Stomach Problems

First, I know that I’m lactose intolerant, which is often a culprit, and so I use Lactaid whenever I have dairy. But I have trouble (cramping, bloating) even when my meals don’t contain dairy. I take papaya up to four times (label recommendation) per day. However, I don’t see much improvement. I do tend to inhale my food so I’m trying to make an effort to slow things down and chew thoroughly. Also, I often wake up with an upset stomach, feel better after breakfast, but then experience more nausea and general discomfort a few hours later. I believe this is symptomatic of an ulcer, but I don’t think that explain why I have problems AFTER eating too. Whatever’s going on, I realize that I have to stop screwing around and see a GI. That’s on my agenda for next week.

CMC,

My stepfather had the same problem…it turned out that he was alergic to foods containing glutamine. You might want to ask about that before getting the “old anal probe”. ewww…

CMC, I am seeing a GI specialist this coming Monday. They thought I had gall bladder problems, now they think ulcers or irritable bowel. It’s awful and I’ve had it for years and years. I go from having liquid shits to being constipated within the same dump. Nausea, gas, everything. I’ll let you know how it goes. It really has affected my gains in the gym, let me tell you.

Same here, bro. It’d be nice to eat all the clean food I want. Just can’t do it. I’m starting to become hesitant around meal time because I don’t want to deal with the discomfort afterwards.

CGB & CMC, what are your blood types? Type O’s do really well with high protein, red meat in particular. Type A’s do better taking in the majority of their protein from vegetable sources. They’re opposites of each other. B’s and AB’s have other/different foods they need to avoid (and those that are beneficial).

The bottom line is that we’re all biochemically unique and even within blood types can be intollerant to different foods or food groups. Because I keep a food log, I’ve realized that I start experiencing weight gain when I take in whey or casein. It turns out that Type O’s don’t do well with dairy, including whey and casein.

I think it’s better to eat those foods our body processes well, rather than propping it up with liver flushes, DGL, enzymes, HCL and the like.

Excellent analysis, Terry. You are terrific. I’m Type B, BTW.

Thanks, CMC!!!

Okay, Type B. Here’s the Cliff Notes on what to avoid. Quoting D’Adamo of “Eat Right 4 Your Type” fame, the worst food offenders for Type B’s are chicken, corn, buckwheat, lentils, peanuts, sesame seeds and tomatoes.

The following meats are highly beneficial (like medicine): goat, lamb and mutton, rabbit and venison.

A number of different fish are highly beneficial or neutral (like food). Highly beneficial fish/seafood are: caviar, cod, flounder, grouper, haddock, hake, halibut, harvest fish, mackerel, mahimahi, pike, porgy, salmon, shad, sole and sturgeon.

Re dairy, it can be eaten by almost all Type B’s, however, it should be cautioned that some Type B’s are lacking the lactase enzyme, which causes problems with digestion of dairy, just as you said. Eggs are an excellent source of protein for Type B’s, which is not necessarily true for all blood types.

Grains present a series of problems for Type B’s, and B’s should be even more careful of their consumption of complex carbohydrates because of Type B’s insulin insensitivities. Type B’s should also avoid rye and buckwheat, as these foods contain lectins (not to be confused with leptin) capable of exerting an insulin-like effect and lowering active tissue mass (LBM) and increasing body fat.

If any of this rings true, I’ll leave you to further research on the subject.

Good luck to you!!!

I have been havin all kinds of stomach issues for the last two years, but they dramatically increased in intensity in the last 6 months even landing me in the ER on Christmas Eve because my stomach was so hard and distended that my clinic believed it was something serious. All they could dx me with was IBS. I have no idea if that is really the problem. I take metamucil three times a day, and it doesn’t seem to be helping yet, unless my body still isn’t used to the increase in fiber. As a female, my symptoms increase dramatically before and during menstruation (possibly more info than you wanted). Does anyone have any ideas besides IBS???
I have no idea my blood type either…

I’ll do some formal experimentation and note the onset of symptoms in my food log. Hopefully, I’ll see some connections. I’ll also check out D’Adamo’s work. Thanks again for the detailed and informative responses and the heads up. I am extremely grateful.

I have experienced similar syptoms for the last two years, which have dramatically increased in the past 6 months. I ended up in the ER on Christmas Eve because my stomach was so distended and hard that the nurse at my clinic thought it was too serious for me to be seen at the clinic (either that or they wanted to go home because it was Christmas Eve). After months of no dx I finally received “IBS” as my dx earlier this month. I have begun taking Metamucil (makes me feel 84 instead of 24) three times a day, and so far my symptoms haven’t improved - although it could just be that my body is just getting used to the increase in fiber. I don’t believe that food allergies are the problem, and the only significant change in sypmtoms is that the increase ten-fold just before and during menstration (possibly more info than the guys might want). Does anyone have any ideas besides IBS… or does it sound like an accurate dx??
Not meaning to take over your thread!!

sarahm, sorry to hear about the problems and the diagnosis. We’re not all blessed with vibrant health, even at 24 years of age.

Start doing research on the topic. Get actively involved in your healthcare. And take a look at ALL options, including alternative medicine. Traditional Chinese Medicine has had great results treating/correcting gastrointestinal dysfunction. ER4YT is also something you should read up on.

Good luck to you, and if you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to ask.

thanks TT. sorry about the double post - it was my first (well second) and it didn’t show up… but then it did… agh, forgive me.

Don’t worry 'bout it, Sarah. The delay you experienced is because T&N is a moderated forum. The delay can be quite lengthy if a moderator isn’t online, which isn’t the norm, as they seem to be more “addicted” than a lot of the hardcore forum’ers. (grin)

Could be your gut is infected, that the ratio of bad bacteria is higher than the good bacteria. Do what I did: stop your training for a few weeks, cut your calolries, clean up your diet, and take Primal Defense from Garden of Life. It’s very expensive but the product has underground popularity in treating gastro problems. In the few first few days I used it I discovered some nasty stuff in my stool. I’m convinced that it even treated a skipped heartbeat problem I was having. (I still take it for optimal health/anti-aging reasons.) You might be interested to know that on his site, Poliquin links the company’s products. I wonder if he recommends them to his clients.

T.Terry, do you have any info about the type As? My wife seems to have the same problem. I don’t know if I really buy into the blood type thing regarding diet, but it seems to be right on when describing her. Thanks in advance.

GaryE, I wasn’t sure I bought into the ER4YT thing myself either. But I had been eating almost exclusively from the Highly Beneficial group for one week and avoiding everything on the Avoid list, and my TCM physician could tell that I had made a change in my diet when he took my pulse. I didn’t tell HIM that I had made a change. He told ME that I had made a change and that there was substantial improvement in the area of digestion.

My recommendation is that you research the topic, evaluate the information presented and maybe even give it a test/trial run for a short period of time. What do you have to lose? I know what I know today because I’ve been willing to experiment and try things out on myself.

Okay, Type A’s. The following are a few of the worst offenders and are on the Avoid list: kidney beans, lima beans, potatoes, cabbage, eggplant, bananas (some Type A’s; those that are “secretors”), tomatoes, wheat and corn (some Type A’s; those that are “non-secretors”).

Quoting from D’Admo’s LR4YT (Live Right 4 Your Type), The adaptations that produced Blood Type A were based on the need to fully utilize nutrients from carbohydrate sources. These biological adaptations can still be observed today in the Type A digestive structure. Low levels of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and high intestinal disaccharide levels permit more efficient digestion of carbohydrates. These are the very factors that made it difficult to digest and metabolize animal protein and fat.

The regular consumption of the right cultured foods for Type A is one of the critical strategies for Type A’s. By eating foods teeming with favorable bacteria, Type A’s gain significant health advantages, including improved digestive and immune function, better resistance to bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens, improved detoxification, anti-tumor properties, improved hormonal regulation, better absorption of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals and numerous other health effects beneficial to Type A."

“Cultured” in this case means, miso, tempeh, okarah, soy sauce, and natto, also yogurt and kefir, when made with live culturing organisms.

Again, the Cliff Notes on some of the different food groups . . .

Meat. Type A’s lack some of the enzymes and stomach acids needed to effectively digest animal protein. Red meat generates polyamines in Type A’s and increases cancer risk. No meat is listed as Highly Beneficial, and only a half dozen are listed as Neutral; chicken, cornish hens, grouse, guinea hen, ostrich, squab, turkey.

Fish & Seafood. Fish and seafood represent a nutrient-rich source of protein for most Type A’s. Fish is probably the best food source to build LBM. Highly Beneficial: Mackerel, pickerel, pollack, red snapper, salmon, sardine, snail, whitefish, whiting, cod, monkfish, silver and yellow perch, rainbow and sea trout. A number of others fall into the Neutral category. And as is always the case, there are others that are To Be Avoided.

Dairy & Eggs. Can be used in small quantities, but be cautious since dairy products can be mucus forming.

Beans & Legumes. Type A’s thrive on vegetable proteins found in many beans and legumes, although some beans contain problem lectins. In general this category, along with appropriate choices of seafood is more than sufficient to build LBM. Soy beans are to be emphasized; they are a good source of essential amino acids. They contain a lectin (again, not to be confused with “leptin”) that may protect against several cancers, and they can help inhibit the growth of blood vessels to cancer cells – a particular Type A susceptibility. Fava beans also contain beneficial cancer fighting lectins, which may help protect against several cancers of the digestive tract.

GaryE, all of the food groups are outlined in the book. What I’ve included above is just a “taste” of what ER4YT and LR4YT have to offer. If your wife has digestive challenges, it’s definitely worth evaluating.

Good luck to both of you, and if you do decide to give it a trial run, I’d appreciate hearing back from you.

T.T.
Thanks for all that info… much more than I expected, but so far seems to be right on with what she already experiences. That was enough to convince me already that it’s all worth a try. Thanks again for such a detailed reply and I’ll definitely let you know how it goes.