So I can't answer your question exactly, but, as many here know at this point, I have been suffering through an illness where I have not eaten any solid food since last August (please no medical advice). Before I got, with the help of doctors, settled on a liquid diet of 6 Ensures and 4 V8s a day, I lost 80 pounds- 260 to 180, I was dizzy and lightheaded all the time from the lack of electrolytes, and while I still don't have much energy and have to rest for a while after walking the dogs for half an hour, I couldn't even walk a couple of blocks.
That said, my blood panels show everything is normal, so I'm clearly not dying. It's not exactly a great quality of life, especially since our entire society is based around food in every conceivable way, but it is survivable. In fact, one good thing came out of it- I no longer have high blood pressure or high cholesterol, so I don't have to take pills to counteract those anymore.
I'm sorry to hear you're going through that. I can sort of imagine what you're going through, and it's certainly not fun, but it's probably not a 1:1 situation. I really hope you get better though.
Sorry, I mean that I agree, it's not a 1:1 comparison, but it might lead you down the road to finding the right sort of comparison by putting my experience with the experiences of others.
Oh yeah, true. I've already decided based on feedback that this isn't a good way to meet my dietary needs without breaking the bank. I'm just proud to say that the extreme measures I'm considering aren't due to an ED this time around. Just poverty this time.
Poverty sucks ass, I've been there. That said, you can get by for a long time with beans, rice and some veggies. Not a fun diet, but better than starving.
Well, that's kinda the chief problem. Last time I did that I suffered brain fog the entire time. Same thing happened when I tried vegetarianism. And on top of that, I lost a surprising amount of muscle mass on beans and rice. I think I need more protein than that diet can offer. It's just a shame that it's so bloody expensive...
I thought beans had a lot of protein in them? I don't remember doing badly on a lot of that and ramen back when I was a student.
Since you do eat meat, I would also suggest checking to see if your local supermarkets (if you're not in a food desert) has discounted meat that is near its expiration date. You have to use it faster, obviously, but you can usually save a chunk of money on it.
There's more nuance to it than that. Beans do have a lot of protein, but the specific proteins they're high in are less digestible than animal protein, and still not as plentiful as in animal protein. And that's fine provided that you eat multiple sources of plant protein and are able to eat a lot of it. But then the issue becomes an excess of fibre and, in the case of legumes, oligosaccharides.
Disclaimer: I'm saying this as a well-muscled individual. For the average person, deriving all protein from plant-based sources is probably fine.
Hopefully this isn't unwanted advice, but I have also cut out a lot of meat from my diet and I started getting weird side effects. (Lost feeling in my hands and feet, got dizzy a lot, felt extra stupid.)
After seeing a doctor, I take vitamin B and D supplements and it helped a lot. If you can't see a doctor, you might consider trying some vitamin B and seeing if that helps. Apparently lots of vegetarians and vegans take it too.
I don't mind the advice! I already take a B complex, though. I try to take vitamin D but I always forget that one. Probably because I don't take it with a meal.