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Cut Down on Your Fruit and Vegetables

What sounds like a nutritional heresy may be the best thing you can do if you have digestion issues

Maria Cross
5 min readNov 1, 2023
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Sometimes I tell a client that they should remove much of the fruit and vegetable content from their diet. Plus all those beans, lentils, nuts and seeds they are convinced are the path to health and longevity. From their expression it is immediately clear that they are in a mild state of confusion and wondering what sort of nutritionist I am. I go on to explain my rationale, and they leave reassured.

About a week or so later, they get in touch to let me know just how much better they feel.

For most people, plant foods can provide nutrients, fibre, and variety. I too like to garnish the main event on my plate with a little colour and interest. However, for others, specifically those with chronic gut issues, plant foods provide pain, bloating, discomfort and rather more gas than would be considered natural.

Below are four occasions when plant foods might be best avoided.

1. You’ve got an irritable bowel

This common condition affects up to 15% of people in the US, mainly women. Here in the UK, with our similar diets and similar lifestyles, that figure is more or less the…

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Maria Cross
Maria Cross

Written by Maria Cross

MSc. Registered nutritionist, specialising in gut and mental health. OUT NOW! My new book, How to Feed Your Brain. mariacrossnutrition @mariacross

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