new member looking to transition

redsonja

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Sep 13, 2016
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  1. Omnivore
Greetings and thanks for the add. I am looking to slowly transition to veganism for health reasons as well as for the good of the planet. I am just going to start slowly removing animal protien from my diet. I am kind of worried about my body rejecting a quick transition as I have been told by non vegans that I will get bad gas. I work with the public and cant deal with that. Any advice would be appreciated.
 
It is possible that you will get more gas, and it is possible you won't. "will get bad gas" sounds like an exaggeration. It might not be that bad or it might be solvable if it is. Try starting off with small amounts of beans in your diet, and perhaps building from there, if you have gas, try reducing the beans or trying different types of foods. If you get more gas, look online there are ways to solve it. I have been eating a mostly vegan diet and I haven't noticed a huge difference.

Also, I think if it is an issue could it be more in the evening after digestion? It might be less of an issue in the day time? You could try eating beans at dinner or on the weekends (for example if you work weekday day times) and other foods at other times.
 
Thanks for the reply!!!:) I had beans last night. I think they had some kind of animal fat in the can though, as they left a "film" in my mouth. I'm going old school tonight and having cabbage without the corned beef! I had soymilk and wheat thins for breakfast. It was satisfying!
 
Jacket potatoes are your friends as well, with beans or with vegan cheese/cream like Violife. There's a lot of stuff you can eat, plenty recipes posted on this forum.
 
I'm doing pretty good. Yesterday I had carrots and raw string beans for lunch, my usual soy milk and a rice cake for breakfast and boiled potatoes with fresh cilantro and salt and pepper. a bit dry but filling. I was in the vegetable isle at walmart today and the jackasses have to put the hot cabinet next to the area with the smell of fried chicken! i'm sorry but I must be honest and had a chicken leg beg to be eaten!! Other than that I am doing well! my boyfriend says the gas is "tolerable!!

What are "jacket potatoes?
 
Jacket potatoes = Potatoes that are baked in the oven.

I can tell you what I eat these days:

Breakfast: a fruit (could be an apple, a banana, a handful of strawberries, blueberries etc).

Lunch: I start with a couple of fruits (you should not eat fruits after or with other food), then I have some rice with vegan milk (like almond milk, hazelnut milk, soy milk, chocolate soy milk). Some days I have shredded wheat instead of rice, about 2 big biscuits for lunch (or about 20 small shredded wheat).

Dinner: same as lunch.

Please do not take what I eat as representative of what the vegan cuisine is about, because the vegan cuisine is infinitely creative, complex and tasty (just like the meat based one). But my current goal is to lose some weight and I follow this specific way of eating for that.

Gab
 
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Brown rice is wonderful, on it's own or with, well anything really. It's so good for you and tastes delicious. Get the short grain though.
 
Hi redsonja and welcome!

There are tips and tricks for reducing gas caused by consuming dried cooked beans. Rather than explain it all myself, I will refer you to this article as a resource since it is quite extensive:
http://chezbettay.com/pages/basics1/basics_beans1.html
And this quick tip:
http://nutritionfacts.org/questions/does-adding-baking-soda-to-soaking-beans-reduce-raffinose/

Also, you can add a piece of kombu or other sea vegetable (usually found in Asian groceries or Asian section of natural food stores) to your pot of cooking beans to help draw out the sugars that cause flatulance. Rinse your beans well after cooking before storing or consuming.

If you eat canned beans, drain and rinse them first before using to reduce the salt from the liquid (canned foods are much higher in salt/sodium than bulk items).

If you aren't used to eating a lot of vegetables and fruits, try chopping them well before chewing them, and/or cook them first. Some vegetables tend to cause more flatulence than others, such as broccoli and cruciferous veggies, so going light on those at first might help. Root vegetables (carrots, jicama, turnips, potatoes/sweet potatoes) tend to be less likely to cause gas.

As mentioned, fruit is often better eaten by itself. I can handle eating it with oatmeal or toast or even nuts, but I never eat fruit with beans, tomatoes, and other types of foods. Certain combos just seem to make the gas worse.

Increase fiber slowly. Allow for more tofu based dishes, nut/seed butters or peanut butter, and pastas while you become more accustomed to more fiber. Then focus more on whole grains, more vegetables and beans and so on as your body gets used to them.

I think that flatulence from vegetables and beans is far less raunchy than that from dead flesh and dairy! My gas tends to be "clean". I am guilty of passing gas in public a few times and no one even bats an eye or lets on that they smell anything lol.

Give yourself plenty of time to adjust! Your gut flora will change over time, but it doesn't happen overnight. I have been vegan almost six years, but I actually started introducing more beans and far less meat in 2007 due to digestive issues with meat and abdominal issues after three surgeries for endometriosis. I vaguely remember suffering with gas and bloating at first, but over time my body became accustomed to it. I can eat a cup or two of beans now in a sitting no problem!

I have so many different breakfasts I start my day with! Sometimes it is beans on toast, sometimes oatmeal and fresh berries, sometimes smoothies (with leafy greens, frozen banana, fresh fruit, chia seeds, plant milk); sometimes it is sauteed tempeh, pineapple, and bok choy with lemon juice and ginger. Sometimes it is wild rice and blueberries (I cook a huge batch of wild rice and freeze it since it takes time to cook). Sometimes it is crockpot millet and apples, or steel cut oats, or canned pumpkin, banana, and blackstrap molasses all mashed together in a bowl. I could go on and on!
 
Instead of eating a lot of beans, stay with lentils for a while. Here's my usual meals:
- Breakfast: Oatmeal with lots of raisins, dates, apples, and banana
- Lunch: Green Smoothie
- Dinner: Lentil or lima bean soup with lots of vegetables and kale

Many of us have digestive issues and don't know it because of the processed foods we've consumed over the years. Another problem is that our body isn't producing enough acid to break down the food we eat. Look into healing your gut with daily probiotics. In addition, you can use hydrochloric acid (HDA) up to fifteen minutes before eating a meal. Or use 1 teaspoon organic apple cider vinegar in 8 oz of water before eating. And use the ACV anytime you have gas - works really well to reduce or eliminate it.