Discussion Board

Those of you who like beans and rice, or just beans and eat them daily.

How do you manage gas? I have a terrible time with it.

It seems that there is some variability in individuals' tolerance for beans. I've never had much of a problem, but beans have also been an item on my menus - even if not daily prior to this plan. Others simply need to add them slowly - not too much at first - so that their gut flora can adapt. And others seem to always have some level of distress. Here are some past articles (scroll down on the first one) and posts on the topic:

http://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2005nl/ ... 00mary.htm

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=21201

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=5153

viewtopic.php?t=134

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10243&start=0

Thank you so much for the links!!

I used Beano and Gas X for awhile after switching to a whole foods plant based diet because I had problem gas at first. Over time the gas problem subsided, which I was told it would.

Turmeric helps with digestion of beans

Beans are excellent for overall health and the gas is actually a result of good bacterial growth in our intestines, in which the gas is temporary. Check out this non commercial science based article delving into detail
http://nutritionfacts.org/blog/2011/12/ ... g-the-air/.

I rinse a 1 # bag of beans and cover them with water and bring them to a boil. I let the pan sit, covered for an hour. Then I drain and rinse the beans real good. Rinsing them real well before cooking helps. Then, I put the beans in the pressure cooker and cover with water. I add 1/4 teaspoon of powdered KELP to the beans when they are cooking(this also helps). I pressure my beans around 25-30 minutes.

Evidently the beans start to go through a fermenting process after boiling and letting sit. By draining the beans and washing real good, this is removed. Also I read adding kelp to the beans helps. It is an excellent source of Iodine and has 25 mg. sodium per pot of beans.

When I ate SAD, I would occasionally eat beans, and they would give me gas. Now with the WOE, where I'm eating beans nearly every day, I don't get gas from them. I guess my body just built up a tolerance to them.

As far as I know put the beans in a bowl of water and let soak over night and rinse really well the next day before cooking.