Too much iron and fiber

[plsletmevanish]

I'm currently trying to gain weight and muscle bulk, so along with lifting weights, I've increased my protein intake by a lot. The thing is, I'm noticing that in order to get enough protein from a good range of sources, I'm consistently eating far more iron and fiber than seems to be recommended (like 200%-300%). I've had some digestive issues which might be a result of it.

Any tips on how to get a lot of protein while also A) eating a variety of different foods, B) not getting too much iron or fiber, and C) not spending a huge amount of time cooking? I have a very busy schedule and spending a lot of time on food preparation isn't an option for me, unfortunately.

Concerning what I'm eating right now, I'm using tempeh and peanut butter as my main "concentrated" protein sources, but I also try to eat foods that are generally higher in protein than alternatives, like oatmeal instead of grits, bread with pea protein added, wild rice instead of white rice, and so on.

 

[thecookdebra]

@plsletmevanish Plant iron uptake is regulated by the digestive tract. Unlike heme iron it wont lead to toxicity.

So far as fibre is concerned, "too much" isn't really a problem so long as it is in whole food form. If your guts are responding negatively then you need to slowly increase the amount to allow your biome to adapt. If there are any foods you have a particularly bad reaction to then avoid them but don't limit fibre entirely. Because of our modern diets dysbiosis is common and it may take a long time to recover. A decent probiotic may be of some benefit but adequate fibre intake is key. Avoiding fibre in general only contributes to dysbiosis. Your gut microbiome requires a variety of fibre types in order to achieve balance. Wikipedia has some good information on this.

I started drinking powdered greens every day and at first it gave me green diarrhoea but my guts adapted to it and they feel better than they did prior. Some grains negatively affect me so much that I just avoid them - wheat and oats. But sorghum and amaranth are great. Maybe I could adapt to oats over time but I feel so much better without them.

 

[plsletmevanish]

@thecookdebra Huh, thanks for the link - I'll read through that! I love natto, which is probiotic, so maybe I'll try eating that more consistently too.

 

[kidkaos2]

@thecookdebra This happened when I first went vegan too due to eating so many new beans. Couple of weeks my belly just adapted and my shits are better than ever

 

[katie4469]

@plsletmevanish Is there a particular reason that you're concerned about your iron intake?

And in terms of low fiber sources of protein - tofu, seitan, and protein powder are great options!

Also with regards to the fiber, keep in mind that you may be able to increase your body's tolerance by slowly increasing the amount over time. Usually people have issues when they ramp up too quickly. You may also want to keep a symptom diary so that you can try to see if there are specific foods that are triggers for you.

And also finally I would recommend seeing a GI doctor if your digestive issues persist. You may have some underlying medical condition that is contributing to your symptoms.

 

[thecookdebra]

@katie4469 Seitan may be nice to eat but it isn't a great source of protein. Gluten has very poor digestibility. Tofu on the other hand is great.

 

[plsletmevanish]

@katie4469 No specific concerns about iron intake, I just want to catch anything that could cause a problem ahead of time. Thanks for the tips on low fiber. I can't do tofu because unfermented soy causes me problems, but I'll try using more seitan!

Yeah, I'll have to talk to my PCP about a referral to a specialist if this continues. Hopefully any problems can be solved without having to decrease my protein intake.

 

[benbear]

@plsletmevanish 2-3x iron is likely not an issue on a vegan diet, since these forms of iron from plants are not absorbed that great. So you actually need to have a higher iron intake on paper to meet your needs.

 

[plsletmevanish]

@benbear Good to know! Thanks.

 

[_h_]

@plsletmevanish protein itself can lead to GI issues. ask yourself if you actually need 300% more protein to meet your fitness goals

 

[plsletmevanish]

@_h_ Oh, I'm not having 300% protein! Sorry, that was unclear. It's just the iron and fiber which are ending up at those levels. I read having more than about 2g of protein for every kg of body weight long-term can cause problems, so I've been making sure not to go much over that line, and often go under it.

 

[_h_]

@plsletmevanish ok. sorry i must of read that wrong. 1.8 per kg lean body weight is my max. fiber and bloat is an issue for sure and that quantity of iron might affect the viscosity of your blood? i’ve never actually heard of a vegan with too much iron (heme or otherwise) but vegan athletes are their own species

 

[plsletmevanish]

@_h_ 1.8 is about what I get most days, so I'm glad to hear that's working for you! The excess iron hasn't caused me any problems so far, so I guess I'll just keep an eye on it. I'm definitely not a proper athlete, just trying to get to a healthy shape. Thanks for your help!

 

[_h_]

@plsletmevanish yes. of course! my hero is Nimai Delgado. he is shredded at 180 lbs and only eats maybe 130-150 grams of vegan protein

 

[dw1989]

@_h_ Unless you have the same goals, Nimai probably isn’t the best person to look up to unless you’re also injecting supra-physiological doses of testosterone. If

 

[_h_]

@dw1989 noooo!!!!! performance enhancing drugs? well sht

 

[dw1989]

@_h_ Nothing wrong with PEDs, apart from him lying about it, but it changes what works for him and what will work for natural lifters.

He can probably get away with lower protein intake than he otherwise would be as a natural because his unnatural testosterone is causing enough of an increase in muscle protein synthesis to elicit growth with a lower protein intake.

 

[_h_]

@dw1989 well, at least we still have Patrick Baboumian to look up to

 

[dw1989]

@_h_ I have some more bad news

 

[starwarsdude]

@plsletmevanish If you drink coffee near mealtimes your iron intake will be lessened by a pretty large factor. I believe within one hour of meals it inhibits 40-60%