Advice for future vegetarian who has IBS, a soy allergy and suffers gas pains?

Question

I've been contemplating vegetarianism for many years now but with so many intestinal issues I figure why bother? I primarily have IBS with constipation--not that anyone needed to know that. My doctor has suggested vegetarianism to relieve the constipation, but so much of the vegetarian diet consists of such gassy foods. Does anyone have any advice for me?

Answer 1

constipation is due to low fiber. high fiber means gas. better a little gas than IBS!

listen to your doctor. avoid red meat and saturated fats. Once you get things stable the gas may settle out.

drink too much water. you should pee clear every time you go. if it is yellow, dark yellow, or worst brownish, you are not drinking enough. totally eliminate all caffine, and all alcohol in all forms. after a year or two and your body has had a chance to adjust try a glass of red to see how it treats you..

there are enzyme supplements you can take to augment your natural chemistry. BEENO is a common one. if you have ever had anti-biotics, you probably killed off the good bacteria in your digestive tract that keep you healthy. It can take years after a wide spectrum agent like Z-Max before your good bacteria come back to a healthy number.

You don't have to cut 100% over to vegetarian all at once. ease in as fast as you can. eliminate specific foods and see how they affect you, for instance eliminate all dairy. (not eggs, but all milk, half and half, cream, butter, cheese) cut out all beef. cut out all mayo. make sure you only use olive oil. eliminate all peanuts and peanut oil, and peanut butter (that is my downfall) just one peanut will give me constipation and burning diareah mixed together with reflux. very very bad feeling.

if you do not easily tolerate soy, peanuts may even be worse, and other legumes may cause you trouble. I still tolerate soy, but it verges on the peanut effect. lentils, all beans, will be things you need to test for and watch to see the effects.

Answer 2

I also have IBS/Colitis and also soy allegy yet am vegetarian. I find when I start new foods, like I started to eat Swiss Chard recently it did make me gassy. Gas is a painful problem for me. But I find that your body does get used to the fiberous foods. Just eat a little at a time. I know that is tough if you buy a head of lettuce but it is the only way I know. Greens are great for people with gastro problems as they contain large amounts of cholorophil and tend to be healing. I find I still cannot eat iceberg lettuce but can eat coss lettuce or sometiems eaetr raw spinach instead of lettuce in a salad. Also onions can be a problem esp raw, Again eat a little at a time and you body may well adjust or try a milder onion like shallot. I also juice a lot of veg as I live on my own and often have veg left over so I just juice it and drink it. There is also medication like beano, or go the natural route, fennel tea or ginger. Look you can do it, I think it will help you, I don't mean cure you, but it will help with your symptoms of IBS, I love animals but am vegetarian because eating lighter help me feel better not for moral reasons. Meat actually makes me feel heavy and tired. It will take time to adjust and there will be trial and error but worthwhile.

Answer 3

For many people, careful eating reduces Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) symptoms. Before changing your diet, keep a journal noting the foods that seem to cause distress. Then discuss your findings with your doctor. You may also want to consult a registered dietitian, who can help you make changes to your diet. You may also want to read more about this issue, the following link is a good start:
http://www.colon-cleanse-constipation.com/irritable-bowel-syndrome-diet.html

I am sending you positive energy and I wish you the very best!

Answer 4

Hi there, I'm an NP (Registered Nurse Practitioner) and I have a lot of patients that have IBS with and/or without ulcerative colitis, and Xifaxin and a 2 week course of Dannon's (the yogurt folks) Activa (in the dairy section of your grocery) has been quite a remarkable success.....Out of 45 patients that I have had one the regimen, 42 have had > 80% relief.......there is a naturally occurring beneficial bacteria in the Activa yogurt that restores the beneficial flora in your intestinal tract......Of those people who continued to eat Activa everyday have called me to thank me for the advice, as they have no more distressing days on the toilet....Talk to your gastroenterologist and see if he concurs with my advice......

Answer 5

I find that the gassiest soy foods are only the super processed ones. Veggie burgers, soy ice cream and things made with texturized vegetable protien "TVP" cause immediate problems. Things like chic peas, tofu, and regular beans are much less trouble. I make my own seitan, which is wheat gluten and has nothing to do with soy or any other beans. I'm hesitant to suggest anything because everyone is an individual. My mother gets reflux from whole wheat flour- I have been eating whole wheat everything because it is "healthy" but it's not right for her. Get a macrobiotic cookbook and try other grains like millet and quinoa. Eat less meat and no dairy. Good luck!

Answer 6

I recently saw a tv show where a doctor spoke about IBS. He said that it was discovered that it can be caused by bacterial infection in the colon. Also, he said that it's been successfully treated with an antibiotic. One woman said that her long standing problems with IBS disappeared soon after she started her medication. She did finish the medical regimen prescribed.

Answer 7

There is a new antibiotic that might help IBS sufferers called Rifaximin or Xifaxin.

Link to Y! Search results for more information:
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=antibiotic+for+IBS&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ques&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAmDKdxVLpyNnr20McayfN5526xR.%2FSIG%3D111gjvvgj%2F*-http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Frds.yahoo.com%2F_ylt%3DAm34CdG83K9_pF1ZyFtWCDV26xR.%2FSIG%3D11ia1qo58%2F**http%253a%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%253aSearch&p=antibiotic+for+IBS

Here are some articles about reducing the enzyme that causes gas in beans & reducing gasiness in general:
http://lancaster.unl.edu/food/ciq_dry_beans.htm#you
http://www.health911.com/remedies/rem_gas.htm
http://www.midwestgastro.com/patient_education/Irritable_Bowel_Disease.html
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/Intestinal-gas/DG00048
http://www.aboutibs.org/Publications/gas.html

You can also soak dry beans for 2 days to sprout them before cooking. Change the water frequently.

You may want to consider a vegan diet since dairy products can also be irritating. For more information go to:
http://www.drmcdougall.com/

Answer 8

Vegitarian diets will generate more gas. Period. As your fauna adjusts to the new diet, it might get tolerable. Be consistent with your diet to allow your gut to adjust. May take a week or two.

Answer 9

steer clear of anything with soy.

And stop driving so far for food that should wipe away the gas pains!

Answer 10

DUDE!! How did ya know???? I can be a b*tch at times, so it doesn't bother me so much if someone calls me that - just DON'T let the dreaded C-word come outta your mouth!! LOL Not in anger, anyway. Just sayin'..........