how many beans is too many beans?

[Janet]

I know I should eat more beans, lentils, etc. I've found lots of good recipes that contain them. But how many is too many? If I gradually build up to every day or twice a day, is that too much? Or should it be a couple of times a week?

[MadMike]

This question really made me laugh. The answer is actually dependent on how many you're used to eating. If you eat a lot of them all the time, you'll be fine. your gut microbiome will be adapted to it and it'll be like eating anything else. If you rarely eat beans and you eat it for two meals a day for the next few days, you'll find that for the first few days, you're probably gassy and you'll almost definitely have diarrhea on the first day following your bean bonanza. As days follow, though, you'll discover that your body will adjust and you'll start digesting normally, you won't be as gassy and bowel movements won't be as dramatic.