I am super sick right now and haven’t eaten much in a few days. It’s getting to the point where I am gonna need to force myself to eat something to keep my strength up but everything just sounds terrible to me right now. I have been subsisting mostly on small glasses of milk and the occasional packet of instant oatmeal.
Any suggestions on things to eat that go down easy and has nutritional value? Flavor is pretty far down on my list of requirements right now and I’m finding myself exhausted after chewing a few bites. Any serious suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Nuts have a lot of calories in a small package, and as a migraneuse I can also verify that nuts and dried cherries are one of the least offensive things to deal with if you end up puking. If you have miso, miso soup is easy and gentle and tasty.
But mostly make sure you are drinking water with electrolytes. Your body can survive well without food calories for quite some time, and lack of appetite when sick may be a signal to fast and rest. Dehydration is much more likely and much more damaging.
I’m Australian so Vegemite toast is my go to when I am not feeling well.
Hang in!
I was really sick and couldn’t eat much of anything for 2 months and lived mostly on the chocolate Soylent. I had issues staying hydrated so I also drank a lot of Liquid IV (Pina colada and watermelon were my favorites).
As I started to tolerate more solid food I ate: canned soup purees like butternut squash/tomato bisque/pea soup, powdered soup mixes from Bob’s Red Mill or Knorr, steel cut oatmeal with mushrooms and chicken broth cooked in a pressure cooker, rolled oatmeal with nuts and dried fruit, grits, plain rice crackers, nut thins, fage 5% yogurt, bananas plain or blended up with milk, applesauce, cottage cheese, carrots cooked to mush. Also ate a lot of sweet potatoes and russet potatoes, I cooked a bunch of them whole in the pressure cooker at once and then I’d eat them all week.
Some of my friends recommended Huel or Plenny shakes but I never got around to ordering any.
I’d also avoid anything with too much oil, fat, hot spices, or sugar which can irritate the stomach and limit cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, kale which can be hard to digest.
Hope you feel better soon.
its very easy to dehydrate when youre sick, especially if you have diarrhea. Basically your body trying to flush out whatever is irritating you. Most electrolyte packs from pharmacy have glucose added. Glucose is very easily digested and provides energy source when your DI is not working. Also most doctors recommend to drink coke, since its full of sugar and has acidic pH which is bad for viruses. toasted bread also works, easily digestible and doesnt iritate
While you can go for a period without many calories, you will need electrolytes. The recommendations for things like Pedialyte will help with that, but for foods you may just have to try what works for you. It’s so personal.
Stay hydrated and “salted” and go from there. If you can’t keep it down then it isn’t for you. Salty foods will help you retain water.
Chicken broth and saltine crackers.
Chicken broth, yes! I tend to cure my hungover with it. Works wonders.
Fruit snacks
Make one of those weight gainers shakes, with oatmeal, bananas, nuts, flaxseed, protein powder, berries (also toss in spinach, you can barely taste it). And just down it quickly.
You’ll need a decent blender though.
I used to have to force feed myself when I wasn’t hungry. Ramen was essential for priming the appetite. But not the bad stuff. Good stuff like Black Shin
My wife and friends think I am nuts, but when I’m feeling digestively challenged I go for the “burn it out” philosophy. I go to my local tex-mex place and wolf a couple bowls of spicy salsa. Follow up with a chile relleno covered in queso and I’m normally right as rain (after a quick stop in the quiet, tiled room of requirement).
I find greasy umami stuff in small quantities gets me from “hunger nausea” to “hunger”
E.g buttered toast.
So the taste of buttered toast is umami? In that case, I LOVE umami!
Fasting can actually help recovery. But no matter if you eat what you can or nothing at all it is absolutely necessary to get enough water, salt, and potassium.
Something that might go down easy is plain canned beans, just make sure to drain and rinse them and maybe even soak them a little to minimize intestinal issues. Plain quinoa or lentils made in a rice cooker or pot with just water and salt could also be good.
Sometimes your hear about the BRAT diet. I’d recommend against it, it is very nutritionally poor so it will not give you much energy if you can only handle eating a little.