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Improving the Care of Patients with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis through Nutrition
The food list provided is a simplistic overview of the basic requirements of the diet, offering a bird's eye view of restricted and allowed foods. It is not an all-inclusive list of the allowed and restricted foods, nor does it define all the rules of the diet. This list should NOT be used as a guide to following the diet.
The AIP is a little different from the other diets. The AIP begins with a restrictive Elimination Phase, which must be followed for a minimum of 30 days, but may require longer use. It then shifts to a Reintroduction Phase in which patients test adding back in other foods. In the Maintenance Phase, the foods that were tolerated in the Reintroduction Phase are incorporated back into the diet. Unlike some other therapeutic diets in which reintroductions are de-emphasized or cautioned against, AIP emphasizes and encourages the adding back in of tolerated foods to achieve healthy diversity. Our table represents the Elimination Phase of AIP, which is actually the first and most restrictive phase of the diet, and not the most inclusive phase as with most of the other diets. This was done because the Elimination Phase is the only phase to define specific foods as being allowed and not allowed. It is important to note that while AIP may look very restrictive as defined in the table, the actual diet used in Maintenance Phase likely will include more diversity than suggested in the table, but that diversity will be highly individualized.
Fish | Allowed |
Seafood other than fish, which is listed separately | Allowed |
Poultry | Allowed |
Red Meat (not processed) | Allowed. Grass-fed organ meats encouraged |
Vegetables other than starchy vegetables and nightshades, which are listed separately | Allowed |
Fruits | Allowed in moderation (2-3 servings per day) |
Honey | Allowed |
Starchy Vegetables (potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, turnips, parsnips, etc) | Allowed if not nightshades |
Sweeteners other than honey and artificial sweeteners, which are listed separately | Allows date sugar, maple syrup, maple sugar, molasses, evaporated cane juice, coconut sugar |
Fats/Oils | Fats from grass-fed organic meats allowed, unrefined oils allowed; no seed oils, no processed vegetable oils |
Processed Meat | Exclude |
Wheat/Gluten | Exclude |
Corn | Exclude |
Oats | Exclude |
Rice | Exclude |
Grains other than wheat, corn, oats, and rice, which are listed separately | Exclude |
Dried Legumes/Beans | Exclude |
Fresh Legumes/beans (peas, green beans, etc) | Exclude: Peas and green beans are not allowed but are one of the first foods recommended for reintroduction. |
Nightshades (tomatoes, tomatillos, white potatoes [not sweet potatoes], eggplant, peppers, goji berries, etc) | Exclude |
Dairy | Exclude |
Nuts | Exclude |
Seeds | Exclude |
Artificial Sweeteners | Exclude |
Processed Foods/Preservatives/Artificial Additives | Exclude |
Eggs | Exclude |
Cocoa | Exclude |
Coffee | Exclude |
Alcohol | Exclude |
Formula (PEN; eg, Boost®, Ensure®, Pediasure®, Modulen IBD®) | Exclude |
Emulsifiers | Exclude |
Published Research
View the published research for AIP, including highlighted featured research followed by the complete list.
Research Summaries
View published review articles summarizing the existing research to date on nutritional therapy.
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Resource Previews Coming Soon. Click the button below to see all patient resources for AIP!