DAY!!!

Ruth

Questions and answers to Elaine Gottschall - an online interview [1] and [2]