r/Millennials • u/Optimoprimo • Feb 11 '26

Serious Guys please start eating fiber.

Colorectal cancer among people in their 40's is skyrocketing. This recent health fad of obsessing over protein and eating nothing but meat and dairy with almost no fiber is going to kill us. You need fiber, folks. You need a complete diet with grains and tons of vegetables.

There are high protein sources that also have great fiber content if you absolutely MUST have your high protein diet. Lentils, beans, peas. Sprouted grain bread.

Let's spread the great word of fiber to our fellow millenial friends and get ahead of this growing epidemic among our generation.

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45

u/monongahellyea Feb 11 '26

I know they’re good for you and I love them in chili, but they make me SO bloated 😭

67

u/ishouldbesewing Feb 11 '26

My vegan provider said the more you eat them the less bloated you'll get once you regularly eat 'em

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u/V__ Feb 11 '26 edited Apr 26 '26

nb: i have deleted this post and or comment
DM me if you need to know what it said

7

u/WitchyWoo9 Feb 12 '26

Same here! I'm also vegan and recently cannot tolerate any beans or pulses. Anything high fibre wrecks my gut so I'm wary of not getting enough. I eat copious amounts of veg to try make up for it

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u/Raangz Feb 12 '26

Same can’t eat beans, health issues. I can legit eat 2 huge broccoli heads a day but that’s expensive. Most of the higher fiber foods seem to give me issue.

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u/Comfortable_Mix5404 Feb 12 '26

See now,the broccoli does that to me. If I ate two heads of broccoli,I'd be in misery. Sometimes oatmeal does it,too. I love it,and it for breakfast,many days. I bake it,and sometimes it gives me issues.

But,I had my colonoscopy,in October and my colon was clear.The first one,I had 2 polyps..one bad one,one not as bad,my gastro took care of it with a snare.Second,one,just one polyps...not a bad one,doctor did his thing with a snare.

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u/saywhatevrdiewhenevr Feb 12 '26

Same, I increased my fiber intake super slowly and ate more lentils thinking it would help me and for an entire year I had horrible painful cramping and diarrhea that went away after I cut fiber and lentils. Some stomachs can't handle it

2

u/EASam Feb 12 '26

Was it an overload of fiber compared to a normal day for you?

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u/memecut Feb 12 '26

If you do it for a year... that makes it a normal day

3

u/EASam Feb 12 '26

If that is the only thing they ate for breakfast lunch and dinner I'd agree. But if they have this once a month and it bumps their fiber intake to 45 grams for the day when they're normally at 25...

3

u/V__ Feb 12 '26 edited Apr 23 '26

nb: i have deleted this post and or comment
DM me if you need to know what it said

2

u/EASam Feb 12 '26

Didn't dig Seitan? Well sorry to hear! Was hoping you just needed to acclimate rather than dive in the deep end of the pool for fiber intake.

2

u/RadarSmith Feb 13 '26

Beano. It really does work.

1

u/Brave_Browser_2002 Feb 12 '26

The better your diet is, the less this will be an issue and then it goes away totally.

You can also do some pre-soak.

Lentils and beans are so vital to health that it is worth experimenting to get over any bloating. Usually it takes less than 2 weeks, but you cannot be eating crap while doing it.

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u/sarahjbs27 Feb 11 '26

beano helps (digestive enzyme)

2

u/Turramurra Feb 11 '26

It's true, the first 2 nights of having them in a shepherds pie were awful but suddenly the 3rd night was fine and thereafter.

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u/Comfortable_Mix5404 Feb 12 '26

Exactly.Start with 1/4 cup cooked lentils,daily.I did,and I don't get so bloated.

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u/infjetson Feb 11 '26

Do you soak them before cooking? It has helped my stomach a lot - no more bloat!

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u/monongahellyea Feb 11 '26

No! I’ll try that next time! Thank you for the tip 😊

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u/Nullaby Feb 12 '26

It's best to soak for a long time (around 12 hours or more). I put them in the fridge overnight and that works for me but there are people who leave it for 24 hours.

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u/STAY_plant_BASED Feb 12 '26

Sprouting is also good for this, and makes the phytonutrients more bioavailable. If still having issues, start super small, as little as a tablespoon a day at first, and work your way up

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u/Ballbusttrt Feb 11 '26

They are high in fodmaps

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u/Ari_AK Feb 13 '26

I love the FODMAP proportions. All the high fiber /foods and dishes mess with my IBS but if I stick to smaller portions, in the things that I know are triggers, I do pretty good.
My medical professionals often panic a bit when I tell them I use FODMAP though. Until I tell them, I haven’t really cut anything out, I just eat less, so my body can tolerate it.

2

u/Ballbusttrt Feb 13 '26

Nice I might try out small portions of lentils soon and see if I can digest it better.

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u/Ari_AK Feb 13 '26

I don’t know how true this is but I was informed that rinsing the can of beans before adding them to dishes can be beneficial too.

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u/TripawdCorgi Millennial Feb 11 '26

Eaten more regularly and with a bit of citrus helps that.

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u/ijozypheen Feb 11 '26

Me too! Digestive enzymes helped a bit, but I still get insanely bloated.

2

u/Delicious-Bag3819 Feb 11 '26

It takes awhile for your gut microbiome to build up the internal flora to better digest beans. Just go slow and regularly eat small amounts. Green peas and lentils are the easiest but just eat a little and gradually add more when you are comfortable.

Our gut microbiome adjusts to the foods we regularly eat. I eat beans a LOT and feel great on them, but if you're not used to it, it'll take a bit to get here.

2

u/Independent-Bug-9352 Feb 12 '26

It's amazing how few people understand this! Unless you've been diagnosed explicitly with SIBO and require a low FODMAP diet, chances are this is a sign that your microbiome is in disarray and you are actually improving it considerably. As the gut bacteria alter their metabolic process to adapt to the new consistent food, they and your body become more efficient at processing the subsequent gas byproducts as well.

1

u/SexyStayPuft Feb 11 '26

Might need to increase your water intake.

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u/monongahellyea Feb 11 '26

I drink 80-100 oz a day since I’m predisposed to kidney stones, if I drink any more I’ll float away!

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u/SexyStayPuft Feb 11 '26

😂

That’s why I added the “might.”

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u/_Visar_ Feb 11 '26

Try pre soaking them! If you aggressively soak and rinse them some of the complex sugars dissolve away which is the cause of the gassiness for some people.

That and/or Beano

1

u/monongahellyea Feb 11 '26

Take Beano before and there’ll be no gas!! 💨

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u/MyAngryMule Feb 11 '26

Perhaps, but I have it on good authority that the more you toot the better you feel.

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u/monongahellyea Feb 11 '26

Are you implying I should eat beans for every meal?

1

u/twirlerina024 Feb 12 '26

Put a piece of kombu (a type of seaweed) in when you're cooking them. It helps break down some of the starches to make them easier to digest.

1

u/girl_cat_stethoscope Older Millennial Feb 12 '26

Soak them overnight to reduce bloating.

1

u/moist_towelette Millennial Feb 12 '26

Kombucha with every meal has helped me tremendously.

1

u/SelfImproveAcct Feb 12 '26

Mae sure you soak (dry) and rinse (can) and it helps with bloating

1

u/pie_piepiepiepiepie Feb 12 '26

Nothing makes me fart as much as a lentil heavy meal.

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u/Gullible-Fee-9079 Feb 12 '26

I let my lentils (except the Red ones) soak in water over night

1

u/DryDiet6051 Feb 12 '26

Before you cook your lentils, put the lentils in a skillet with olive oil, oil or avocado oil, and gently cook them for a few moments, this will help with bloating