This is the nickname I give to this digestive discomfort that affects many people after a meal washed down with… maple syrup.
Pea soup, baked beans, sugar pie, our grandfathers in syrup, all crowned with maple taffy served on snow: we know the menu, unmissable, but problematic for some of us. Especially since all these dishes are eaten at the same meal, even on the same plate! Another day, you slip on good ice cream after a bowl of chili con carne and the same stomach ride happens to you. And for good reason…
Bloating and flatulence
Digestive discomfort generally affects people who usually consume little fiber and who suddenly eat a lot of legumes, rich in fiber. However, these so-called soluble fibers (pea soup, baked beans) combined with an excess of unabsorbed sugars (sugar pie, syrup, and maple taffy), in the presence of the intestinal flora (the usual bacteria of the colon), lead to fermentation and gas production.
Consequence: bloating and flatulence have a great time, which can be embarrassing, let’s face it.
Preparing your intestine for the consumption of legumes
For you who do not consume enough legumes, but also too little fruits and vegetables, seeds, nuts, and whole-grain cereal products, here are some tips:
- Gradually increase your fiber intake, for example by taking 1 extra serving of legumes per week, one or two slices of whole-grain bread instead of white bread, etc.
- Spread fiber-rich foods throughout the day instead of eating them all together at one meal.
- Drink plenty of fluids (6 to 8 glasses a day) to help the fibers work.
- If you buy dried legumes, discard the soaking water and use fresh water for cooking. This reduces the problem.
- Avoid eating your legumes while still crunchy by taking care to cook them well until they are easily crushed with a fork.
- Avoid ending your meal with a very sweet dessert. Prefer a piece of cheese or fresh fruit.
- An outing to the cabin, it prepares. A few chickpeas a year, and the pea soup will be better!
News from you!
The other day, at the bookstore, you were two or three complaints about the exhaustion of stocks of a little classic of pseudo-medical literature, The Art of Farting, by Pierre-Thomas-Nicolas Hurtaut. This intriguing, and at the very least comical book, which is more interested in the ways of making a fart than in the beautiful ways of holding it back, still finds its audience almost 300 years after its first publication!
