Vegetarian w/ PCOS considering a change (think: meat)

Options
24

Replies

  • ethompso0105
    ethompso0105 Posts: 418 Member
    Options
    I'm not too knowledgeable about your conditions, and I will admit that I skimmed the original post (sorry). HOWEVER, I have found that many of my hormonal issues are triggered with soy-based products. You may want to consider pulling any soy-based things from your diet...I've found that it's helped with my hormones. Many of my friends with PCOS also have pulled soy with great results.
  • bethfartman
    bethfartman Posts: 363 Member
    Options
    I knew a thread regarding this topic would have so many self righteous posts.
    I don't know what it is about vegetarians and self righteous preaching but I thank you Cyster for being different.
    These type of commens give vegetarians a bad rep.

    Agree!
  • CysterWigs
    CysterWigs Posts: 136 Member
    Options
    This is an interesting post. I have a feeling you will get a bunch of b*tchy responses, but I'm interested to see what someone with some helpful educated advice has to say. I don't eat a considerable amount of meat just by happenstance, as I prefer veggies and plant based protein, but I often force myself to eat some fish our chicken just to get a decent amount of protein in my system. I don't know if you have had similar advice, but I have had doctors recommend not eating soy products due to my endometriosis and PCOS, but some things I've read say that advice has no bearing, so I don't know. I love tofu, but I have cut down quite a bit just in case.
    As far as the more compassionate lifestyle goes, I'm not sure many vegetarians consider how poorly the farm workers of the world are treated, often times the conditions are even considered slavery, and people die every year from heat exhaustion and similar avoidable circumstances. So unless you're growing all your produce or buy it from familiar local sources (which is awesome, but unrealistic for most,) chances are your meal contains something touched by someone who was treated inhumanely. Just food for thought, I don't know what the best lifestyle is considering humane practices and I try not to judge other people's lifestyle choices.

    Thank you so much! Yeah, my doctors said the same thing about cutting down on soy. That is what initially lead me to switch from an ovo-lacto veggie to a pescatarian in 2007. I tried swapping it out with other plan t proteins first, but my weight kept going up. Once I started eating fish & poultry, I dropped almost 30 lbs without even trying. It was kind of a happy accident. (FTR, I only starting eating fish and foul upon dietician and endocrinologist recommendation. God's honest truth.)
  • kdsp2911
    kdsp2911 Posts: 170 Member
    Options
    Irritable Bowel Syndrome generally goes hand in hand with PCOS (cyster here!) and the Metformin does NOT help things. Maybe you should try on just a trial basis. If the free range, organic meat helps you lose weight and feel better, then switch. I love animals, all animals, but I have chronic iron deficiency and I have to have red meat. Plus, who doesn't love some chicken :wink:

    But seriously. My advice is give it a try, if it doesn't work you can always go back to what you were doing.
  • LifeChanged2000
    LifeChanged2000 Posts: 176 Member
    Options
    Since PCOS is an intolerance to Sugar it should not matter if you are eating meat or not. If you are having an issue with iron I would say "GO MEAT". It really depends on what your trying to accomplish. I know that if I follow a diabetic diet I keep my PCOS at bay. If I drink a lot with the girls, and eat a lot of sweets I get the sweats and spikes in insulin. Do you use an open diary on MFP? Maybe have others look at your diet and help you make better choices. You can add me as a friend if you would like. I was diagnosed with PCOS in 2006.
  • WifeofPJ
    WifeofPJ Posts: 312
    Options
    Hi,

    I have PCOS as well and I am on Metformin. I started taking a Probiotic after going on Metformin and have found great improvements on my digestion. How much fat are you getting each day. I am woundering if you are not getting enough fat in your diet, also are you getting enough protein? That could help out and there are ways to get both of these without changing your vegan lifestyle. You could eat more nuts, olives, avacado. They are higher caloried but I find that when I eat higher calorie but good calories I do much better than low cal diets.

    Good luck! Add me if you'd like!
  • GoTeamMeaghan
    GoTeamMeaghan Posts: 347 Member
    Options
    I've been vegetarian for over 3 years and I find that it actually helps my GI issues (I have Crohn's disease). That being said, it is not for everyone. I don't know a lot about PCOS but I do know that it is incredibly complicated. I think there's a group on here for PCOS which may offer you better advice-if I rememeber right, I think some of the other posts about PCOS have mentioned success from low carb and (doctor supervised) low calorie diets (particularly around the 1200 calorie mark).

    If you would like some vegetarian ideas, feel free to check out my diary-I eat around 175g of protein, 155g of carbs and 50g of fat per day. I also make sure to get way over the iron recommendation because I've ended up getting iron infusions as a result of Crohn's.

    Hope you find some good advice and a diet that works for you, whatever it may be.
  • Delicate
    Delicate Posts: 625 Member
    Options
    You could meet somewhere in the middle as you havent had a large amount of meat in a while, and therefore you might not like the taste, or feel ill (even if you arent).

    I found my blood sugars even pre metformin levelled out better when i avoided grains/flours/rice/legumes they seemed to increase all the side effects, maybe you should consider reducing them, adding some meat and increasing your general vegetables. or following a low gi diet, even though technically being a veggy you should of been following that anyway. (it didnt react well with me )

    If you are going for metformin and have had issues before, try to get put on the slow release.
  • aquilabean
    aquilabean Posts: 5
    Options
    Have you had a test for celiac disease? Have a biopsoy of your small intestine for the most accurate results. Do some research on celiac blogs to see if your symptoms match. Sounds like they do.

    I thought that too, especially since my GI problems predated GB surgery. They tested me and I was negative.

    Blood test alone? False negatives happen sometimes. I hope you can get it figured out and feel better!
  • LifeChanged2000
    LifeChanged2000 Posts: 176 Member
    Options

    I found my blood sugars even pre metformin levelled out better when i avoided grains/flours/rice/legumes they seemed to increase all the side effects, maybe you should consider reducing them, adding some meat and increasing your general vegetables. or following a low gi diet, even though technically being a veggy you should of been following that anyway. (it didnt react well with me )

    I too found avoiding grains/flours/ legumes etc was helpful as well as increasing vegetables and looking at the Glycemic Index for low carbohydrates in fruits.
  • Raclex
    Raclex Posts: 238
    Options
    I have read your post. I don’t ever answer without reading someone’s post. I simply stated that someone calling themselves vegetarian that eats meat is not vegetarian. That’s all.

    I also suffer from GI issues (and have so for a good part of my life) and as per my MD, I cut out meat completely 5 years ago. That has been the best advice thus far. It has gotten rid of a lot of my issues. Especially the and severe cramping. The eczema that came along with the intolerance to bovine lactose is also gone. Headaches to. They're gone. But I've had to modify my diet as I also ate too many carbs. That is changing as I have seen a nutritionist that is vegetarian and she is helping me out – I’m now eating the correct way. Purely on a plant based diet. And have tons of energy. I sleep very well. Which I had not done in a long time.

    Speak to a nutritionist. One that is familiar with a vegetarian lifestyle.
  • cdefalco57
    cdefalco57 Posts: 1 Member
    Options
    Perhaps if you had been more truthful in your topic line you would not be getting the types of answers you consider smug. You are not even close to being vegetarian, so why is that even relevant.
  • StheK
    StheK Posts: 443 Member
    Options
    I am a vegetarian with PCOS. I feel your pain. If I were convinced that eating meat was the only way to be healthy again, I would do it. I would definitely exhaust all other options first though, because the idea of eating meat is so repulsive to me. It really would be a very last resort, but I can't say I wouldn't go there if ALL else failed.
  • CJ_Holmes
    CJ_Holmes Posts: 759 Member
    Options
    I'm a type I diabetic. I'm not insulin-resistant as far as I know, but I do understand PCOS. I used to be vegan for about 5 years, vegetarian for a few before that. Not a junky vegetarian, but a sprouting, seaweed-eating, spend a million dollars on all the micronutients kind. I constantly battled my weight, my skin was bad, and I was always hungry. It was a hard decision for me to eat meat, but once I did I never looked back. I felt completely different. Beans and legumes are very high in carbs and would require me to take a lot of insulin, so I can't imagine they are too easy on your pancreas. Soy probably messes with your hormones as well. The Type II diabetics and PCOS folks I know that successfully manage their conditions with diet eat low-carb.

    If I were you, I would try it. Your health and quality of life are #1. Find a way to make peace with your diet, whether by only buying organic meat from a local farm, or cutting your carbon footprint elsewhere. Try eating low-starch veggies and protein as the mainstays of your diet. If you don't see a change, go back to being vegetarian. I hope you find the right balance for you!
  • ash8184
    ash8184 Posts: 701 Member
    Options
    I do not have PCOS, but I did become a veggie for awhile and gained weight, just like you do. I have not been tested for Celiac's, but I know that I do have a gluten/yeast intolerance, if not an allergy. When I went veg, I replaced meats with yeasty/gluteny things and packed on the lbs, despite living in Europe and walking hours a day. Recently, I tried low fat raw vegan which made me feel great environmentally/ethically, but I felt horrible physically. I theoretically ate lots of protein - soy and legumes - and still didn't feel well.

    What I would say to you is to try different foods and see how you feel. Try adding in 1 type of meat - seafood, chicken, whatever you are ok with, and see how you feel. I know that for me, animal protein HAS to be in my diet for me to be able to perform physically and to have mental and emotional stamina that I need.
  • CysterWigs
    CysterWigs Posts: 136 Member
    Options
    Perhaps if you had been more truthful in your topic line you would not be getting the types of answers you consider smug. You are not even close to being vegetarian, so why is that even relevant.

    I have not eaten a mammal in 17 years. Prior to 2007, I hadn't eaten anything with a face for a decade. The notion of eating another living, breathing creature DOES, in fact, continue to bother me.

    The reason why I abhor the smugness is because I resent that the anonymity of the internet allow everyday folks the right to assume the people on the other end of the network are idiots. I am in a Master's Degree program for Robotics Engineering, own my own business, and have a research assistantship at a first-tier school. My nerd-ego gets her hackles up pretty easily. For that, I apologize.

    I am not trying to say that being a vegetarian isn't good for most people. It would probably do most people a world of good to cut out the saturated fats and add more veggies to their diets. In my case, however, I am becoming increasingly convinced that some people are just not meant to have this diet. All bodies are different.

    I was not deceptive. This all boils down to a rather telling difference in perception. There is no such thing as a universal truth, and the reason why I called responses like this one smug is because of the definition of the word. (<- The intentional irony is that I am being smug to illustrate the point.) Smug means having or showing an excessive pride in oneself or one's achievements. So, vegetarians get up in arms and almost universally take offense to me identifying that way when they go to great pains to avoid all meat in their diets. They are proud of their lifestyles, generally because they see it as morally superior, which does, indeed, result in a smug tone to their responses to my rather innocent inquiry. On the other hand, meat-eaters do not generally know - or care to know - the difference. I am in the middle, straddling both worlds, and frankly couldn't care less about the minute differentiations, and I assume most people who aren't "real" vegetarians feel similarly indifferent about this stupid pet peeve.
  • CysterWigs
    CysterWigs Posts: 136 Member
    Options
    I do not have PCOS, but I did become a veggie for awhile and gained weight, just like you do. I have not been tested for Celiac's, but I know that I do have a gluten/yeast intolerance, if not an allergy. When I went veg, I replaced meats with yeasty/gluteny things and packed on the lbs, despite living in Europe and walking hours a day. Recently, I tried low fat raw vegan which made me feel great environmentally/ethically, but I felt horrible physically. I theoretically ate lots of protein - soy and legumes - and still didn't feel well.

    What I would say to you is to try different foods and see how you feel. Try adding in 1 type of meat - seafood, chicken, whatever you are ok with, and see how you feel. I know that for me, animal protein HAS to be in my diet for me to be able to perform physically and to have mental and emotional stamina that I need.

    Thank you for your response. A lot of this rings true for me. I did raw vegan for a while too and it was awful.

    BTW: Congrats on your weight loss! That is super impressive :)
  • ldrosophila
    ldrosophila Posts: 7,512 Member
    Options
    You know what has helped me lose weight, regain a normal cycle, and actually become pregnant twice? It's been simple portion control, logging my food, removing all sugar sweetened drinks from my diet including juice, a moderately reduced carbohydrate diet about 35-55% of my diet depending on the day, and adding variety including meat and vegetables once I started doing this I was able to lose weight and get pregnant. If you dont want to eat meat then dont do it. You can follow a moderate carbohydrate diet as a veg you just may need to add more sources of secondary animal protein or fish to supplement.

    I think following a moderate diet, really watching the portion sizes, and logging could help increase your insulin sensitivity.
  • Zylahe
    Zylahe Posts: 772 Member
    Options
    Also, kindly note that a vegetarian does not eat any kind of flesh. No mammals. No birds. No fish nor seafood. Zip. Nada. Nothing that ever had eyes.

    So does that mean i can't have potato?
    I always thought it was a vegetable, but it has eyes, so.......
  • hungryhobbit1
    hungryhobbit1 Posts: 259 Member
    Options
    I gave up soy (at least, major sources of it like soy milk) about a week before starting my current weight loss journey, and I think it has made a difference. Estrogen is not my friend.

    I also felt fairly miserable on a vegetarian diet (veggie for four years, 2 years at a time with 2 years in between) and was never successful in sticking with a weight loss plan without some significant protein sources in my diet.

Categories