One month into veganism-The gas is killing me

kamilah

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Hi Everyone. First time poster and new vegan here.

I'm one month into my vegan journey and generally feeling better and more energized over all. The one big problem I'm experiencing though is extreme gassiness, all day long, regardless of what my last meal was. I'm finding it difficult to function normally as I'm constantly in discomfort. I am usually very active but this has also made training really difficult as I can't move well because of all the trapped gas. I had my first baby 9 months ago but am now back to looking like I'm 5 months pregnant :/

I've read online that gassiness is normal during transition, but I can't seem to find an answer as to when I can expect it to ease up a bit.

Has anyone else experienced this? How long did it last and was there anything you could do to manage it?

Thanks :)
 
If I had a nickel for every time a new vegan posted here about gassiness....

I never had the issue but my transition was so slow....

I'm sure it also varies person by person but the commonly accepted explanation has to do with fiber. Typical omnis eat a pretty low fiber diet. I'm not going to look it up but if my memory serves me right, 25 grams of fiber a day is recommended and most people just get 15. Vegans usually go over 25. I usually go over 30. And I think i've seen people say over 35 or even 40 depending on their diet.

So we don't digest fiber. but we all have bacteria in our large intestines that digest it. And there are all kinds and types of bacteria in people's guts. Some primarily eat fiber. I think there are others that like other things. but what happens when you eat a lot more fiber is that you are feeding the fiber eating bacteria which start growing and reproducing and eating fiber a lot. And one of the byproducts of this process is gas.

Our guts are like a little ecosystem and when changes can result in imbalances. like most ecosystems, there is a natual balance and the gut biome will eventually find its equilibrium. How long it takes will depend on how far out of balance it is. three days seems to be a common experience. I think i remember several people coming here and saying 3 weeks. And one woman said like 3 months. But that is probably very unusual.

There are a few things you can do for temporary relief. Probably the most effective is just to cut out some of the high fiber foods you have incorporated in your diet. The three Bs are the usual culprits. Beans, Broccoli, and Berries. Simply cutting back on some high fiber foods can really help and then slowly but gradually incorporating them in your diet again.

I never made beans from dry beans before but when I started I learned that soaking them and then rinsing them and discarding the water removes a lot of the indigestible sugars in beans - a big source of gas. Not every vegan does this so I'm not sure how important it is but you should definetely try it. I've also heard that you should rinse and discard the water in canned beans, too.

There is an OTC product called Bean-O that contains an enzyme that increase the digestablity of fiber. I've never tried it but it might also be worth a shot.
 
:welcome:
You might this of interest-
I had bad gas when I ate meat- like terribly stinky, I guess it mostly red meat
When I stopped eating meat I stopped having that type of gas. Now I just pass air, unless I eat something bad. I already had a largely plant based diet with beans and fiberous foods.
The gut biomes are also different from meat eaters and plant eaters, so it takes time to adjust-
 
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Hi Everyone. First time poster and new vegan here.

I'm one month into my vegan journey and generally feeling better and more energized over all. The one big problem I'm experiencing though is extreme gassiness, all day long, regardless of what my last meal was. I'm finding it difficult to function normally as I'm constantly in discomfort. I am usually very active but this has also made training really difficult as I can't move well because of all the trapped gas. I had my first baby 9 months ago but am now back to looking like I'm 5 months pregnant :/

I've read online that gassiness is normal during transition, but I can't seem to find an answer as to when I can expect it to ease up a bit.

Has anyone else experienced this? How long did it last and was there anything you could do to manage it?

Thanks :)

Hi kamilah,

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics - the world's largest association of Registered Dietitians, has published a webpage about irritable bowel syndrome, which includes bloating and gassiness: Irritable Bowel Syndrome

They make an important point about drinking enough liquids when you are eating a fiber-rich diet. My own experience supports their advice.

For short-term intestinal gas bloating relief, the various over-the-counter simethicone medicines are effective. You can buy them at your local pharmacy (chemist). A popular brand of simethicone in the U.S. is "Gas-X". I imagine that an equivalent brand is available in the UAE.
.
 
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Hi kamilah,

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics - the world's largest association of Registered Dietitians, has published a webpage about irritable bowel syndrome, which includes bloating and gassiness: Irritable Bowel Syndrome

They make an important point about drinking enough liquids when you are eating a fiber-rich diet. My own experience supports their advice.

For short-term intestinal gas bloating relief, the various over-the-counter simethicone medicines are effective. You can buy them at your local pharmacy (chemist). A popular brand of simethicone in the U.S. is "Gas-X". I imagine that an equivalent brand is available in the UAE.
.
That's quite an assumption to make! Many people talk about having gas and bloating for some time after changing to a plant based diet.
If they had IBS it would have been an issue prior to going plant based as well. Plant based doesn't contribute to IBS, and can often be a help.
 
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That's quite an assumption to make! Many people talk about having gas and bloating for some time after changing to a plant based diet.
If they had IBS it would have been an issue prior to going plant based as well. Plant based doesn't contribute to IBS, and can often be a help.

My mistake. I wasn’t being clear. I wasn’t assuming that our new member had IBS. Rather, I was showing reputable advice for addressing intestinal gas and bloating.
 
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