Quitting Vegetarianism.. will my gas go away?!
But my question is, if I start eating meat today, will the gas that I've been experiencing go away? And if so, how long will it take to go away?
Please, I'm desperate!
thanks
Answers: So I became a vegetarian last June and up until a few months ago I was fine. But I started to get gassy and have other bowel and digestive problems that won't go away no matter what I try--beano, peto bismol, chewing more, drinking more water--nothing helps. So I'm thinking about giving vegetarianism up. It's affecting my health and my life in general in a negative way.
But my question is, if I start eating meat today, will the gas that I've been experiencing go away? And if so, how long will it take to go away?
Please, I'm desperate!
thanks
If you're taking fiber pills then you are probably eating a lot of pre-fab junk food. Am I guessing correctly?
A real vegetarian, that is one who eats healthy veggies, wouldn't need fiber pills. You haven't at all mentioned what you DO eat.
The gas could be any number of things. It could be utterly unrelated to your being vegetarian. It could be left over meat in your colon trying to make its way out.
It's very likely that you are gassy because you are not eating properly. Whole foods. Fresh veggies and fruit. Fresh grains. As much UNPROCESSED foods as possible.
Edit: UGH!! Do NOT do the "baby carrot" suggestion. They are loaded with sugar and skyrocket your glycemic index. Fresh greens and fresh grains have good fiber and little sugar.
OTC medications are making you worse. What you actually need is more fiber. Whole foods, raw vegetables. The easiest thing to do is get a bag of raw baby carrots (about two cups) and eat it. Dip them in ranch or salsa or whatever you like. They will sweep through your intestines in less than a day, taking everything else with them. Then the gas will improve.
And no, eating meat will not help at this point. Meat is the hardest substance to digest, and really messes with your intestines.
(My sister eats mostly meat- zero carbs, and her gas is so bad that her house ALWAYS smells like hard boiled eggs.)
If you gas is your motivation to give up being vegetarian after a short period of 9 months. - sure why not!
Personally, I would evaluate my priorities, but if you think by eating animals, you will fart less. - go for it!
I would never eat dead animals.
Edit:- More fiber the better versus less.
You will find most fiber ins vegetables, fruits. You need fiber to make sure your insides are getting rid of the excess horrible toxin stuff.
I just got out of the hospital for chemical poisoning. To save the organs in my stomach and move the toxins out, I can only eat healthy. All the doctors have advised me to stay away from meat and only eat fruits, veggies and nuts for 3 weeks(I didnt tell them Im already vegetarian). If meat was good for you, then I doubt they would have told me that. Ive been vegetarian for 2 years and feel healthier than I ever did. Anybody that says meat is healthy is not a doctor. To say that vegetarianism is affecting your health is just nonsense. That's like saying that you should start smoking to help your lungs. Meat screws up your digestive tract over time and this has been proven over and over again. I don't know why you have gas and it's possible that it's from vegetables,or maybe you are eating more beans and don't realize it. When you are vegetarian you are supposed to balance things out and eat an equal amount of vegetables, fruit, and nuts and you will be lance armstrong healthy. Maybe you have just been eating too much of one thing such as only salads or only something else. Just my 2 cents.
vegetables tend to be gassy especially like cabbage, broccoli
and beans are too
FIBER will give you even more gas.
I'd focus on less vegetables and avoid the gassy ones, as well as fiberous foods
ALSO, if you use sugar substititues like Splenda etc (even in gum) they are EXTREMELY gas producing
Good luck!!
Which foods cause gas?
Most foods that contain carbohydrates can cause gas. By contrast, fats and proteins cause little gas.
Sugars
The sugars that cause gas are: raffinose, lactose, fructose, and sorbitol.
Raffinose
Beans contain large amounts of this complex sugar. Smaller amounts are found in cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, asparagus, other vegetables, and whole grains.
Lactose
Lactose is the natural sugar in milk. It is also found in milk products, such as cheese and ice cream, and processed foods, such as bread, cereal, and salad dressing. Many people, particularly those of African, Native American, or Asian background, have low levels of the enzyme lactase needed to digest lactose. Also, as people age, their enzyme levels decrease. As a result, over time people may experience increasing amounts of gas after eating food containing lactose.
Fructose
Fructose is naturally present in onions, artichokes, pears, and wheat. It is also used as a sweetener in some soft drinks and fruit drinks.
Sorbitol
Sorbitol is a sugar found naturally in fruits, including apples, pears, peaches, and prunes. It is also used as an artificial sweetener in many dietetic foods and sugarfree candies and gums.
Starches
Most starches, including potatoes, corn, noodles, and wheat, produce gas as they are broken down in the large intestine. Rice is the only starch that does not cause gas.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Fiber !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Many foods contain soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber dissolves easily in water and takes on a soft, gel-like texture in the intestines. Found in oat bran, beans, peas, and most fruits, soluble fiber is not broken down until it reaches the large intestine where digestion causes gas.
Insoluble fiber, on the other hand, passes essentially unchanged through the intestines and produces little gas. Wheat bran and some vegetables contain this kind of fiber.
Whoa!
What are you eating?
You do not have to throw the baby out with the bath water. Find a good nutritionist, homeopath, or chiropractor and work on the digestion issue.
Do you have enough Hydrochloric Acid in your system?
What kind of digestive difficulties? Constipation? Diarreah?
This information is much to vague to really help you. However, for many people taking the homeopathic CarboVeg 30 C alleviates digestive discomfort.
Seriously, eating meat is not the solution to your problem, that just opens up a different can of difficulties.
because this is so sudden, it might not have anything to do with being a vegetarian or an omnivore. you went for what, 8 months without a problem? you should go to a doctor and have yourself checked out. it could be anything.
any meat eater (including myself) will tell you - meat does not make gas 'go away.' actually, red meat will make your gas more smelly. as with anything, eating meat should be done in moderation - eating excessive amounts of it will make you constipated, gassy, and overall just feel icky. the fda defines a serving of meat as the size and weight of a deck of cards - and not too many people in this country follow that.
i'm not going to try and make you go one way or the other. whether you eat meat or not is your personal choice.
as for eating lots of vegetables, that may help. in general, fiber is a good thing. it absorbs water and toxins, and flushes them right out of your body. be sure you make the distinction between soluble and insoluble fiber, though. insoluble won't digest, and will fly right out of you - and you'll be sorry later. you might also want to try a colon cleanse. in switching to a vegetarian diet, all the junk built up in there is probably coming loose (which is a good thing). also investigate any allergies you may have.
in any case, if the problem does not improve soon, i would definitely see a doctor of some kind.
It works for me in one or two days time.
I would have thought if your vegetarian diet was to blame you would have had problems before now. Until I went vegan I had terrible problems with wheat/gluten, and indigestion tablets didn't help those either.
I doubt eating meat will stop the gas, but if you want to use that as a reason for stopping being vegetarian then go ahead. But you shouldn't need to justify your decision in any case.
And why do you think a paediatrician is not a 'real' doctor? I don't think that they'd be overly happy to be described in such terms.
It may be that you have irritable bowel syndrome, and unfortunately there is no straight answer to this, some people find increasing their fibre intake eases symptoms, some decreasing it....sometimes it just comes down to trial and error on your part.
Honestly, the way our bodies are designed is to eat mostly fruits and vegetables with grain and meat as flavorings/supplements. I know I'll get a lot of thumbs down for saying that but if you don't believe me, email me and I'll show you what I mean (don't mess with anthropologists ;) ). Our G.I. tracts don't have the intestinal volume for a completely vegan diet.
That being said, you can make the dietary choice to become vegetarian/vegan. There's morally nothing wrong with it, it's just not what we're specifically designed for so it takes a little bit of work (and as a vegetarian you will feel more lethargic than if you just ate a small piece of chicken or a can of tuna twice a week, there's no way around that). The best I can tell you is to increase the amount of whole grains you eat. Honestly though, if that doesn't work you might want to try adding a little animal protein to your diet. If the animal protein doesn't work, you might want to try another doctor as it may not be related to the food you're eating.
eat meat that is what we are design to do. just veges will screw you all up. i just dont get why someone would want to do that to themselves