getting used to a vegan diet..?
Posted by Sariea on Mar 06, 2007 · Member since Feb 2007 · 845 posts
i've only just started, i've been strictly vegetarian for a few weeks and this is kinda embarrassing but.. how long do you think it's going to take my body to get used to all the fiber? i'm a little tired of feeling bloated and all that every day :-\
thanks
i'm not really sure what is too much fiber, i keep track of the nutrition info in the food i eat every day and usually i eat around 65% of my RDA, but i eat a pear every day and that is the majority of it. most of my diet consists of fruits and veggies
i was told once by a nutritionist in a hospital that if a food has less than 2g of fiber per serving, it's not worth eating. so i guess that's probably hurting me right now ::)
It was about 3 years ago when I went vegetarian, then few weeks later, vegan. The, um..., GAS and bloating was really bad at first, but went away in about 3 weeks. I was eating a lot of beans and my body was definitely not used to that, or the fresh veggies and steamed rice.
After that, things were fine. It helped that my BF went through the same thing with me, and we'd laugh at it all the time. "Oh nice one, Rick...hahaha!" ;D
Good luck, Sariea!
I am going to give you ENTIRELY too much information and I'll try to be suggestive not disgusting.
It has been my experience right at first, the change seems to not really mess with your innards too much, for about 7 to 10 days. After that, one will become very bloated and FOS (full of umm "stuff") and you can get to where you really REALLY need a large dose of ExLax. That lasts about a week, followed by embarrassing "gaseous anomalies" and frequent porcelain calls.
I really did look this up last week because I was a little concerned about myself. My previous slow running plumbing seems to be in hyperdrive. I was reading around on the web and found that vegans who eat exclusively plant food tend to have fewer colon issues than their meat eating counterparts. I was reading that compared to other countries where they eat primarily plants, they eliminate about 3x the amount the average American does and by those standards, Americans are constipated.
I'd try the beano recipe on here for one thing. Also know that for some people who have had slow running systems in the past, they don't anymore because of the increased fiber. For bloating, if all you are doing is having a full and pouchy tummy (I sure do) try to eliminate all simple carbs, that is white carbs (white bread, white rice, white pasta) and opt for whole grain instead. I can tell you that ONE meal with white pasta will bloat me up till I can't zip my otherwise well fitting jeans.
I personally believe that another reason for bloating can be that the colon is over doing its job. One of its jobs is to balance the fluid in our systems which aids in elimination, by drawing water in through osmosis. Juices, real sugar sodas, a lot of fruits, and candy all stimulate the colon to draw in more water. As I was once told, you are as likely to bloat up from a bag of M&Ms as from a bag of potato chips.
If you have really cut the amount of salt you intake, such as if you cut out all processed food which tend to be salt laden, you may be find that eating a little bit more salt might take the swelling down. It is counter intuitive, but I have known it to work for me.
THis too, shall pass...um pun intended!
"this too, shall pass.." Cute Dragonfly. :P
Make sure you're increasing your water intake-- I realize that this will ultimately FURTHER increase your probably-all-to-frequent trips to the John, but it will make things, erm-- shall we say, a little more passable.
As far as gas goes, it'll decrease a lot, especially once your body gets used to processing large amounts of your new favorite foods (My family woefully lamented the day that I developed a rather unfortunate love affair with brussel sprouts. But after processing approximately my body weight in sprouts, my colon adjusted accordingly. :P). But I can't honestly say that it ever fully goes away-- I'm occasionally still kind of lethal, especially after over-indulging. (Every once in a while, it's good to NOT know who you're really talking to. I'm not sure I'd admit that to anyone's face. :D) But, on the bright side, I've not had a single issue with hypoglycemia since giving up white flour junk and candy; so I think the occasional fiber-fart is a fair trade. :P
This might sound silly, but why does the bloating happen? I always think of eating fiber rich foods as kind of having the opposite effect. I think I might be in that phase (I ate way too many prunes for this to be normal at the moment) and have not "gone" in 2 days. I just turned 100% vegan a few days ago, although I have been mostly vegan for quite some time.
and Dragonfly, thanks for the laughs, especially the "porcelain calls."
Enough fiber acts like a scrub brush in your intestine, keeping everything moving free and clean.
Too much (or, just more than your body is used to using), and it swells up and "plugs." That's why you're supposed to increase your fiber slowly; to give your body time to adjust to the bulk.
For those who need a giggle about this breezy subject, I long ago wrote an essay pertaining to this conversation.
If you are easily offended, please DO NOT go and see what this link has on offer.
http://geocities.com/dragonflypaper/fart.html
In my experience you tend to feel better and better (than ever before) as you add more healthy things to your diet. Since becoming vegan, my husband who tends to be very sweaty, is still sweaty at times, but no longer has BO! Yay! ;D
I don't bloat... but in the other department I have never had a problem with fiber and I eat waaaaaaaay more than the RDA which is like 25g... I think i eat about 3 times that. Anyhow, carb issues, now that's different.... pizza crust (and I'm talking thin and homemade) will leave me wondering what I ate to make... uh... 'things' go so slowly. Refined carbs are carbs that have been refined to the point that the fiber has been removed. Which is why they become glue-like. If you're feeling bloaty it may be becuz you are replacing bread with whatever you cut out of your diet? Or if you are eating any prepackaged meals or food they may have too much salt. TRUE Mizzoukitten: Fiber is the srubber! So if you're feeling bloaty adding more fiber (regularly into your diet!) can help to push it out.
Elimination should really occur after each meal. So 3+ times a day. My husband and I eat the exact same thing (even portion size fairly is similar) but he usually goes one time less per day than I do.... but I think that is psychological (he's weird :D)
Good luck!
this is a very entertaining thread!
don't forget that your body does take a little while to process what you've eaten...i.e. what you've eaten that day is NOT what you're "elimintating" that day...
this drives me crazy because people are always blaming their gastrointestinal issues on something they ate an hour ago (my bf is a culprit for sure) ... unless it was really really bad food, or you're really really sensitive to something (lactose intolerance etc.) you're not going to to be feeling the actual effects until much later in the day, or the next day. so if you're having problems with bloating, constipation or gassiness, don't forget to concider the food you ate 24 hours ago or more...
good luck! and drink lots and lots of water. water fixes everything (except if you drink TOO much and wreck your sodium levels... don't do that either)
ok here goes.
i have been a vegan for 1 year and i am always 'full of gas.' i have thankfully never had a problem with bowel movements but before becoming vegan i was very intolerant to dairy and it always gave me the poots. since i no longer consume dairy, i have even worse cases of the poots (i.e gas) after eating almost anything. i dont feel bloated or full just pootie. it could be the beans that we eat, the soy milk, the extra fiber i dont know. i just let it rip unless i am teaching then i squeeze it in and wait for the period to end.
sorry if this really does not help but at least we can share
veronica
heehee the word "poots" makes me giggle! ;D
i eat basically the same thing every day and drink lots of water. i'm lactose intolerant so i gave all that stuff up a long time ago.
but i feel like veronica does. it doesn't bother me when i'm alone or at home but it's kinda embarrassing when i'm on the eliptical at the gym or at my boyfriends house! ::)