Help Cristy Go Vegan
She's so close.
She eats eggs for their protein. And sometimes cheese.
She doesn't tolerate beans and already takes probiotics and digestive enzymes.
She might be gluten intolerant.
She can't eat a lot of nuts or nut butters, though she does love them so.
She is very thin and has a history of gut-related issues.
She knows going vegan is the right thing to do.
Food has sort of been her enemy for a long time as there is so much of it (even good stuff) that gives her a belly ache.
She has said she wants to go vegan and knows it's the right thing to do, but she doesn't want to replace the problems she already has with new ones (she sort of has a handle on them now).
Sites? Blogs? Books?
Any suggestions?
Not typical ones as she doesn't eat pasta or bread or beans, and I know the books I have are full of those. Maybe material for those with severe food allergies who are concerned about getting protein?
Anyone?
Help Cristy go vegan.
PREVIOUS OMISSION: Cristy can't eat soy products. She does eat a lot of quinoa and amaranth.
As much as I wish I could give an easy answer, I'm not sure there's a simple solution here.
She might experiment with quinoa, a high protein grain and steering clear of wheat and wheat ingredients.
However, really I'd suggest getting some good medical help, which is hard to find. There might be some underlying illness here which could get worse over time no matter what she eats. It might help to find out for certain if she is gluten intolerant, and there is a blood test for that. There might be a systemic illness, like auto-immune, which is manifesting in digestive problems.
I recommend personal, detailed emails to these dietitians:
Jeff Novick: http://www.jeffnovick.com/
Jack Norris: http://jacknorrisrd.com/
Grains, like quinoa and amaranth (among others), are great protein sources, and gluten-free as well. There are a few gluten-free vegan cookbooks out there now, and some blogs as well. I have a vegan friend with celiacs and so whenever I run across a vegan gluten-free blog, I make sure to tell her. One of them happened to be vegan gluten-free and soy-free, which I would imagine would be closer to what Cristy needs. Might help: http://glutenfreesoyfreevegan.wordpress.com/
Off the top of my head, and without knowing the details of her food conflicts, she might try seeds like pumpkin or sunflower, mushrooms, and gluten-free whole grains like brown rice and quinoa (I think they make a rice-based protein powder if she wants to spike her recipes with it).
I added the omission to the post and THEN I saw the comments. Thanks, all. I was also thinking she should contact Kerrie Saunders, but I'll check out the other dieticians (thanks, Elaine). And I'll send her to the gluten-free site (thanks, Deb). I don't know whether she has seed issues, so that's a good suggestion, Stentor. And Neva, I'm concerned with her going vegan, getting worse (or even not) and then having a doctor say that veganism was the problem and she really needs to eat some animals. That's why I was thinking Kerrie, though she is pricey. Cristy's a social worker and spends her days helping people, and I'm sure the stress of that also adds to her issues.
Hello concerned friends….it is Cristy. Thank you for all the sites, resources, etc. Lately, I have been eating "like a vegan" by default. Although I don't eat soy, I do spray my brown rice with Bragg's aminos. I like the idea of a rice based protein powder. I know that we do not need as much protein as the food companies (meat industry) tells us we need. What is a good amount?
I am quite confident in my knowlege of nutrition except that I have always been told to "eat more protein." Thanks for the referrals. I will definitely keep a running list. Raw pumkin seeds and almonds give me the energy that the eggs used to give. (I haven't eaten them in a while. The thought of it turns my stomach and so it's "hard to swallow.")
Again, I will keep checking in. Thank you all and thank you Mary!
Cristy