Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I'm pretty sick of dealing with these digestive issues. I've been eating very strict paleo for about three months. I did not have many noticeable digestive issues before going paleo, maybe just a "heavy" feeling in my stomach occasionally. But I was having all kinds of other problems (skin and mood) due to gluten exposure.

About a month or two into paleo, I started having digestive issues. It was hard to digest food and I could feel it sitting in my stomach for as long as 12 hours. I started having D every morning -- nothing too disruptive to my life, but definitely unusual for me. I restricted my diet even further a few weeks ago, because I was still having very bad skin and mood issues. I've only been eating sweet potatoes (1 or half of 1 each day), pumpkin, beef and lamb, occasional chicken, oysters, carrots, coconut oil, bone broth, gelatin, a tiny bit of sugar. About three weeks I started drinking a lot more home-made water kefir and kombucha and taking the occasional probiotic supplement. I have also started taking Natural Calm at night to help me sleep. And yet I've been super-constipated for the last week or so. My weight has gone up by 5 pounds even though I've had almost no appetite whatsoever. Not sure what's going on and I'd appreciate any thoughts. Oh, and I already take betaine HCL as I am pretty certain I have low stomach acid. I sometimes take 5 or 6 if the meal is protein-heavy, and I never feel it.

EDIT: I forgot to add one thing. Last week I "cheated" (I don't even consider it a real cheat since I didn't want to eat it and was instead guilted into it by someone who'd made the dessert just for me) and ate about a cup of a dairy-based custard. I do not normally eat dairy and it causes serious problems for me; like I said, I caved to very high social pressure. But is it possible that one cup of milk could be causing me problems a whole week later?

edited May 13 2012 at 0:21

asked May 13 2012 at 0:01

Violet9
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Renee · Accepted Answer · 2012-05-13 12:43:02Z UTC

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You're eating such a limited variety of foods. I second the vote for more fruit and veg. I find spinach really helps keep me regular as it's high in magnesium. I eat a big baby spinach salad for lunch. And it's less gassy than other veg. Citrus and berries are great too.

answered May 13 2012 at 12:43

Renee
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I just bought some spinach and will give this a go. I found eating kale was upsetting my stomach a bit (perhaps because it's so fibrous? I was cooking it!) but spinach isn't as hard to digest. Do you think I would still get the benefits if I steamed it or do I have to eat it raw? – Violet9 May 13 2012 at 19:57

Michelle · Answer 2 · 2012-05-13 03:01:13Z UTC

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How much water are you drinking? I have to make a conscious effort to drink enough water because I'll forget otherwise and will end up all stopped up. I can't speak to the rest of it, though, sorry.

answered May 13 2012 at 3:01

Michelle
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I feel like I drink a lot of water but I don't really keep track. I will start paying more attention to it. Thanks for your response. – Violet9 May 13 2012 at 19:58

A at Grain Free Diet · Answer 3 · 2012-05-13 03:22:45Z UTC

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Start your day with 2 glasses of water. Add more veggies. Add a small amount of fruit - say, an orange or two.

answered May 13 2012 at 3:22

A at Grain Free Diet
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I'm definitely going to try to up my water consumption. I will experiment with fruit but sometimes it gives me cysts, so I'm cautious about it.... We'll see. – Violet9 May 13 2012 at 19:58

VB · Answer 4 · 2012-05-13 05:06:23Z UTC

Wow - this is so common for us, gluten intolerant people! I had it worse than you! Prior to going gluten free I literally could eat bricks and glass and NEVER had any digestive issues. As soon as I went gluten free, a hell broke lose. But I also felt like I was very fatigued when I was consuming gluten. I know exactly what you are talking about when you said the food just sits there for 12 hours. And I am also constipated more.

No, it has nothing to do with milk.

Again, I am not a doctor, not even close to a doctor but here is my guess, at least in my case - somehow people who quit gluten end up with digestive problems. It could be the liver is sluggish. It could be your stomach does not produce enough acid or digestive enzymes.

If I were you, I would go to a good naturopath or a herbal doctor/nutritionist who knows what he is doing because this caused me to develop bleeding gastric erosion.

Also, to support your stomach in a short-term, you can use DGL. But this is not a solution, just masking the symptoms.

Good luck - you are not alone!

sherilynn · Answer 5 · 2012-05-13 20:21:31Z UTC

On your dairy issue - YES - I see it take up to 2 weeks of detox for dairy for folks who are sensitive to it, myself among them. I've known folks it takes 3 weeks to detox it. As a side note, grains will take about 2 weeks and so will sugar for those sensitive to those things. While our livers are cleaning those things out digestive disruption, sore throat, 'cold' symptoms, headaches, and finally joint aches - all that is normal. SO, yeah, your 'super constipation' in the last week makes sense after eating a cup of milk that you are sensitive to.

I suggest keeping a highly accurate food journal and track symptoms back to a couple weeks rather than what you just ate in the last 24 hours. It will give you a more accurate assessment of what's up. You know you're sensitive, so go about it objectively and scientifically, remembering that your body doesn't respond to your emotional reasons for what you eat - the food is just data. Track the data and your physiological response.

have fun, S

Anisima · Answer 6 · 2012-05-13 18:35:29Z UTC

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My cousin with similar problems told me that he found on http://constipationtreatments.info/ the help for his problems.I heard the tips from here are very goo to combat constipation problems. I hope this helps.

answered May 13 2012 at 18:35

Anisima
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Lack of appetite + constipation = ??

6 Answers