The specific carbohydrate diet (SCD Diet) is a nutritionally complete diet, foods included are easy to digest, thereby aiding in the absorption of key nutrients. The diet was formulated to help people suffering with IBD and IBS. There are many testimonials by people who successfully use, or have used the SCD Diet (myself included). Additionally, studies are being done on the diet as an official treatment for IBD. Small studies have shown positive results. I have included food lists, what to eat on the diet, and what not to eat on the diet.

What is the Specific Carbohydrate Diet

The SCD Diet is for people with IBD and IBS that want to target the source of their disease or syndrome, not just treat or mask the symptoms. And ultimately regain their health.

The diet consists of a list of biochemically tested foods that, when eaten consistently in meal form, deliver balanced nutrition through the most easily digestible version of carbohydrates, along with healthy proteins and fats. 

Many websites state the SCD Diet is an elimination diet, but I disagree. 

An elimination diet implies the person methodically tests out a variety of foods by eliminating them for a period of time then reintroducing them to see if any are creating symptoms they wish to avoid. Then they avoid those particular foods due to food intolerances.

The SCD diet is about eating only foods a damaged digestive tract can readily digest and absorb. 

It has nothing to do with allergies or food intolerances per say. Although, if you have an egg allergy, you should look at that separately, and continue to avoid any known allergens. 

The SCD Diet is basically a whole food version of the Elemental Diet prescribed in hospitals to treat patients with severe digestive disease, and malabsorptive issues. 

The Elemental Diet consists of the perfect balance of the body’s building blocks in the form of free form amino acids, fatty acids, and single sugar molecules; the SCD Diet consists of complex proteins, healthy fats, and single sugar foods. 

They both share single sugars which is the key. 

The Elemental diet is highly scientifically documented as being successful within the medical community and is widely prescribed. However, it is unsustainable because it's synthetic and given through a feeding tube, or drunk in a liquid form.

Because the SCD Diet is real food, eaten and digested “normally”, it is sustainable for the long term and has similar success when adhered to 100%.

How did the Specific Carbohydrate Diet start

The Drs. Haas from New York City came up with the SCD diet to successfully treat hundreds of Celiac patients. Patients from all over sought the Drs. out for their specialized treatment. They did publish a book outlining their work. 

The diet was prescribed by the Drs. for Elaine Gottschall’s daughter in the mid 50’s to treat her severe Ulcerative Colitis, and Elaine was so moved by the outcome that she dedicated her life to sharing it with the world. I will forever be grateful.

She went back to University, became a biochemist and started testing each food the Drs. Haas had allowed on the diet to track how specifically they interacted with the digestive tract. 

She later went on to publish her findings and her daughter's success in the book Breaking the Vicious Cycle. I highly recommend this book, it’s a great read and wonderful reference to have on hand as you get started.

How does the diet work

There is a lot of scientific evidence supporting the Elemental Diet, which is a synthetic liquid diet administered to patients suffering with cystic fibrosis, detrimental malabsorption issues, as well as many severe digestive diseases including IBD. 

It is typically given when patients are not responding to the best pharmaceutical administration plans and their health is deteriorating rapidly. 

Patients with Crohn's disease, after being started on the Elemental Diet, often see their symptoms disappear quickly, and children with growth issues begin dramatically gaining weight and growing in height. Patients begin absorbing nutrients and responding very favorably.

The issue is the Elemental Diet is synthetic and administered a lot of times through a feeding tube. Therefore it cannot be sustained over long periods of time. When patients are taken off the diet, they typically see their symptoms return within 6-8 weeks on average.

The Specific Carbohydrate diet mirrors the Elemental Diet nutrition wise, it is composed of real, whole, equally nutritional counterparts. Delicious counterparts which are chewed and digested naturally through the digestive tract. And the Specific Carbohydrate Diet can be sustained indefinitely as it represents all the food groups, is highly nutritious, and can be prepared and eaten at home.

The significant component that these two diets share is the type of carbohydrate being eaten, a single sugar (glucose). Your body breaks down complex carbohydrates through digestion into multiple single sugar molecules that your body can absorb and use as a form of energy. 

The beauty of the SCD diet is it removes the burden of digesting complex versions of carbohydrates down to a single sugar. A digestion process that a lot of people with IBD cannot do successfully or at all in some cases. 

Your body can absorb single sugars quickly and less painfully. This gives your body the time and energy it needs to begin healing the lining of your colon.

As your colon begins healing, by eliminating undigested complex carbs fermenting in your colon, it is helping your body eliminate systemic inflammation.

What foods can you eat on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet

I will provide a detailed list of what people on the SCD Diet call Legal foods in a pdf form, and will give a general outline below to give you a clear idea.

I followed the lists religiously for years because there are hidden complex carbohydrates or food additives that mimic foods that must be avoided. 

The SCD diet eliminates any food that irritates the colon due to its indigestibility, thereby decreasing pain and inflammation. 

A biochemist tested almost every single food on the lists to check their reaction on the digestive tract. If there was a questionable food that could not be feasibly tested it was eliminated based on its chemical makeup. 

Those types of foods are few and far between and typically fall under the category that I call “If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is”. After a while on the diet, your taste buds will give those foods away as something you should be avoiding. You’ll know immediately.

Allowable Proteins

All fresh or frozen beef, lamb, pork, poultry, fish including shellfish, eggs, some natural cheeses (see my extended list), homemade yogurt, dry curd cottage cheese, canned fish (only ingredients fish, water, or oil). 

The meats must not contain any fluid content, it is best to get air chilled chicken.

If at first you are struggling to eat solid meat (digest a complex protein into free form amino acids), there are easier ways to get proteins.

For example, if you cannot eat a piece of cooked chicken, without having pain and other negative symptoms, then you can eat homemade bone broth, or a healthy store bought option. I see some wonderful versions available at Whole Foods Market now. 

I recommend making your own bone broth, but if you don’t have the physical energy or aren’t well enough to cook for yourself then it’s a great alternative when you’re just getting started. 

Allowable Carbohydrates

Vegetables

Fresh or frozen (no added sugar or starch):

French artichoke

Asparagus

Beets

Dried white navy bean (after 3 months)

Lentils

Dried split peas 

Broccoli

Brussels sprouts

Cabbage

Cauliflower

Carrots

Celery

Cucumbers

Eggplant

Garlic

Kale

All lettuces

Dried and fresh lima beans

Mushrooms

Onions

Parsley

Peas

Peppers (green, yellow, and red)

Pumpkin

Spinach

Squash (summer and winter)

String beans

Tomatoes

Turnips

Watercress

Dill pickles with no added sugars (I eat Bubbies)

Olives with no additives, no added sugars, not canned

Fruits

Fresh, raw or cooked, frozen (with no added sugar), and dried

Canned only if it states packed in its own juice, not concentrated

Apples

Avocados

Apricots

Bananas (ripe with black spots beginning to appear on the skin)

Berries of all kind (Blueberry, Strawberry, Raspberry, and Blackberry)

Cherries

Fresh coconut or unsweetened shredded coconut

Dates (loose California Dates only), if they stick together they are not permitted

Grapefruit

Grapes

Kiwi fruit

Kumquats

Lemons

Limes

Mangoes

Melons

Nectarines

Oranges

Papayas

Peaches

Pears

Pineapples

Prunes

Raisins

Rhubarb

Tangerines

Nuts

Almonds

Pecans

Brazil nuts

Hazelnuts

Walnuts

Unroasted cashews

Boiled chestnuts

Peanut butter with zero additives

Juices

Canned tomato juice  with only salt added (V-8 is not permitted)

Freshly squeezed orange, grapefruit, lemon, or lime (no orange juice in the morning)

Grape juice with no added sugar

Pineapple juice (canned, frozen, or fresh) with no added sugar

Apple cider by a reputable company (not the juice) no added sugar

Freshly squeezed vegetable juice of any kind

There is more to the lists that are allowed, like certain spices, condiments, diet soft drinks, etc. Search the Legal/Illegal lists for more information.

What foods can you not eat on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet

Disaccharides and Polysaccharides. Plus gut irritants. You can’t eat any food you can’t successfully digest. 

Here’s a summary of the excluded carbohydrates.

Proteins Not Allowed

Processed meats such as hot dogs, bologna, turkey loaf, spiced ham, breaded fish, canned fish with sauces, lunch meats of any kind, deli meats, smoked meats, canned meats

Processed cheeses

Fluid milk of any kind

Dried milk solids

Lactose free dairy products

Commercial buttermilk

Commercial sour cream

Commercial yogurt

Margarine

Carbohydrates Not Allowed

Grains such as wheat, barley, corn, rye, oats, rice, buckwheat, millet, triticale, bulgar, spelt

No cereals, breads, or flour made with any of the above grains

Potatoes

Yams

Parsnips

Okra

Chickpeas

Bean sprouts

Soybeans

Turnips (can try after considerable healing)

Amaranth flour

Quinoa flour

Chestnut flour

Cottonseed 

Wheat germ

Seaweed

You may grind your own nut flours after diarrhea has completely cleared up

How long does it take the Specific Carbohydrate Diet to work

The diet should be adhered to 100% of the time, no cheats ever. 

Then after a period of approximately 3 weeks, you should begin to see some symptoms improving. The diet should have begun to reduce your diarrhea, pain, bloating, gas, and bleeding if you have any.

It is recommended that you keep track of your symptoms (everyone has different symptoms and different levels of symptoms), and then score them every day on a scale of 1-5 or whatever scale you fancy. 

I didn’t chart my improvement, I could just tell that I was starting to bleed less, have regular bowel movements for the first time in years, have less pain, I started sleeping through the night, etc.

If you can honestly say that you’ve stuck to the diet perfectly, 100% for 3 weeks, and didn’t see any improvement then it’s up to you if you wish to continue. I personally saw a dramatic difference within 3 weeks. 

In a word of caution, there are lots of hidden complex sugars in foods. They could be in medications, in spices, in condiments, in the fluid in chicken meat, pre-shredded cheeses, etc. I can go on and on. 

You must be on the lookout, read every label, question ingredients, don’t eat out, and google foods on the Legal/Illegal lists.  I still say to Siri things like, “Is arrowroot SCD legal?”. And guess what, no it’s not. She knows! You can ask me too! I’d love to help.

My point is, if you didn’t see notable improvements in 3 weeks, it's important to evaluate ways these sugars may have inadvertently slipped into your diet. There must be 100% adherence to the diet, 100% of the time. 

One bite can substantially set back your healing. Don’t be discouraged, keep trying. Be diligent, you can do it.

I thought of those foods as having the potential to kill me. I know that sounds serious, my IBD was very serious. I was tired of spending lots of time in the hospital and never improving. Plus, the side effects of all my medications were horrible and getting worse.

If you stuck with the diet through thick and thin, and saw an improvement, then it’s recommended that you stick with it for at least a year. Elaine Gottschall says to do it for two years, and then a year after all symptoms have completely disappeared.

I didn’t think of it like that, I took it one day at a time and kept moving forward without considering a timeline because it was the best I’ve ever felt in my life. I was making huge strides in my recovery and it was starting to show both physically and mentally. 

I stuck to the diet 100% for 5 years, and I still go back to it 100% from time to time because I love how it makes me feel. I don’t take any medications currently and haven’t since 2010, and my colonoscopy from July 2022 was perfectly clear. 

I eat cleanly, the same foods recommended on the diet, about 95 percent of the time now that I’ve healed.

If I go back to eating too much sugar and junk food for many months I sometimes get some minor symptoms. It’s extremely rare though, My main reaction is bloat. My tummy puffs up, and sometimes the sugar gives me a headache.

I did have a small relapse in 2019 when I was under tremendous stress, a tiny ulcer in my small intestine. It healed within a couple of weeks after going back on the SCD and hasn’t returned. That’s probably the biggest symptom I’ve had over the past 14 years. My GI specialist did a colonoscopy during that time and the remainder of my colon looked fantastic.

And did I mention, my July 2022 colonoscopy looked wonderful. My inflammation markers are non-existent, and all my blood work looks perfect. All the time, it looks perfect.

Here’s my SCD Diet timeline. I had significant improvement  within 3 weeks, after being in a constant flare for 12 months. I went into full remission in about 4 months. 

I stayed on my medications for 2 years after starting the diet. I was on 12 pills of mesalamine (Asacol) and 45 mg of Prednisone daily. I tapered the Prednisone after 6 months, and the Asacol after 2 years, 

I had been on Prednisone for 18 months straight. 

I tried all the IBD medications, including biologics. The remicade made me shake uncontrollably, I couldn’t hold silverware without banging it against my dish. I still have swollen lymph nodes that popped up from that drug. My GI doctor told me they were a side effect. And I was too ill to get pregnant, so I’ve never conceived.

None of the medications worked for me. I was getting progressively worse, I didn’t want to have surgery. Lots of people have the surgery, have colostomy bags, and are still sick. 

I decided to try the SCD Diet because I had nothing to lose. I was being advised to take medications that cause rare brain cancer and a multitude of other serious side effects, and the only side effect of the diet was a potential calcium deficiency (which I probably already had because I couldn’t eat anything). 

Think of your last hospital visit, then fix yourself this SCD meal. 

Grab a big plate and pile on a juicy steak, mashed cauliflower with butter and crumbled Paleo bacon, and a side of roasted carrots in butter.

Now tell me which you’d prefer. And remember, you’re eating this and feeling zero symptoms. You’re feeling fantastic! So?

And oh yeah, finish with a dish of my apple cobbler with honey pecan streusel for dessert. I can make SCD vanilla ice cream too, if you like ala mode. 

A great big ol’ SCD bon appetit!

How do you get carbs on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet

The diet encompasses highly nutritious carbohydrates. Most non-starchy vegetables and fruits are the primary sources of carbohydrates on this diet and they house loads of vitamins and minerals for your body. 

The diet does not allow table sugar, and other types of sweeteners (other than pure honey) which hold no nutritional value and are indigestible by a damaged colon. The diet also doesn’t allow grains because they are similarly indigestible like certain sweeteners 

The goal of the diet is to give your body enough time to heal so eventually you can begin introducing other types of carbohydrates, after your body has gained the ability to digest them properly (where they no longer are creating pain and inflammation for you). 

After a few months of healing on the diet you may begin to introduce navy beans and black beans if tolerated well, and lentils which are all rich in fiber. It is important to be symptom free before testing beans out. Once I was healed to this point, they were a wonderful weekly addition to my meals and I still tolerate them well after 14 years. 

Carbohydrates are not considered an essential macronutrient like protein and fats. That is because the human body can produce enough carbohydrates on its own to function effectively. Therefore, you don’t technically need to consume any carbohydrates. They are highly recommended though because of their micronutrients and large amounts of fiber. 

Vegetables are the most highly nutritious foods on the planet, they are considered to be nutrient dense. You can’t go wrong by eating fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. 

Some diet reviewers, who have never tried the diet short or long term like I have, state there “could” be nutritional deficiencies associated with this diet, however those most likely already exist. 

That is because lots of people with IBD, myself included before the SCD diet, begin eliminating lots of types of foods because they are extremely difficult to digest and create frequent bathroom trips and are ultimately excruciatingly painful to eat. This in itself can create nutritional deficiencies. Also, a damaged colon can lead to reduced absorption of B vitamins. 

I will suggest an SCD legal multivitamin if that is a large concern for you. I also would recommend eating the SCD homemade yogurt to gain calcium (although it’s found in some vegetables and some meats in good quantity). 

I also recommend having your doctor check your Vitamin D levels. Vitamin D is made in the human body (synthesized through your hands and face during sun exposure). Vitamin D is added to some foods because lots of people don’t get enough regular sun exposure. Your doctor should be monitoring this anyway because it is a common vitamin in which to be deficient. I take a supplement daily in the colder months when I’m not outside frequently (I live in the midwest).

My biggest recommendation is to strive for total healing of your colon because that is where nutrients are absorbed. If your colon is damaged you most likely aren’t receiving the nutrients your body needs. Therefore, a reviewer dissuading somebody from trying the diet based on this criteria, must not be accounting for the fact that people that actually have IBD are already struggling to eat and digest foods on a daily basis. 

The important thing is getting to a place where you can eat food comfortably, digest food comfortably, and begin to absorb nutrients so you start feeling good and whole again.

Additionally, there are many other successful diets that deliver high levels of health and wellness that exclude certain similar carbohydrates. For instance, Whole 30, Paleo, GAPs, and Clean Keto. I’ve studied a lot of diets, as well as people’s testimonies of their healing, and these diets have lots in common and have helped many, many, people.

The SCD diet helped me get to a place of healing where now I eat most every type of food. I prefer to eat clean most of the time because ultimately it makes me feel more energized, happy, calm, and rested. You may discover the same thing. 

What does the research show

There are different studies for IBD spanning the test of time, alluding to the exclusion of certain carbohydrates. 

There’s also studies using this SCD Diet specifically, I’ll include links. My recommendation is to read the book Breaking the Vicious Cycle by Elaine Gottschal if you want a quick yet interesting and thorough overview.. 

One thing I’ve learned is It’s very difficult to conduct a double blind on a diet because typically double blinds are compared to another standard therapy, within the study. 

And you have to ensure that the participants are following the diet perfectly. Plus people are going to heal at different rates, there’s tons of variables. But, there are successful studies out there.

If you want a really interesting read, check out how your IBD medication compares to the placebo in its double blind study as well as its general effectiveness. You may be surprised I know I was, and not in a good way.

I love to eat good, whole, nutritious foods that are easy for me to digest. To me it’s simple. But I get it if you want to explore science. There’s lots of science to look at in this case dating back to A.D. times.

How do you start the Diet

You start the diet with an Introduction phase. You can eat the foods recommended in that phase for up to 5 days if you have severe diarrhea. Then you can begin introducing the other foods on the diet.

There is another approach, you can introduce the foods on the diet in multiple phases that mirror the progression of healing in your colon. Some people prefer this approach, especially if they are very ill and want to be cautious with introducing new foods.

I didn’t learn about the different phases until I had been on the diet for many months, so I didn’t try that approach. I thought back on it later, and wished I would have done that approach because I read a lot of testimonies saying they started healing faster and felt more solid in their progress. 

There’s some foods that people commonly have intolerances to that are legal on the diet. These foods are nuts, eggs, and dairy. 

My recommendation is to be cautious with those foods, and look to adding those in later if you feel your healing lagging. They just may be the culprit preventing you from getting to the next level. 

Just because you can’t eat it now, doesn’t mean you can’t eat it later. 

Overcoming potential challenges on the diet

The largest challenge to overcome is your own mind. 

Changes can be difficult to make when they feel large and are happening all at one time. For me, I was super sick, so I was able to overcome this aspect of behavioral change theory. 

This can happen when a person is urgently compelled to make large immediate changes due to significant illness or trauma. So, you may fall into this category too and easily adopt this diet. 

However, if you don’t fall into that category then most likely you’re struggling to adopt these changes.

My suggestion is to clean out your house and get rid of all the non-SCD food. Then purchase only SCD ingredients. Next, begin meal-planning , prepping ingredients for the meals you plan to eat each week. 

I also cooked only simple quick meals so I could eat right away. I always made enough so there were leftovers for breakfast or lunch the next day. 

Planning is the key to success. 

I also made snacks (frozen orange juice popsicles, SCD jello, hard cheeses), and I had these foods on hand all the time. Never go without snacks like that, in case of an emergency. 

After getting started and sticking to it 100% of the time, the next largest challenge is your friends and family. 

Unfortunately, no matter how much they love you, a lot of them will not understand the diet and won’t understand that you cannot cheat on it ever. 

This is their issue, not yours. I understand that knowing that doesn’t improve the situation.

I personally just politely ignored their comments and never went out to eat so I wouldn’t slip up. But, it is challenging socially, and during the holidays. I have some tips and tricks to help out. 

The third issue is dealing with potential relapses. There is one historically at around 4 months, that is unexplained. Just stick to the diet, it’s believed to be a healing phase. 

And, figuring out if any foods are halting your progress, as I mentioned those may be eggs, nuts, or dairy. I can eat those foods, but I went through an egg phase where they hurt my tummy. That one comes and goes. I think I may have an intolerance to them. 

Soaking your nuts is a good idea…and eating your yogurt in small doses is a good approach there. You can cut out the hard cheeses if you think that’s a problem. Every person is different. 

Take an SCD multivitamin and do gentle exercise like walking and yoga for 30 mins a day once you have the energy to move.

Also, If your symptoms are not improving or are getting worse you should contact your doctor right away. This diet is not a replacement for medical advice. I continued taking my medication for a very long time while adhering to this diet. I still continue to be monitored by a GI specialist and get regular colonoscopies.

Stay the course! Challenges are meant to be faced and overcome.