Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Vegetarianism's little secret

I don't remember farting much growing up. Seriously. I was born into a good, hard-working, German family, with lots of meat and potatoes and milk. (I don't remember being constipated either, but I should have been with all of that starch and dairy...but I digress.)
Since becoming a vegetarian, however, I seem to produce enough gas to fuel the world. It's ridiculous. No one told me. It appears that flatulence is a common complaint among vegetarians and vegans.
Here's a good explanation from www.thestraightdope.com:
"The problem is the body's inability to fully digest the complex carbohydrates so abundant in the vegetarian diet and the consequent excessive production of gases such as hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and methane.
Vegetarian nutritionists claim this phenomenon abates once the intestinal flora adapt to the new menu. However, I suspect high gas production is inherent in any diet consisting predominantly of plant products. Cows and sheep, for example, are marvelously adapted to all-veggie fare, yet they generate such prodigious quantities of methane-laden flatulence that some authorities regard them as major contributors to the greenhouse effect and thus to global warming.
A matter avoided studiously in most discussions of this subject, and to which I now must delicately turn, is odor. While it seems inarguable that a vegetarian diet eventuates in increased flatulence, the gases produced in greatest volume--the aforementioned hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and methane--are odorless. The noxious fragrance of which you complain is produced by minute amounts of other digestive by-products, typically containing sulfur, such as hydrogen sulfide, methanethiol, and dimethyl sulfide.
I pass no judgments, observing only that foul smells are likely to be associated with particular high-sulfur foods rather than with a vegetarian diet in general. I have it on solid authority, for instance, that if you pack in the garlic you will stink like a son of a bitch. Broccoli and cauliflower are also notable in this regard. Willpower and muscle control won't save you--if you don't shed the noisome molecules in the form of flatus, they'll be absorbed into your bloodstream and later waft from your breath or pores."
I thought I would try an over-the-counter gas reducing pill. After taking the first pill (which worked quite well), I read the list of ingredients. Besides including gelatin (made from bones, teeth and other animal bits), it contains "cod, flounder and redfish."
WTF???!! Why do I need fish to stop gas? Needless to say, Jeremy won't touch the stuff, and I'll only use it if I'm desperate (going out with friends after eating black bean soup, or something.)
I don't regret being a vegetarian, but damn, I sure hate the gas.
If anyone knows of a vegan remedy (other than fennel, which doesn't do squat for me), let me know.

No comments: