I have just clocked up 8 days raw.
My bowel movements becoming very frequent during day 6 and 7.
Now day 8 I have terrible diahorrea.
I feel quite bloated and there is a lot of tummy gurgling and wind going on.

I have been enjoying a variety of things..

Example: Smoothies, raw curries, raw pad thai, raw whole foods, blended salads, nuts, seeds, sprouted beans/pulses/grains, sea vegetables. Etc.

I am loving the food and how I feel except for the tummy troubles.

Am I doing something wrong?

Hi radish_man~ As long as you haven’t picked up a bug or have some other physiological issue… what you describe is a good thing. What you maybe experiencing could be a “cleansing”, “correcting” or “detoxing” response. Some people detox by breaking out in acne, rashes, etc. Others go through what you are going through. Some will experience a health issue get “worst” and then get better. Make sure you are drinking lots of water so you don’t dehydrate and help the body to flush. Think of this as your body flushing itself quickly. Here is a document that I give to people who I coach through my suppliment biz. Simply substitute “raw food” where it says supplements. When your body starts to get what it needs, regardless if it is supplement form and/or through food, then it will start seeing stuff that was stored incorrectly and try to get it out as quickly as possible.

Possible Cleansing Response

When you begin to use nutritional supplements that support the endocrine and immune systems, and cell-to-cell communication, your body will begin to make positive changes. For most people, these changes will be comfortable and benefits will be noticed from the start. Common effects include more energy, greater well-being, reduced discomfort, relief from acute and chronic problems, more mental clarity, improved performance, etc. Because everybody’s body is unique in the way it uses nutrients, the timing and nature of the changes that occur will be different for different people.

When metabolism is stronger because of better nutrition, exercise, improved hormone balance, reduced stress, etc., it will start to flush out the stored toxins. This “cleansing response” is part of the body’s natural health building process. For most people, this process presents no problem. They notice only positive benefits or slight temporary discomfort and then positive benefits predominate. A few people find they don’t notice much at all for up to two to four months of taking supplements. For some people, however, the process of eliminating the stored toxins is uncomfortable enough to warrant attention. These are often the people who can gain the most from taking steps to rebuild their health. It often happens that someone who feels worse after starting a nutritional program eventually feels much better after the initial cleansing reaction is completed.

Fatigue, headache, flu-like symptoms, skin reactions, mood changes, changing sleep patterns, digestive reactions, aches and pains, allergic symptoms, etc. may occur or increase during the cleansing process. The type of reaction that occurs depends on the unique body chemistry and state of health of each individual. While most people notice no reaction at all, some do experience one or more of those listed, or some other reaction, according to their body’s own functioning.

WHAT TO DO

These suggestions are good for everyone, regardless of whether you are experiencing any discomfort.

1. Drink plenty of water (purified if possible) every day.

2. Include fiber-containing foods in your diet, especially fresh vegetables and whole fresh fruits. Try to eat mainly fresh, whole foods.

3. Avoid processed food, refined foods, and foods containing toxins and “anti-nutrients” (sugars, caffeine, alcohol, artificial flavors and colors, chemicals, etc.)

4. Reduce your exposure to environmental toxins and pollutants.

5. Exercise. Pick an amount and type of exercise that’s right for your state of health.

6. Listen to your body and do whatever you need to do to stay within a manageable comfort zone. You may find that a smaller helping of a particular nutritional product is better for you, either temporarily while there’s a strong cleansing response, or long-term due to your individual body chemistry.

7. If a cleansing reaction is too strong, you can reduce or even stop taking the supplements for a few days until you feel better, and then gradually build back up to a regular daily amount. You may need to repeat this cycle more than once.

• If a symptom causes concern, check with a health professional. Some symptoms may be unrelated to the body’s healing response, or the healing response may draw attention to an underlying problem.

Dear Bluedolfin,

Thankyou for the information I feel a little less worried now.
My face is also breaking out in pimples and I rarely ever get them until all of a sudden here they are!

Man! I hope this passes :)

Hi radish_man~ I noticed your other post about “ugly duckling.” By eating well, you may actually start to put on some mass if that is what your body does when it gets what it needs. Listen to your body. People can be rude/cruel when they think they are being “well meaning.” Know they care for you otherwise they wouldn’t be concerned. Congrats on spending energy on improving your health.

Something that might lessen the “chatter” is to offer them some of the stuff you are eating. Sometimes when one shifts something in their life, they can be perceived as separating themselves from an established group, maybe being “better” than the others. Changing something like your eating habits might be an indication that you are shifting away from a group, especially if they are into destructive stuff. I think I saw you are a teen… tough time sometimes. I wouldn’t want to go back there.

My best to you.

also, try eating more simple mono-meals. much of what you listed above as your typical meals includes combining many ingredients to make curry, pad thai, etc. try just eating fruit for breakfast, green smoothie for lunch, then simple salad with juicy veggies and sprinkling of seeds (no dressing). this should help your tummy settle. good luck!

Radish_man,

I’ve been transitioning to raw the past 4wks. I started with raw breakfast, then adding lunch. Overall I feel wonderful, but during week 2 I had the same stomach/digestive issues. Lots of bloating and gas in the evening hours. So I layed off the nuts since they’re hard to digest. It did help. Then, during week 3 I broke out in a rash of small pimples on my face. This was worse than the gas, but it’s week 4 and everything is clearing up. Hang in there, the long term benifits will outweigh these first few weeks.

Oh, as a side note, everyone at my job has been curisouly questioning my new eating lifestyle. Some obviously not buying into it and that’s okay. When these conversations arise I remain as positive as I can about this new approach to food. I especially love sharing with them I have reduced my household waste consumption 50%. And, I rarely do dishes anymore. I’m not burdened with all that scubbing of the pots, pans, and stove.

Lastly, tell those in doubt you are doing what works for you, and in no way are you passing judgements on others. That usually ends the conversation mildly.

I enjoy being unique, it gives me something to talk about.

Just some random thoughts overall for you.

Radish_man—

I’ve been experiencing some of the same tummy problems. Thanks for posting your concerns so I could learn too!
I’ve been incorporating one SAD item a day (such as cottage cheese with steamed sprouted brown rice) because I thought that it would help, but I’m going to try and stick it out raw from now on.

Bluedolfin—
what kind of supplements do you recommend? Is there anything that isn’t TOO pricey out there?

Hi chrissypie123~ Feel free to email through the website in my profile. To get to my profile, click on my name (in blue) at the top of this post (or any other post that is by me).

Hello there,

You could just be detoxing and that should pass pretty quickly, but you also might be experiencing problems from eating a bunch of ill combining foods together. I always advise people not to worry too much about food combining until they’ve been raw for several years, because it really isn’t that big of a deal in the scheme of things, but some people’s stomachs and digestive systems are more sensitive and do a lot better with proper combining.

Some simple things for you to try:

Always eat melons alone.

Don’t mix fruit and fats(oils, nuts, seeds, avocados, coconut). Citrus seems t o be the one exception to this. People seem to do ok with blending citrus juice with nuts or avocados for dressings for example.

Avoid all difficult to digest foods for awhile which include cruciferous veggies (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower), tough greens like kale, chard, etc, seaweeds and large quantities of fats.

Nuts and seeds are difficult for many people to digest. Try them in much smaller amounts and soak them first.

Apple and pear peels can be very to digest for some people. They give me problems, I always either juice apples or peel them.

The most optimum way to go for ease of digestion is of course eating mono meals (one thing at a time per meal). But this hard for many new raw fooders to tackle and may be too large of a goal at first. But if your digestive system is really acting up, it would definitely help, even if could only manage it for a short time.

Eat much less and sleep much more overall until you feel better!!!

Blessings,

Audrey
www.rawhealing.com

I had no idea about the “mixing” thing—
I’ve been having similar problems to radish_man and all I’ve been eating is fruit, nuts, and avacados together these last couple of days. I think I’m going to try the mono meal thing. Is there a good amount of time to wait in between meals?

Can anyone provide me with a link to learn about food combining.. I am 1 week raw and am juicing 2x a day and 100 raw so far. I have been veg for 25 years so the transition is not difficult for me but I feel blind as to what I am doing. Aside from the killer cleansing benefit, I would like to drop about 20 pounds and eventually juie feast by the end of the year and need guidence. I think I am detoxing but dont know for sure. I feel like I have a cold, mild sore throat, very runny nose, very watery eyes, sneezing, had bad headache for 2 days also but I have not let any of this deter me as I am assumingit is detox. Am hittin the ladies room several times a day and I think I am good in that department.. but then again... I dont know..Also, am I supposed to be doing green smoothies in addition to juicing, supplements???? is there a NEW toRaw guide??? Any advise is welcome.. thx so much
I Love New York

There is a "New to Raw" Forum Category with a lot of good information: http://www.goneraw.com/forum/9

This thread has a couple of good Food Combining web links: http://www.goneraw.com/node/5130#comment-23375

An Advanced Search for food combining will give you a lot of information. The search will give you all threads that have that phrase anywhere within the thread. I would probably just look at the threads with the words food combining in the title of the thread.

Also, if you are new to using this site, you might find some helpful GR surfing tips here: http://www.goneraw.com/forum/site-use-tips-and-hints

I had this EXACT same problem when I first transitioned to raw. I thought I was just getting over some of my gluten intolerance issues, but I figured out later that it was from my mixing fats with sugars...that seems to be a lethal combination for me. Things cleared up within a day of not mixing those two groups. I also am a HUGE advocate of the mono-meal. My system has been far more contented since going that route, not to mention my hunger has been less intense, and I've been just munching throughout the day.
It's nice actually, I don't miss the horrid stink and bloating at all! That in and of itself is enough for me to mono-meal and raw-food my way through the rest of my life...
oh, one more thing: Olive oil is incredibly awful on my system. Maybe others are the same...I'll stick to using mine as an eye makeup remover from now on.

I had the same detox reaction with the same timing and it passed in just few days. Hang in there!

ETA: sorry, didn't notice how old the thread was!