#fodmapchat

Earlier tonight there was a live twitter chat coordinated by the FODMAP guru, Patsy Catsos.

I have recapped some of the discussion below, highlighting the points that I was most interested to discover.  Hopefully there will be many more of these chats to come because I found it so helpful.  Plus it was cool knowing there are others out there with the same (unrelieved) GI troubles, experimenting with a low FODMAPs diet as a means of reducing symptoms to improve their life.

Enjoy!

Q1: Tips to add flavor not fodmaps.

Garlic infused olive oil – This was rec’d by Patsy and I had actually already read it on her site last week, but I have yet to try it myself.  I typically tolerate garlic powder okay, but I still use it sparingly if at all.  I never would have guessed that garlic infused oil could be less offensive to the gut, but apparently it is.  Here’s a link to her method.  Note: infused oil needs to be refrigerated and will go rancid after ~ 1 month (cloudy oil doesn’t mean it’s bad though – this happens when oil is chilled and it will get clear again once it returns to room temp)

Flavored olive oils– Lemon & orange for sweeter options, rosemary & basil for herby dishes.

Tamari– This is my personal favorite way of seasoning food, but obviously it is semi-restrictive in that you have to be making an Asian-esque meal.

Mustards & Vinegars– These are about as pure as it gets.  Apple cider vinegar, rice wine vinegar, and ground mustard are definitely favorites of mine.  To make a dressing out of these you can just add a little oil and FODMAPs free sweetener (like stevia, maple syrup, or cane sugar).  Specialty mustards were also brought up, which I have yet to try, but they sounded delicious.  Others also offered up DIY mustard recipes.

Chives & the green section of spring onions– I’ve yet to test these as I’m not a huge fan of them to begin with.

Q2: How can vegans do a low FODMAP diet?

Since this is my wheelhouse, I feel like I was all over this topic.  The main issue is getting adequate proteinsince beans are the biggest source of this macronutrient and they are a member of the FODMAPs group galactans.

I personally rely on whole grains/pseudoseeds like quinoa and amaranth.  They are complete proteins full of essential amino acids.  There are other wheat grains with protein too, but I have been sticking to mostly gluten free grains like millet, oat, rice, corn, buckwheat, etc.

The general consensus on soy was that in it’s purest form it is well tolerated.  I have found I have no issues with tofu or tempeh (thank goodness), but I eat them separate from other FODMAPs if I can.  Yes, they are beans, but they are not as offensive for my gut as say, TVP or soy protein isolate.  There’s still some controversy over soy milk, soy sauce, and soy beans.

Nuts and seedsare also key foods that are both FODMAPs free and good sources of protein.  Almonds, cashews, and sunflower seeds are my favorites.  Someone mentioned pistachios being a GI stressor, but I’ve never experiences this.  Opinions welcome on this.

Q3: Tips to get adequate fiber.

The group agreed that non-wheat whole grains and the safe fruits and veggies were the best ways to get fiber.  Flaxwas another suggestion.

Grains like brown rice and oatswere mentioned (as well as adding oat bran to foods).  Spelt was also brought up, but I thought that had wheat, so I’m unsure about that one.

Noted fruits included citrus, ripe bananas, and berries.

No specific veggies were mentioned, but Patsy did bring up winter squash, a personal favorite of mine.  She said that pumpkin was a source of mannitol (a fructan) and to be careful with it.  I didn’t know this, so that was really interesting to me.  I eat winter squash and sweet potatoesin smaller amounts now, but I have had no problems with other veggies like carrots, corn, peas, and leafy greens in large quantities.  I’d be interested to hear how others do with various vegetables.  Thus far I avoid artichokes, zucchini, garlic and onions.

Q4: Good sources of recipes, cookbooks?

There weren’t many mentioned here, and the one cookbook that was offered up wasn’t vegetarian so I didn’t really check it out.  This site apparently has an area in the browser for you to select ingredients to exclude in your recipe search, which may be really helpful (unless you cross out too many things and don’t get any results!). Hopefully my own sitewill be a good resource for those looking to eat a plant based low FODMAP diet.

Q5: How can you use glucose to better absorb fructose?

This was a topic that I’ve been curious about because I don’t really understand it.  Our bodies aren’t able to break down fructose-fructose bonds, so how would adding glucose help?  Nobody seemed to think it was a wise method, so I don’t plan on looking into it much further for the time being.

Q6: Why are there so many conflicting fodmap food lists?

WHY INDEED!  For one, differing food lists have been generated by old, out-of-date food data.  As per Patsy, there’s also lots of room for conflict in food prep.  Plus, different fruits and vegetables have different amounts of FODMAPs.  Still, the main cause for conflicting information is due to the new research being published (by our AU friends!).  Thank goodness someone’s on top of it.  Well done Aussies   As we trial and error more and more info becomes outdated.  I also found out it costs $5000 (AUD) and takes 3 weeks to test 1 food for the full set of FODMAPs.  Wow.

I also found out they update the Monash Uni booklet annually to keep everyone up to date.  The Monash booklet is for sale hereand all proceeds go to further research.

Q7: How do you work out which FODMAPs are a problem for you?

Challenging with one type of FODMAP at a time is really the only way to know.

I also asked my own question about how people tolerated dried fruit, dates, and raisins.  Aside from the issue of mold (mentioned by one person), people seemed to handle small amounts of raisins, dried cranberries, and dried berries fine.  I’ve found the same, so I’m glad.  I was more curious about the issue of dates as I’ve been wanting to use them in bar recipes (or as a sweetener in raw sauces/pates), but I still can’t figure out the amount that works for me.

Hope anyone who is interested in this stuff joins for the next twitter session!  If you can’t feel free to post questions below that I can ask for you.