low-fiber veggies? page 2

[RitaRose]

Suggesting fat, STILL, sends people's heads into a tailspin....

But it works, and I go with what works.

[lssanjose]

But it works, and I go with what works.

Same here.

[girlhk]

I think my fat intake is about 40-50% of my diet. I eat a lot of eggs, fatty parts of meat, organ meats, use coconut oil and butter. There are days when fat is not appetizing and I tend to eat more protein.

I tend to get bloated and gassy for a few days after a lot of fibrous vegetables-- I'd like to be less bloated as well!

[Metric]

I think my fat intake is about 40-50% of my diet. I eat a lot of eggs, fatty parts of meat, organ meats, use coconut oil and butter. There are days when fat is not appetizing and I tend to eat more protein.

I tend to get bloated and gassy for a few days after a lot of fibrous vegetables-- I'd like to be less bloated as well!

This may be your problem. Try increasing fat to 50 to 60 for a few days, see if things run more smoothly.

[TARNIP]

I've had IBS for 6+ years, off and on. It got significantly worse when I eliminated grains and started eating tons of fruit and veggies, which was really frustrating, because it seemed the healthier I ate, the more upset my digestive system got. Constipation was my main issue, with occasional abdominal sweeling/pain. Fiber Menace saved my life! (I'm not 100% yet, but I am definitely healing. I'm following his recommendation to keep fiber 10-15g/day or less. I also ordered the Hydro C and the GI Recovery supplements from the gutsense website. I really didn't want to spend more money on supplements, since they seem to never do anything, but this was the best money I ever spent. The Hydro C is basically just a gentle form of vitamin C that promotes bowel movements without irritating your stomach or giving you bloating or cramping. After tryiing just about every OTC laxative and old wives tale end ending up with more pain and misery or no results, the Hydro C was a godsend.


As for vegetables/fruits, I generally am now eating everything peeled and without the seeds (which goes a LONG way to reducing fiber). On my 'green light' list are cucumbers, lettuce, peppers, carrots, white/sweet potatoes, zucchini (all squashes). For fruit, I'm eating melon (cantaloupe and watermelon especially), grapes, with the other stuff in moderation.

I had been eating avocadoes until I saw that each avocado had about 10-12 grams of fiber EACH! Holy moly, that was a sad shocker.

Also a good, potent probiotic is a must. I also try to drink/eat as much fermented stuff as I can, and I avoid anything with thickeners like pectin, guar gum, etc... bc those contribute to fiber count.

Supposedly cooking can break down some fiber, in addition to making food more digestible, so I make sure everything is cooked, except for the occasinal small salad or fruit.

I also have had IBS for many years now (same as yourself with constipation and abdominal bloating and pain) and found that cutting out grains and increasing veg, salads, fruit made it sooo much worse!! Thank you so much for the information! I have also started taking an L-Glutamine supplement which has worked well, and coconut oil (in small doses first!).

[Issabeau]

I'm reading Fiber Menace and find myself thinking a lot about my fiber intake. I eat a lot of vegetables, especially broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, green leafies because I like them.

I used to have daily bowel movements, but since increasing meat intake and cutting grains, I only have bowel movements 3 times a week. It's not the frequency that concerns me, but that I sometimes have to strain (sorry if TMI). This straining is new to me. I would consider myself somewhat constipated. I have been trying to figure out how to improve this.

I've started taking kefir daily, but have not noticed any improvement.

Would lowering fiber consumption improve constipation? What vegetables should I eat instead? I don't eat salads or veggies raw (don't like it..)

Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated!

You are probably in a Cal/Magnesium imbalance. Too much Calcium dries up the colon content, also putting the colon asleep. Magnesium retains water in the colon and also tells the intestine to move things foward.

A proper cal/mag balance is important.

[BestBetter]

Also, another thing I've been doing lately to reduce fiber is to juice my vegetables. I have a cheapie juicer (Hamilton Beach, less than $30, I think, and it works pretty well, not too annoying to clean afterwards) and I've been juicing leafy greens like kale and dandelion along with carrots and celery and maybe an apple. I think this is a great solution to not have to cut out too many veggies, still get good nutrition from a broad array of foods, but have almost zero fiber to clog up the digestive tubes.

[BestBetter]

I also have had IBS for many years now (same as yourself with constipation and abdominal bloating and pain) and found that cutting out grains and increasing veg, salads, fruit made it sooo much worse!! Thank you so much for the information! I have also started taking an L-Glutamine supplement which has worked well, and coconut oil (in small doses first!).

I am starting to feel like a broken record, because I think this is the 20th time I've been on my soapbox about Fiber Menace in the past week! I bet when people see I've posted something, they're thinking 'there she goes again about fiber', but I really wish someone somewhere would have mentioned this to me years ago. To think of all time I wasted and all that needless pain I caused myself eating all that 'healthy fiber'. I'm glad to hear you're getting some relief - that L-Glutamine stuff really works wonders, it just takes time!

I'm also trying to drink bone broth now to help my guts heal - I got some stock bones from the farmers market yesterday, and I plan to keep my crockpot on perpetual simmer, and drink a cup or two everyday, just keep replenishing the water. My first cup today was soooooooooo fatty, I almost couldn't drink it. Better be doing some good down below!

[RitaRose]

I am starting to feel like a broken record, because I think this is the 20th time I've been on my soapbox about Fiber Menace in the past week! I bet when people see I've posted something, they're thinking 'there she goes again about fiber', but I really wish someone somewhere would have mentioned this to me years ago. To think of all time I wasted and all that needless pain I caused myself eating all that 'healthy fiber'.

I hear ya! HillsideGina told me about it when I was fresh out of the ER after I tore my colon and sent the contents of my it swimming around in parts of my body it was supposed to be keeping it out of! The pain was like childbirth multiplied, and I had big babies with no pain meds. This was worse. I actually passed out on the bathroom floor and woke up in a huge puddle of sweat. Scared the bejeebers out of The Boyfriend.

The doctor (of course) gave me serious antibiotics (after all kinds of tests), said I was otherwise completely healthy and told me to up my fiber intake. I was asking here about high fiber veggies and, lucky for me, HillsideGina pointed me toward Fiber Menace. I haven't had a problem since.

[BestBetter]

Wow, RitaRosa, I can't IMAGINE going through that! So glad you got better - maybe we can double-team on the low-fiber crusade, ha!