[LovelyAndLosing]

Hello all!

So in the last couple years, my stomach has started to REJECT certain foods. The worst is red meat (and pork, etc.) and dairy. Any time I have red meat, etc. I end up curled in a ball with stomach pain.

While it isn't that extreme, I'm still having some stomach issues even though I'm avoiding those foods. I also often have trouble "going." All of these symptoms are correlated with a fertility disorder I have.

Anyways, perhaps I'm just being sucked in by all these magazine articles in which some celebrity gushes that a Vegan lifestyle has changed their life ... but I was thinking of giving something like it a try to see if it helped resolve my stomach problems. I'd most likely still eat eggs though, for additional protein, since egg whites have never bothered me.

Anyways ... any advice on making the choice, getting started, books to read, etc.?

[tammay]

Hi LovelyandLosing,
I'm surprised no one has responded to you yet, but hopefully some responses will come in.

I think it's great that you're thinking of moving to a vegetarian diet to help your stomach issues. I think it will help and some of the vegan books I've read also talk about there being studies done to show that it does.

As for getting started, you might check out the post in this forum on vegan and vegetarian books. That's a great start. One book I really liked was "Vegan For Life" by Virginia Messina (otherwise known as the Vegan RD - she has a blog online that you can google which is great) and Jack Norris (also great). The book talks about how to balance a vegan diet and what to eat to get all the necessary vitamins and nutrients.

You can also check out The Vegan RD blog. It has a Food Guide 4 Vegans where there is a good solid plan outlined based on servings of foods (i.e., grains, legume, etc) that I think is a great place to start implementing a vegetarian plan.

Those are just my suggestions. Hope that helps!

Tam

[battybettie]

Not even trying to pander the vegan agenda here, but I had awful digestion problems and IBS which left me with near-constant diarrhea and random bouts of nausea and vomiting, stomach cramps, yeast infections (gross sorry), etc.

Switching to a vegan diet (and mainly cutting out the dairy) helped my guts immensely. So I think it's worth a shot.

My SO had the same problem as you, where meat stopped agreeing with their system and eventually stopped eating it.

[BreathingSpace]

I have to agree, I've been vegetarian - vegan - back to eating meat - vegetarian - vegan - back to eating meat and now what I call a "hybrid vegetarian" LOL. I was having major stomach issues and have to say that switching over to vegetarian and even raw vegan meals has helped my stomach 100%. I no longer have gas or bloating or pain.

In fact, last night after months of my veggie/raw vegan diet I had chicken wonton soup and nearly died from the pain and let's just say major bathroom issues last night and today.

It just confirms that what I am eating right now is right for me. I would be happy to give you a sample of what I eat daily if you would like to see!

[SimplySandy]

I had IBS for years, I started this lifestyle with a 43 day juice, It has healed me of all IBS symptoms, I even eat foods now I could never think of before.