Hi, I’m a new member, and just discovered this site this morning! Can anybody tell me if it is acceptable or not acceptable to eat sweets with acute pancreatitis?
Thanks,
Truffles 16
Truffles,
Welcome to the site. Sometimes sweets are the only thing I can eat. I don’t know why that is. But if it doesn’t make you sick or feel bad go for it. Of course you want to always check with your doctor also. Just try not to overdue. You don’t want to slide into diabetes. Your pancreas helps to regulate your blood sugar.
Vonnie
HI
THIS IS TEWE…EVERYTIME MY PANCREAS FLARES UP, IS BECAUSE I ATE SOMETHING SWEET…EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT , BUT AS THE PANCREAS FORMS SCARE TISSUE WITH EACH FLAREUP, THE PANCREAS HAS A HARD TIME PROCESSING SUGARS…I GAVE UP ALL SUGARS, ANYTHING WITH CORNSYRUP, CORNSTARCH, CORNMEAL ECT (BECAUSE IM ALLERGIC TO CORN HELPED) BUT WHEN I DID , I DID NOT HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH MY PANCREAS…I HAD A PIECE OF BIRTHDAY CAKE, AND IT SENT ME INTO A ATTACK…BUT SUBSIDED THE NEXT DAY…AFTER AWHILE, WHEN YOUR PANCREAS CANNOT PROCESS SUGAR, YES IT CAN FORM DIABETES…MY MOM HAS DIABETES, SO I TRY TO STAY AWAY FROM SUGARS…BUT HEY, IM ONLY HUMAN , I STILL HAVE A SWEET HERE AND THEIR, BUT PAY THE PRICE FOR IT…BUT I DO STAY AWAY FROM CORNSYRUPS, FOR THE SUGAR CONTENT IS VERY, VERY HIGH WITH FOODS MADE FROM IT…MY GASTRO DOC SAYS, YES AND NO TO THIS…IT JUST DEPENDS ON THE PATIENT?
GOOD LUCK, ANY MORE QUESTIONS, IM HEAR TO ANSWER, BEEN THROUGH THESE FOR 5 YEARS NOW…
GOD BLESS
TEWE AKA TERESA
Thanks TEWE for the encouragement!
Yesterday, I experienced some abdominal pain along w/ back pain. It didn’t last more that an hour or so, thank goodness! Yeah, I know what you mean about the sweets, I usually have to tip toe thru the tulips while eating them, I pay for it afterwards! But, I’m a chocolate fiend, and a sweet hound!
Truffles16
I had acute as well and am able to eat sweets as long as they are low in fat, no milk chocolate. In fact my doctor suggested eating sour skittles to help me gain back some weight :).
Kim
HI
TEWE AGAIN
YES I WAS TOLD MILK CHOCOLATE FOR SOME REASON WILL BRING ON A ATTACK…BUT THE GASTRO DOC SAID DARK CHOCOLATE WILL NOT, ONLY IF ITS THE EXPENSIVE SWEDISH KIND, (WELL IF HE IS BUYING I WOULD TRY IT) IT HAS ALOT OF ANTIOXIDANTS, AND PURIFICATIONS IN THE CHOCOLATE…DONT REALLY CARE FOR DARK, BUT IF IT COMES DOWN TO IT, I WILL SAVE FOR A YEAR TO BUY SOME…
OH AND THE SOUR SKITTLES…THATS SOMETHING NEW…HOW DOES THAT WORK IN THE GAINING WEIGHT THING? WOULD REALLY LIKE TO KNOW…IVE LOST 26LBS…BUT I COULD LOSE ANOTHER 20…BUT BY ALL MEANS NOT HAVING PANCREAS PROBLEMS AGAIN AND ANXIETY TO LOSE THE WEIGHT…IT WAS NOT FUN…IM MAINTAINING NOW…
I KNOW HOW ALL OF YOU FEEL, ITS REALLY NOT A FUN DISEASE…IT TERRIBLE PAIN, AND KEEPS YOU REALING…AND ALOT OF DOCS DONT UNDERSTAND THE PANCREAS AND HOW IT REALLY WORKS, FOR SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE SO MANY DIFFERENT SYSTOMS TO PANCREATITUS…BUT I PRAY FOR ALL THAT A SURE CURE WILL HAPPEN SOMEDAY SOON…AND RELIEF WILL BE OUR CURE
TALK TO YOU ALL SOON
TEWE TERESA
Truffles,
Unfortunately for me I am a diabetic. However, I still eat sweets but
very carefully. I like things that I can suck on for a long time.
Hard candies. Now, one thing you really need to stay away from are
sweets with fat in them. The hardness of chocolates and stuff is due
to the fats in them so that they can stay in that nice bar shape.
That is the ONLY thing I can tell you that is good so that you can
eat them!! Certainly, you will have to experiment, Right? 
The best to you,
Anyse
Kim & Truffles,
Yes, that is what I do and I do not suffer. Skittles, Sourbombs,
SweeTarts, Super Hot HOT Tamales, Skittles, and lemon drops. All are
good examples of nice candy that I eat, although just a little at a
time and only once a day. Example: 6 lemon drops. Like that.
Anyse
Tewe and Truffles,
Tewe, you are right about dark chocolate. The reason why dark
chocolate will harm you less is because it does not require the fat
needed in milk chocolate to keep it together in a nice bar.
Therefore, it is low fat!
Anyse
Hi TEWE, Kimberlyk,&Anyse!
This is Truffles! Thanks for the info about the milk chocolate and the fat in take. I’ll keep that in my memory Rolodex!! I didn’t know that sour skittles helps a person to gain weight, I lost 30 lbs with my initial acute pancreatitis attack in 2005 and haven’t been able to gain weight back. I’ve had Skittles before so that would be something to remember for future use. Good to hear from you all!! Truffles16
Hi truffles16 how are you doing? This is the first time i have sent you a message, but found the skittles to put on the weigh~LOL, I eat them at least once a week and have gained 5lbs, yeah for me. Hope it works for you:),I have been dealing with weight loss for about 2 years steady and couldn’t figure out what was happening, then thought it was due to low platelet counts, and CP/CL, and now i am thinking it is everything in one. I also eat tangy mike/ickes they are good for weight gain if you don’t have a sugar issue…Good Luck to you, and I am sending you Love and Big Hugs~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mrs Barb
I think it is not so much the sweets themselves, but what type. the pancreas has trouble digesting fats so you need to try and avoid any sweets with fat in them. I’ve found i’m generally ok with candies that have no fat: smarties, skittles, starbursts, etc.
there are ways around other cravings. I have figured out how to make cake that is very low fat using eggbeaters and applesauce. Cool whip makes a nice topping. For those chocolate lover- you have to try no pudge brownie mix! It is fat free!!! I find it works best with silken tofu and sour cream. You can use yogurt but it is too sticky in my opinion. Very chocolately!!!
They make low fat ice creams that taste good, but I find I can only have a little bit. But a little bit is better than none sometimes!
Hi, candy lovers–
I’ve also found all the fat-free or lowest fat candies to deal with those cravings. I’ve also found that the “mini” bars of 3-Musketeers and even Milky Ways (the Milky Way Midnights are dark chocolate!) make an awesome treat if frozen and I just have one (yes, it’s like having one potato chip, but it’s better than nothing!). There’s very little fat in one “mini” bar-- and all the other hard candies like the Mike & Ikes, Starbursts (I love the sour ones), Mentos, fruit-sweetened candies, etc. all are no or low fat snax-- but you guys are right to say not to have much at all if you’ve developed diabetes. There are also sugar-free things that are similar, though, that are also pretty good. The non-fat and low-fat ice creams have become my downfall-- and in a cake cone that’s no fat and about 30 calories-- it’s awesome (except sometimes the chocolate stuff seems to make the pain worse for me, too). Sometimes when nothing else seems like something I could eat, I can still get the ice cream to go down. I think without it (and all the TPN I had) I would still be underweight from all the ERCPs and stuff. I think keeping the fat down (I had been told to keep it to less than 10 grams a day, but now have up to about 40 grams/day) has really been the key for me, though.
Anyway… take care to all and many hugs–
Lisa
Hi Truffles,
I’m sure it’s different for everybody, but even when I am in the middle of a flare up, I still have my sugar. No chocolate unfortunately, but that’s because of the fat content.
Personally, I am currently a 'Popsicle Junkie" (see entry for today in my Journal), but I also like giant lemonheads, skittles, more popsicles, jolly ranchers, etc.
Like a few others here, I have lost a lot of weight, going from a healthy 125 in February to a mere 93 lbs (this time it won’t go away), so I am trying to get as many calories as possible without going to far overboard with sugar. But as far as how my body reacts, sugar hurts a lot less than anything else so far.
Especially high fiber veggies, those about kill me. It’s a difficult adjustment to try and eliminate all the fat content and add the things that are supposed to be good for you, especially when just the physical substance hurts… I’m trying to ‘eat’ as many liquid foods as I can, so soup (especially my homemade stuff) has become a commodity food for me.
There are a lot of times when we can’t eat, and in those times I find that the candy helps to satisfy the need to put something in my belly and the desire for taste.
Check with your doctor, but your body will guide you a lot if you learn to tune in to it. I have kept a food and bowel journal for years to help me learn what does set off my ‘attacks’. (I was undiagnosed for 14 years until Feb this year.)
Hope some of this helps, and that you have a wonderfully pain free day!
Molly