It’s great to have some food choices that you can enjoy as much as you want without having to worry about portions. Fruit and vegetables are something that should be included in everyones diet, but many contain FODMAPs in high levels!  But, there is such a thing as fruit and veg without FODMAPs!! To make your life a little easier when finding your way through the FODMAP diet I have made a list of my favourite, eat freely fruit and vegetables.

Fruit Free From FODMAPs

Aim for at least two pieces of fruit a day to help you get all your micronutrients and minerals. Lots of fruits contain many different types of FODMAPs and this can mean as you eat more, you are adding in more FODMAPs, even if the fruit is low FODMAP, this is called FODMAP stacking*.

A good suggestion is to space out when you eat fruit, such as a piece of fruit with breakfast and then as a snack in the afternoon. And to choose a fruit that is free from FODMAPs and then a different fruit with some FODMAPs. Choose a fruit from the below list to help you achieve a low FODMAP diet.

• blueberries
• grapes
• oranges
• strawberries
• rhubarb
• papaya

Vegetables Free From FODMAPs

You should be aiming for at least 3 portions of vegetables a day. Happily, there is a large variety of veg that has either no FODMAPs or almost undetectable levels. With this list of veg there is less of a need to be concerned about eating them at one sitting or close together. This means they make for great snacks to keep you full and energised between meals.

• alfalfa
• carrots
• cucumbers
• kale
• lettuce – iceberg, rocket, butterhead
• olives
• potato
• pumpkin
• red peppers
• spinach
• tomato

Some foods, such as alfalfa for example, do contain FODMAPs but only at very large quantities. Usually in amounts you wouldn’t eat. For alfalfa it is about 5 cups. However, if you are eating one of the listed foods and find you are having some problems re-assess how much you are eating.

An Important Note

It is worth remembering, even with a low FODMAP diet, there is no need to aim for zero FODMAPs. Not only is that not achievable, it is not recommended! Low FODMAP is there to help reduce symptoms and understand what foods may be causing you the most problems. I have written this list to help you find foods that you can eat when you feel that your IBS is flared or you just want more snacks you know you can eat without causing too many problems.

* Want to know more? Read all about FODMAP Stacking here!

Photo by Gabriel Gurrola on Unsplash