Bloating

Bloat
v. bloat.ed, bloat.ing, bloats
To cause to swell up or inflate, as with liquid or gas.

Well I used to be always bloated. I couldn't figure out what caused it. I stopped eating salads for lunch, avoided beans and didn't eat fruits. I had days that by 2 PM my stomach was noticably larger than when I got to work that morning. I got sick and tired of having gas pain in my belly and people asking me if I was expecting. Finally about a month ago things changed for better and since then I have been pain and bloat free.

I started reading a book called "The Raw Food Detox Diet" by Natalia Rose and by following the rules and guidlines highlighted in the book I have been able to achieve happy results.

The idea is to eat Light to Heavy. Starting the day with Fresh fruit juice... so the order is;
fresh juice->fruits->vegetables->raw nuts->cooked meals
This will allow for easier digestion and not pilling your meals up in your stomach. so the basic rules are;
1 - Fruits on Empty Stomach and ALONE
2 - Don't eat Protein and Starch, Protein & Vegetables or Starch & Vegetables
3 - Always eat your vegetable before your Protein or starch
4 - Don't mix your healthy fats with protein... Avacado is a fruit but should only be eaten with vegetables
5 - Drink Milk alone and not with other foods
6 - Do not drink during your

It is also very important to follow the correct rule for food comibining, since each food group has a different residence time in our stomach and digestive system.
Fruits: 30-40 min
Vegetables: 1:30- 2 hrs
Raw Nuts: 2-3 hrs
Protein: 4 - 6 hrs
For example if you eat baked potato and steak or chicken and rice, this food combination will increase the digestion time to 8-12 hrs. The longer the food is in your belly the more chance of getting gassy and bloated. I am not trying to take on a raw diet as part of my life style, but I have been reading a lot about it and using these guildlines has definately help me with my bloating and digestion, and therefore elimination of food.