constipated with fruit?

[sungoddess]

I have been on a very high fruit + no overt fats diet for a week. (811-esque) In the beginning I would go to the bathroom at least 3 times a day... Now I am feeling constipated! I am eating a lot of dates, ripe bananas, cantaloupe, pears and apples etc. Could it be the dates? (why?)

I still tend to over do foods in a binge-like way. And dates hapen to be one that can easily be overdone... but I would have thought that they would have a lot of fiber and help elimination?

Maybe this is just temporary, but I was wondering if anyone had insight!!! THANKS!

~Chevy

[daisyduke]

I don't have a clue why that is happening to you. I know when one overeats carbs (fruits) usually non-smelly gas ensues. . .So that would be a signal that one has overeaten...that isn't your problem. So maybe it's just your system getting used to all of the fruits. I think this may have happened to me for awhile in the beginning. I would add some greens to a smoothie and that should help things 'go'. Good luck, let us know what happens!

[rawfigure]

usually fruit is cleansing. I would eat mono fruit at each sitting and give adequate time before eating a different fruit, see if you can spot if one fruit is the culprit. I would drop the dates and replace with grapes.

[dreamrawalwz]

I believe it is the dates. They're dried fruits and sticky and yea..i think they would affect your BM's in the same way. Bananas may have that type of affect as well, but in general the other fruits are cleansing. Do an experiment and remove the dates to see waht happens. Make sure you down a lot of water to help things get moving along.

[Lunar*Fey]

The same thing happened to me...I was eliminating beautifully on raw. then there came so many days when I just had no desire for nuts or other fats except avocado and we rarely had any in the house. So I just ate fruit and ended up getting a fat percentage below 10% on many days. if I remember correctly, the days when I would up the fat to around 10% my bowels would move on through. Our bodies and brains and such DO need some fat. I believe avocados are like the best fat (for me any way). Fresh olives and fresh tree picked nuts are probably wonderful too, but with all the processing and such that goes on these days....
After being raw for over 5 months I had to go to a place to gain weight where I wasn't even allowed to be vegan! :eek: the food was horrible, but I'm back home and back to raw now so we'll see how my bowels work this time.

good luck with everything!

[chilove]

Hello there,

I just wanted to say that dates are not dried usually, certainly not if you get them from a good source like The Date People. They are a naturally lower water content fruit. I just drink lots of water with my date meal. Give your body some time to adjust to your new way of eating. Make sure your fruit is ripe. The bananas should have brown spots on them before you eat them. Fruit is out natural diet, you will do great!!

All the best,

Audrey
www.rawhealing.com

[exurb]

it's the very low fat that's doing it. also make sure you're hydrating enough when you're eating something dehydrated like dates.

[fiddler]

The bananas should have brown spots on them before you eat them. Fruit is out natural diet, you will do great!!
Ditto Audrey. Sometimes the peels can fool us too. Meaning, I've had spotted peels where the bananas weren't quite ripe enough and I've had the converse happen too. Generally, I've found that organic bananas spot up better than conventional bananas (this might have something to do with conventional bananas being gassed to ripen?) And, organic bananas seem to taste better to me. Another good way to judge a banana's ripeness is how easy it peels and feels in your hand. You should also feel some moisture from the banana after you peel it. The best sense is taste, though. If the banana tastes really sweet and delicious, then bingo.

Sungoddess, have you bought bananas by the case yet? Great way to buy, transport, store and save money.

Cheers,
Gil

[sungoddess]

Thank you everyone! I think it may be the dates. They aren't dried, but even so they are very sticky. So I'll just keep an eye on that. I will make sure to eat all my fruit very ripe as well. Thank you for all of your responses!! I am going to start adding in small amounts of avacado soon, My skin has STARTED to smooth out a tiny bit doing 811, which is a miracle to me :) So I am hesitant to add back in the fats... but I will.

Fiddler: How do u buy bananas by the case??? Do you have to order them? I am very interested in this, as I can go through them so fast!!!!

Thank you thank you again everyone!

[fiddler]

Fiddler: How do u buy bananas by the case??? Do you have to order them? I am very interested in this, as I can go through them so fast!!!!Bananas are transported through distributors to grocers in 40 lb boxes. I have two ways of buying my bananas. Fortunately, I live close to a distributor that supplies the local grocery chains. I can either buy my case(s) there during their limited walk-in sales hours or I can ask for a case at my grocery store -- I shop at Krogers. If you ever shop while they stock the bananas, you'll see they just haul out the cases and unload them onto the displays. Just ask the produce person to go 'round back and bring you a case of organic bananas. If they're out, ask 'em when their next shipment arrives.

I encourage all to embrace the low fat approach -- it has worked for me...

Hope this helps,
Gil

[Lunar*Fey]

Fiddler...how much does it cost by the case? I don't buy organic because we can't afford it :( but we can get conventional bananas for .33 cents a pound which is generally .99 cents per bunch. How many would a case give you and what do you think the cost would be? I'm sure it varies by where you buy them and where you live but just wondering. Also, how did you find out the hours of the produce supplier? We have a couple with 15 minutes of us.

[fiddler]

Fiddler...how much does it cost by the case? I don't buy organic because we can't afford it :( but we can get conventional bananas for .33 cents a pound which is generally .99 cents per bunch. How many would a case give you and what do you think the cost would be? I'm sure it varies by where you buy them and where you live but just wondering. Also, how did you find out the hours of the produce supplier? We have a couple with 15 minutes of us.Costs vary depending on your location, sales, etc... Currently (and for the past year or so), bananas have sold here in Cincinnati area for $0.59c/lb conventional and $0.69c/lb organic. Of course, bananas are often loss leaders and go sometimes as low as $0.33c/lb. I've even seen 'em for $0.15c/lb conventional. The grocery store usually doesn't mark down bananas if you buy by the case, but you could ask.

At the distributor I visit, I've been getting organic bananas for $21.00 a case. That's only a savings of roughly $2.50 per 40lbs over retail. Conventional bananas are cheaper by the case by a few dollars but I don't buy 'em. Sometimes I'm lucky and get perfectly ripe or near-ripe bananas marked down at the distributor for $6.00 / 40lb case -- this doesn't hapen as often as I'd like though :) Usually, I always find some discounted produce though that makes the trip worthwhile -- its like an adventure every time I go. A treasure hunt, if you will.

Typically, you can ask your grocer where they get their supplies. Then, just call 'em or visit and ask about walk-in sales.

Gil

[luckitri]

I would like to know why you advise eating the bananas when they have the spots. Generally in my house we toss them or give them away when they go that far because they are too sweet for us! Especially my husband with the diabetes was not able to eat them for awhile - he loves them - but due to the high sugar content he prefers them very close to green.

[fiddler]

I would like to know why you advise eating the bananas when they have the spots. Generally in my house we toss them or give them away when they go that far because they are too sweet for us! Especially my husband with the diabetes was not able to eat them for awhile - he loves them - but due to the high sugar content he prefers them very close to green.I wish I was your neighbor :)

Ripe bananas are easier to digest, taste sweeter, easier to peel, and often cheaper because grocers discount them for fear of losing a sale. Those are my reasons.

[PantryRaider]

After having the same... ummm... problem... after starting to follow a more raw lifestyle, I did some research on google regarding bananas. Apparently green bananas can plug you up, while ripe bananas are more of a laxative.

Not wanting to have the experience of what giving birth must be like, I am very careful these days to let bananas ripen before I consume them.

I buy bananas in quantity and when they get nice and brown speckled, peel them and then freeze for smoothies.

It is also my opinion that all of these greens and veggies have a lot of fiber that naturally draws more water if we are using all the pulp as in a smoothie... which means we have to drink more water than we would expect to make that stuff float in the colon.

[luckitri]

Thanks. I didn't know about the plug you up part.