IBS - Reducing fermentable carbohydrates the low FODMAP way

[Italiangreyhound]

IBS - Reducing fermentable carbohydrates the low FODMAP way

I have IBS and my dietician has suggested I go on a diet reducing FODMAP - that is Fermentable, Oligo-saccharides, Di-saccharides, Mono-saccarides and Polyols.

It seems very complicated but you only do it for about 8 weeks and then introduce stuff slowly.

Has anyone been on this type of diet for IBS, please?

[KatyMac]

No but I have an appointment in March to start it

[Italiangreyhound]

Oh Katy good to hear someone else has even heard of it, am looking at the booklet and it looks awfully confusing. But it is short term so at least not forever I hope. Please PM me if you have any wisdom to share.

[KatyMac]

Nope - no wisdom at all - but the dietician is currently being trained & I will be her first experiment

[Italiangreyhound]

Hope it goes well.

I also posted my question in allergies and got a couple more replies. Come on over and share you wisdom once you start being the guinea pig.....

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/allergies/1687426-IBS-Reducing-fermentable-carbohydrates-the-low-FODMAP-way?msgid=37343274#37343274

[KatyMac]

Do you have instructions yet?

[Italiangreyhound]

Well I have a book called 'Reducing fermentable carbohydrates the low FODMAP way.' Quite a catchy little title!! Not!

There seems to be a lot of things I can't have and a few I can!

I need to buy in some lactose free milk and margarine and also some wheat free bread!! I think I might be able to have rye bread, which I quite like toasted. I can also eat rice and rice noodles so I am anticipating a lot of Asian style food with home made sauces. Looks like garlic and onion are out so can I make Thai with just coriander, garlic infused oil (strained - what is that???), ginger, the green part of spring onion and chilli. Looks like I am going to stretching my culinary skills!

[KatyMac]

Hmm I don't like milk, rice, noodles, ginger or chilli - goodness know what I'll be eating

[Italiangreyhound]

What do you like?

(Lactose free milk I'll be drinking)

[KatyMac]

What I like & what I can eat are very different

I've cut out (in order)
Eggs
Pastry/pasta
Milk
Roast Pork
Raw Green veg
Cooked green veg
Almonds
Lamb
Milk products & milk in products
Eggs in products
Raw tomatoes
Some fruit

I don't eat very spicy food, but I do like flavour. I like chicken, steak, bacon, sausages, ham, salmon (although I'm not a massive fan of fish - I also like cod/haddock/similar & plaice)

I don't know, I was always a 'fussy' eater - but with the help of the dietician it seems that I lot of the things I really 'didn't want to eat' cause me quite significant bowel problems - whether they always did or whether there is psychological component I'm not sure

[marriednotdead]

Watching with interest and marking place.

I've had IBS for about 3 years and the list of food that agrees with me seems to be getting shorter. I've just had a blood test for coeliac (to rule it out, the dietitian doesn't think I have it) and have been told to continue to eat a low fibre diet for now. Am also keeping a food and bowel movement diary

Going lactose free made a big improvement but I've recently discovered Lactase tablets which gives me more options to pig out - Dsis calls them my trifle-enabling pills

[SCOTCHandWRY]

I had ibs for 20 years, seemed to have various food and stress triggers, Oranges, pineapple, some kinds of nuts.

When I cut out grains from my diet the ibs just disappeared completely (along with a whole range of ailments I had which I didn't realise we're caused by the grains/gluten). I can not eat oranges with no problems, thinking of trying pineapple soon but slightly scared to as it was a very strong ibs trigger!

Fodmap is very complex - why not try gluten/grain free for a few weeks - that might be enough to sort things out paleo or Swedish lchf recipes are great as all are totally grain free (and that's probably a better idea than simply replacing gluten grains with slightly less problematic such as rice and maize).

The two free blogs I find most useful are robbwolf.com and The Diet Doctor.

I know lots of people doing fodmap get directed to paleo diet websites as the diet is a close match for fodmap recommendations- "clean" unprocessed food with no grains or pulses or legumes, and plenty of recipes to show you what you CAN eat

[SCOTCHandWRY]

*can now eat oranges!

[Italiangreyhound]

Katy hope it all imporves.

Marriednotdead thanks, I might start a bowel movement diary!!

SCOTCHandWRY Thanks, I will check out robbwolf.com and The Diet Doctor.

I have to do low FODMAP because dietician recommended it. Kind of feel now it is all or nothing. Eating lots of chocolate and bead this week!! Before it starts. Looks like I can have dark chocolate and 50g of milk or white chocolate.

Think I need to call dietician for a chat before I start as already muddled. It seems to say i can have fewer than three cherries (what, per day! why not just say 1 or 2!!!).

Wish me luck!!! Please..

[Italiangreyhound]

bread not bead!!!

[Italiangreyhound]

SCOTCHandWRY just looked at Robb Wolf, how similar to low FODMAP is the Paleo Diet? I can see some stuff in there like onions that I'm not meant to have but some of it looks pretty similar.

Still trying to work out what all these weird things have got in common!

Thanks.

[SCOTCHandWRY]

Italian, similar enought to fodmap that I have seen various posts on his fb/blog site about health professionals recommending the paleo diet as a good starting point. Ie all recipes are grain free, no pulses, no additives, etc. Recipes not suitable could be adapted.


However I don't know all the ins and outs of fodmap but do know that for a lot of people, just cutting the grains and pulses is enough (often dairy is initially cut out but cream and butter added back in a few months later).

[SCOTCHandWRY]

Oh and us paleo people love our chocolate Must be good quality and high cocoa content (85% is perfect!).

Aldi does a great one, 85% and each bar is actually 5 mini bars of 20g (5.4g carb), a perfect serving size and as much as you need when it's that dark!

[Italiangreyhound]

SCOTCHandWRY sounds good.

[Italiangreyhound]

Katy any news?

Am finding low FODMAPS hard but am buying a lot of gluten free stuff. I have found some nice stuff, crisp bread etc. I seem to enjoy the savoury stuff more than the sweet, like Gluten free eat cakes and rice cakes with Belgian dark chocolate on them! Oh dear that last one isn't savoury at all!

[KatyMac]

Definitely better 'sort of' following it

& I've added Beans & Coconut to my 'do not go there' list

my appointment is on 27th March

[Italiangreyhound]

Coconut! Oh dear I quite like coconut! Beans are off for me for now along with everything! Waitrose do a lovely gluten free bread. i can hardly tell the difference now!

[KatyMac]

well I waited over 4 months for my appointment & the lady who has been 'trained' was off so someone read the booklet to me

Virtually nothing I currently eat is allowed no bread, mushrooms, leeks, onions - just put half my tea back in the fridge

[montage]

I have been doing it for 2 weeks and certainly the IBS has never been better.

It does get boring alright but I certainly could put more effort into making and cooking with low-fodmap pesto etc. Banana or peanut butter on rice cakes is just easier

It's certainly easier to cut down on gluten-free bread etc once you remember the cost of it. ..Coconut milk yoghurt is lovely but eye-wateringly expensive in the health food shop

[Italiangreyhound]

Katy so sorry to hear that. How annoying! My dietician gave me the leaflet said we needed to look at it together then said I could look at it alone. I stuck with it off and on for about a month but I am having a break from it and starting up again in a few weeks as we are away for Easter and it is too difficult to follow while we are away. Well that is my decision.

Ooohh montage coconut yoghurt sounds yummy. Have been eating the Alpro ones.

I will get back on the horse but we are off to Spring Harvest and not sure I can bear to not have all the yummy food while there. For me the low FODMAPS has not been so great but I will try again.

Were you asked to keep a food an sympton diary Katy?

[KatyMac]

Yes but mine seems so random

Half the things on the list I already can't eat based on my diary & if you add that to what I'm not supposed to eat I'm not left with much