CW for gross butt stuff.
I just got home a week ago from a semester at university. I ate pretty crappy while at school because I was focused on getting my grades up, so my diet consisted of mostly instant ramen or whatever food the dining hall had. Overall, not much variety, and definitely not a lot of fiber and other good stuff. I’ve had chronic issues with constipation due to not drinking enough water (I forget), and I was pretty stopped up while at university. To the point where I was getting multiple rectal tears and bleeding and had to go to the doctor for a colonoscopy. They didn’t find anything serious, but my doctor did recommend that I try and change my diet to include more fiber and iron.
My parents have started eating pretty healthy after my mom got her gallbladder out a couple of years ago, and our pantry is always stocked with stuff like granola, grape nuts (that really healthy cereal – my dad loves it), and of course, the damned chia seeds. After getting home I decided I would make an effort to eat healthier again, so three days ago I started making myself a bowl of yogurt, granola, and chia seeds for a little extra fiber for breakfast. The serving size of chia seeds on the bag is around 24g, so I put in around 8g to start. Big. Fucking. Mistake.
I’ve been shitting myself near constantly for the past 12 hours, and I woke up this morning feeling even worse. I want to eat something because my stomach is so empty, but eating anything (even broth) makes me feel like I’m going to puke. My mom (after she finished laughing at me) keeps on encouraging me to drink water and electrolytes, but even the thought of swallowing water is revolting. I feel fucking miserable, and I swear I’m never eating those fucking chia seeds ever again. The next time I want to add fiber to my diet I’m just gonna eat broccoli or something like a normal person.
TL;DR: I ate chia seeds after months of eating poorly and now I can’t stop pooping.
Comments
My body can’t process chia seeds at all. I get so bloated. I’ve only done it twice but I never want to do it again. I may be confusing it with another food incident but it may have been the same one where I got the worst food reaction. Just pain in my gut and its utter refusal to evacuate.
Holy shit! Literally. Granted, I am used to them, but I frequently eat 100-150 grams. Getting this hefty reaction to 8 grams? Are you sure it is not noro or similar?
If you’ve been eating crappy food then the bacteria in your gut will be primed to digest crappy food and will dramatically die when confronted with ‘good’ food. This is temporary. The more you eat ‘good’ food, the more ‘good food’ bacteria will grow, repopulate your colon and your digestion will eventually be more healthy.
Try to introduce more fibre slowly over the weeks (very important!) to avoid these explosive situations which gut health people euphemistically describe as ‘massive bad bacteria die off’.
Source: The Clever Gut Diet by Dr Michael Mosely.
I would like to recommend you not to eat quinoa either.
You should start eating beans every day. Like black beans or pinto beans. At least one meal per day should be majority calories from beans. If you do this for a few months you will feel so amazing from the fiber and micronutrients. Beans are seriously the perfect human food
If you dare to try chia seeds again, I’d recommend pre-soaking them by making something like chia pudding instead of adding the dry ones to a meal; they absorb a ton of moisture and especially if you don’t drink enough water can form blockages in your gut by absorbing moisture and expanding there. Also easier on the digestion when they’re pre-soaked.
YOU NEED TO STAY HYDRATED!!! Getting dehydrated will make you feel so so so much worse. Drink water!
Were you dumping the seeds right into your food without letting them hydrate first? That’s gonna lead to an unhappy tummy big time.
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So, lesson time. Your entire gut is filled with life. For ease of convo we will call it all bacteria (but there are so many differnt things its a different lesson). The bacteria literally help you digest your food and there are as many different strains of bacteria as there are grains of sand on earth. The mix of bacteria is determined literally by the food we eat. A sudden change in diet cause huge rapid changes in the mix of bacteria and suddenly you are un able to digest properly leading to diarreaha and constipation and everything in between. It can take awhile for the population variety to rebalance. It why by the time its time to go back you may be starting to feel pretty good.
This is why people have digestive issues when they go on vacation. This is why you have issues when you go home. This mix of bacteria also quite literally affect and control things like your mood, contributing to stuff like depressuion, motivation, concentration and memory. All things nessacary for succeeding at college. So its kinda like an investment in your college carreer. This mix aslo determine if you are properly digesting vitamins and minerals with some even being a requirement in order for your body to get certain nutrients. Some literature even call this poorly understood part of your body your “second brain”. This is also why some people with chronic issues can be helped in some cases with a proceedure where they literslly transplant poop cultures from healthy people directly into people with said chrinic issues. Essentially seeding good bacteria in the gut. (not recommneding this, just using as an example to make my point).
Lots of water will help (all things in moderartion, thats why im not saying an amount). Maybe think of water for now like medicine. Every hour or 2 (set an alarm) drink an amount of water till ypu get to a goal for the day. For now and for normal purposes movong forward consider taking a probiotic supplement. It is a bit pricy but may help replenish a good variety in your gut. Consider eating fermented foods like a good whole milke greek yogurt, a high quality saurkraut, or other fermented foods. Also some fiber. With your ramen consider some veggies. You can buy huge bags of frozen veg or use cans of veg in your ramen. Instead of plain ramen evwry meal, even consider cereal. A bowl of cereal a day will go a long way in supporting healthy habits, good digestion and vitamin intake includ8ng iron! (but check the label). I dont nessacarily mean to eat a bowl of assphalt (grapnuts) but something simple like cherrios, or my favorite, cinnamon life. Most cereals are fortified and contain fiber, but check the label as some generics put less nutrients like less iron to make the cereal cheaper. It doesnt even matter what time of day you eat it but the same rough time is good for the biggest benifit. Butnif you eat it more than once a day, drink lots of water and walk around. Walking also helps digestion and helps move things along.
I used to go hard on chia when eating yogurt. That + IBS resulted in the machine gun shits
Is it possible that you’re lactose intolerant and reacting to the yogurt? That’s a bizarre reaction to that small an amount of chia seeds.
Try to remember to drink water. Even if it’s setting an hourly alarm on your phone or something. With a poor diet, and little water, you are setting yourself up for kidney stones and those are even more painful than rectal tears/bleeding.
This is the equivalent of eating one cup of raspberries.
I really doubt it was the chia seeds that caused this 😝
Stomach issues typically happen hours after. If you got sick around breakfast or lunch time, I would be looking to last night’s dinner as the source.
I have this reaction more with nightshades like tomatoes and peppers. Was there something you are more sensitive to like high acid ingredients in a previous meal?
But if it is from fiber generally, I would be really looking into more is your gut biome. Eating like shit may have starved your good gut bacteria that breaks down fiber well. I would try introducing pre and probiotics. Start with twice a week and ramp up. Eat probiotic specific yogurt or take supplements.
r/EatCheapAndHealthy, my friend. They definitely have resources for busy college students, even ones whose only access to cooking is a hot plate or the microwave.
Did you soak them in water 1st? If not, that could be a reason for this reaction.
These symptoms align wholly with Norovirus
Start small and work your way up. You practically shocked your system!
Combination of your digestive system not being used to having a handful of gravel bumping around in it, and your gut microbiome not being adapted to the food. Chia is generally consumed soaked in a juice or such. This makes the fiber much easier for your guts to handle. And your guts have what they need to digest what you’ve been eating: those microbes live on those foods and their digestive biproducts.
As your diet changes, the current culture will diminish and the new one will establish in a few days to a week. The change will be rapid, and you might be off for a few days. But the body is capable of biological sorcery. You’ll be fine, just take it easy and drink plenty of water in the mean time.
Buddy 8g of chia seeds is not the reason you are this sick
Oh man, I’ve been there trying to turn things around health-wise, doing what seems like the right thing, and then your body’s like “absolutely not.” Chia seeds look harmless, but when you’re not used to fiber and hydration is off, they hit like a freight train.
Don’t beat yourself up, you were genuinely trying to take care of yourself, and your gut just had some… strong opinions. Go easy on yourself, sip whatever fluids you can manage, and maybe ease back in with softer fiber sources like oatmeal or cooked veggies once you’re feeling better. You’re not alone in this kind of misfire. Hope you bounce back quick
Man, I love chia seeds, but they just give me gas all day so I don’t eat them.
Wild because I could eat 200g of fiber and feel nothing.
I’ve tried chia seeds just to see. Nope.
No idea if it’s true but we’re a Navy family and we have guts like iron.
My friend I’m pretty sure the issues are not the chia seeds, this is just the consequences of you esting shit for too long.
Give your body some time and try again.
Chia seeds expand significantly when they absorb liquid, often reaching up to 10-12 times their original size. This expansion is due to the high fiber content in chia seeds, which absorbs water and creates a gel-like consistency. This could be the issue if you sprinkled them on right out of the bag. I would only try chia seeds in a pudding (made with milk, let sit overnight. I use almond milk. Mix in sweetener and fresh fruit and enjoy. )