Keeping our bones n height- the argument for broccoli

 Did  U all know that  the tallest , rangiest   strongest - boned segment of our population (  with the best TEETH  ) by FAR  are  ......shock....  long -term VEGETARIANS  ?!!  

This is because  the most ABSORBABLE  form of calcium is actually  found in green leafy  VEGETABLES   ( and broccoli)  NOT  milk  or citracal ..lol .   

This   is a point of information that  seriously comes as a shock  to many people - I know it was a REAL eye- opener for me.   

Because  I LOVE  my close to six- foot height ... and i love  being a  tall , straight- backed  rangy  person ...... and now that  its mentioned , the long term  vegetarians I know really DO  have a posture  and strength and  muscle definition way younger than their years  ( and  great  healthy  toothy smiles too)  .....

So  for me ,  making   home processed  fresh grown broccoli soup regularly ( and spinach and kale puree  and cauliflower " mashed potatoes "  ) ....... isnt only a  matter of  getting my fiber in ... its  actually a lot more important than that .   And vastly worth the  trouble with the gas  ....  which   IS  a bit troublesome (  GAS  X  really helps as do probiotics - eventually I think the body  just gets used to processing these foods  and deals with them better ) 

Now im NOT  a vegetarian not by any means .... but  i do eat  a lot of tofu products  and a lot of fat free  dairy  as well as my   shakes .....  I  guess U could call me a limited - meat consumer .    And I  have noticed one thing  - I have gotten an inch or so TALLER  not shorter  ( thank God ) since my WLS  .  

Ava-
This is interesting information - All day today I have been craving a green salad like crazy. My body has always done a good job of alerting me when I am low on something in my diet. I love fruits and veggies but I always feel guilty if too much of my food consumption is from these instead of protein.  My Nut is always saying "PROTEIN first, then your veggies, then blah blah".  That actually leaves very few calories for other foods such as veggies. I was just thinking about this today.   Maybe I am off point a bit, but you got me thinking.  Oh and what is this phenomonon of growing taller after wls?  Is it a posture thing?

I think most people gain a bit in heighth because of posture.  We lose the fat on our back/shoulders that would make us slouch... so when we're measured, we are shorter than we really are.  I gained about 3/4".


 

Good advice!  Thanks, Ava.  

And I LOVE broccoli in the way I used to love sweets, almost. It's always been one of my favorite things to eat.

Good News !  We eat steamed broccoli at least 3 times a week at our house....it's one of the few green things my WHOLE family loves!

I tried my very first mashed cauliflower this week. OMG! It was so good and I didn't have any gas after. Broccoli gives my all kinds of problems but I do well with raw baby spinach. I have to pick and choose pretty carefully and eat veggies late in the day, but I like them when I can get them. I also malabsorb 40% of veggies but I know they're still good for me and naturally low in carbs if prepared right.

--gina

I just cut the rest of the broccoli from my garden.  Although I have a whole bag full, I will miss being able to just go grab a stalk.  I'm a good greens eater, seems like if we can only have a tiny amount anyway, greens and broccali are great.  Greens cook to nothing.  You can get handsful after briefly sauted in 1/4c. 
I'm still waiting for the height increase.  I stood back to back to a friend who swears she is 5' the other day and she was 2" talled than I was.  I don't really mind being 4'11.5" instead of 5' but I really don't want to be 4'10". 

I eat tons of fresh veggies now, but broccoli is the one thing I still cannot tolerate. It is one of my favorite veggies, so I test the waters about once a month, but as of yet, it still makes me sick within 5 minutes of eating it. I hope someday I will be able to have it again.

Cant wait to be able to eat more veggies! I love broccoli!
Thanks for the info Ava!

wahoooooo Ava
that makes me happy as i am a vegetarian. am i the only one on this forum that is ? its been 2.5 years since i made the change i feel terrific mentally and physically. i plan on staying a veg for the rest of my life