Need help coming up with meal ideas with foods that do not cause gas; is meat the only way to go?

[Anonymous]

DH has been having painful gas lately and it's gotten so bad that we decided to do a trial of cutting out all foods that are supposed to cause gas and see if that does it. But when we looked online we found that most of the foods on that list are the ones we are eating! Beans, some veggies, whole grains, some fruits, etc. (see list below). We try to eat pretty healthy and eat mostly vegetarian (meat or fish 1-2x a week). Looking at this list I am left wondering what we CAN eat. It seems like we might have to up our meat intake a lot.

Working around the culprits below, what meal suggestions do you have? Especially vegetarian ones? TIA!

FOODS TO AVOID

Legumes:
Most beans, especially dried beans and peas, baked beans, soy beans, lima beans

Milk & milk products:
Milk; ice cream; and cheese

Vegetables:
Cabbage; radishes; onions; broccoli; Brussels sprouts; cauliflower; cucumbers; sauerkraut; kohlrabi; asparagus; beets; onions; garlic; carrots; corn; leafy greens

Root vegetables:
Potatoes; rutabaga; turnips

Fruits:
Prunes; apricots; apples; raisins; bananas; red grapes; melons

Cereals, breads:
All foods that contain wheat and wheat products including cereals, breads, and pastries; oats.

Fatty foods:
Pan-fried or deep-fried foods; fatty meats; rich cream sauces and gravies; pastries. (While fatty foods are not carbohydrates, they too can contribute to intestinal gas.)

[Anonymous]

Could he take a Beano or go see his doctor? There may be an underlying health issue going on.

[Anonymous]

Asian-style style stir-fry with tofu, chicken or flank steak with any veggies that are not on the list, served over rice.

Baked salmon or fish (again, an asian soy/honey type sauce would work).

Meatloaf and potatoes.

[Anonymous]

If it's painful, I would start by eliminating dairy only for a few days and then go from there.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I should have mentioned he has tried Beano and has seen a GI dr and had lots of tests, but they haven't found a cause for the gas. So I think it is likely dietary. He wants to try dietary changes and if that doesn't work, then go back to the GI dr. Thanks for the suggestions. I wonder if dairy is the culprit. He doesn't eat much dairy, but the gas problem is intermittent so that could be it.

[Anonymous]

Try cutting out dairy first -- that could very well be it.

[Anonymous]

It seems like you have two options to narrow down the cause by process of elimination: 1) eliminate all potentially problematic food groups, see if the problem goes away, and gradually add food groups back in or 2) eliminate one or two groups at a time on a rotating basis, which wouldn't tell you if you are allergic to say, dairy and legumes if you have eliminated one but not the other. Starting by eliminating dairy sounds like a good first step. If that doesn't work, you may be better off eliminating practically everything and adding things back one at a time. I hope something helps soon!

[Anonymous]

This protocol may help your DH. I'm currently on day 27 and feel so much better with many of those foods out of my life. Your DH should cut them all out for at l;east 30 days and try adding some back in, one by one, if he can't live without them, to see which are the real triggers.


http://whole9life.com/2011/06/whole-30-v4/

[Anonymous]

For meal ideas - most paleo/primal recipes will work very well. A few websites to get you started-

http://everydaypaleo.com/

http://nomnompaleo.com/

http://www.thefoodee.com/blog/ (The braised beef shanks on this one look great!)

[Anonymous]

This book may help explain why your DH is exceptionally sensitive to those foods. It does a very good job of describing how plant toxins affect the body -

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Paleo-Solution/Robb-Wolf/e/9780982565841?itm=1&USRI=the%20paleo%20solution

Some good ways to come up with meals in that book too.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for the links on Paleo and Whole 30. I am intrigued and may read the Paleo book.