The FODMAP diet may seem a little daunting. No wheat, no onions, no garlic, no avocados – am I going to be hungry forever!? This was my initial reaction to the diet. After accepting the challenge, the fear soon turned to serious confusion as I tried to work out what HIGH FODMAP foods to avoid.
Figuring out what foods are okay to eat when dealing with FODMAPs can be a very counter-intuitive process. Would you guess that cauliflower can cause you gut problems, but coffee is okay? That honey is fine, but not soy milk? That innocent, stomach-soothing chamomile tea is a no-no? The normal “health food” rules just don’t apply when it comes to low-FODMAP eating.
To make it easier for you to shop and cook, I’ve put together this (by no means comprehensive) list of low- and high-FODMAP foods, broken down by category. Remember that some ingredients might affect you more than others, and that reactions can vary largely by individual. And don’t forget that you are on a LOW-FODMAP diet, not a NO-FODMAP diet, so some ingredients can be tolerated in small quantities (I’ve noted ones in particular).
Foods that contain FODMAPs can be split into three categories:
1. Those with large amounts of FODMAPs (i.e., the amount consumed in a serving of the food is definitely above the cutoff that has been shown to cause symptoms).
2. Those with moderate amounts of FODMAPs (i.e., the amount consumed in a serving of food is elevated, but not excessively so. These foods should be suitable when consumed up to the quantities defined in the following tables).
3. Those that are low in FODMAPs (i.e., they contain FODMAPs at a level that has been proven to be well tolerated by people with IBS).
Low FODMAP Diet Food List
High vs Low FODMAP Foods
Low Fodmap Food Chart
High / Low Fodmap Food Summary
HIGH FODMAPS Foods List
- Additives (sweeteners and added fiber): fructo-oligosaccharides, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, inulin, isomalt, mannitol, maltitol, polydextrose, sorbitol, xylitol
- Cereal and grain foods: bran (from wheat, rye, or barley); bread (from wheat, rye, or barley); breakfast cereals, granolas, and muesli (from wheat, rye, or barley); crackers (from wheat or rye); pasta, including couscous and gnocchi (from wheat); wheat noodles (chow mein, udon, etc.)
- Drinks: chamomile and fennel tea, chicory-based coffee substitutes, juices made from unsuitable fruits (below)
- Fruits: apples, apricots, Asian pears, blackberries, boysenberries, cherries, figs, mangoes, nectarines, peaches, pears, persimmons, plums, prunes, tamarillos, watermelon, white peaches
- Legumes: beans (all kinds, including certain forms of soy, such as textured vegetable protein/TVP), chickpeas, lentils
- Milk and milk products: custard, ice cream, milk (cow’s, goat’s, and sheep’s, including whole, low-fat, skim, evaporated, and condensed), pudding, soft cheeses, yogurt (cow’s, sheep’s, or goat’s)
- Nuts: cashews, pistachios
- Vegetables: artichokes (globe and Jerusalem), asparagus, cauliflower, garlic (and garlic powder in large amounts), leeks, mushrooms, onions (red, white, yellow, and onion powder), scallions (white part), shallots, snow peas, sugar snap peas
FODMAP FOODS GROUPS
Low FODMAP Meat, Fish
You’re basically good to go with all meats, fish and seafood and eggs.
Be careful, though, of meat products that may contain high-FODMAP ingredients, particularly sausages, which can contain garlic, onion and other seasonings, meat sauces, and meats that have been marinated or rubbed. (Onions are everywhere—stay vigilant!)
Low Fodmap Protein
- Haddock
- Plaice
- Salmon
- Trout
- Tuna
- Seafood
- Lobster
- Mussels
- Oysters
- Prawns
- Shrimp
- Beef
- Chicken
- Foie gras
- Kangaroo
- Lamb
- Pork
- Quorn, mince
- Turkey
- Cold cuts / deli meat / cold meats such as ham and turkey breast
- Processed meat – check ingredients
Low FODMAP Vegetables List
Enjoy plenty of vegetables of different types and colors, as this provides us with a variety of vitamins and minerals. Try to eat servings of low-FODMAP vegetables each day, preferably from each of the groups below:
- dark-green leafy vegetables – spinach, chard, bok choy, choy sum
- orange-yellow vegetables – carrots, sweet potato, squash (restrict butternut)
- starchy vegetables – potato, sweet potato, parsnip
- others – beans, lettuce, zucchini, bell pepper, rutabaga, turnips, cucumber, eggplant.
High vs LOW Vegetables FODMAPs
Low FODMAP Vegetables Lists (Good)
- Aubergine
- Bean sprouts
- Bok choy
- Broccoli
- Butternut Squash (in small quantities)
- Carrot
- Celery (in small quantities)
- Chilli
- Courgette
- Cucumber
- Ginger
- Green beans
- Kale
- Lettuce
- Olives
- Parsnip
- Peppers
- Potato
- Pumpkin
- Spinach
- Spring onion (green bit)
- Squash
- Sweet potato (in small quantities)
- Tomatoes
High Fodmap Vegetables Lists (Avoid)
- Artichoke
- Asparagus
- Avocado
- Beetroot
- Brussel Sprouts
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Garlic
- Mushrooms
- Onion (completely avoid!)
- Peas
- Shallot
- Spring onion (white bit)
- Sugar snap peas
- Sweet corn
Low FODMAP Fruits List
Fruits are a great snack idea and really nutritious. Try to include two pieces per day from the following low-FODMAP suggestions during Step One of the low-FODMAP diet.
Remember to spread out your fruit intake to be the equivalent of one piece of fruit at a time, every two to three hours:
- Low-FODMAP fruits rich in vitamin C – oranges, mandarins, lemons, limes, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, pineapple, kiwi, pawpaw, tomatoes
- Low-FODMAP fruits rich in vitamin A – cantaloupe, pawpaw, tomatoes
- Other low-FODMAP fruits – bananas, grapes, honeydew melon or passion fruit.
LOW Fodmap Fruits (Good)
- Firm Bananas
- Blueberries
- Cantaloupe
- Clementines
- Dragon fruit
- Durian
- Grapes
- Lemon
- Mandarin oranges
- Melon
- Oranges
- Passion fruit
- Prickly pear
- Pineapple
- Raspberry
- Rhubarb
- Starfruit
- Strawberry
- Tamarind
High Fodmap Fruits (Avoid)
- Apples 🙁
- Apricot (fresh or dried)
- Avocado (very small serving, like 1/8 of an avocado, OK)
- Ripe Banana
- Blackberries
- Boysenberries
- Cherries 🙁
- Dried cranberries (1 tablespoon serving OK)
- Currants (1 tbsp serving OK)
- Dates
- Figs
- Grapefruit
- Lychee fruit
- Mangoes 🙁 🙁 🙁
- Nectarines
- Peaches
- Pears (except prickly)
- Persimmons
- Dried pineapple
- Plums
- Prunes
- Pomegranate (1/2 cup of seeds OK)
- Raisins (1 tbsp OK)
- Watermelon
Low FODMAP Dairy foods
- Butter
- Camembert cheese
- Hard and aged cheeses such as cheddar and parmesan
- Coconut milk
- Cottage cheese
- Feta cheese
- Ghee
- Goat cheese
- Havarti cheese
- Lactose-free milk and yogurt
- Mozzarella cheese
- Pretty much all cooking oils
- Soft/white-mould coated cheeses such as brie and camembert
- Swiss cheese
- Soy milk
- Whipped cream
High FODMAP Dairy Foods
- Buttermilk
- Cream (regular and sour)
- Cream cheese
- Custard
- Haloumi cheese
- Ice cream 🙁
- Milk
- Ricotta cheese
- Soy milk made with beans
- Yogurt
Low Fodmap Cereals / Grains / Wheat products
Low Fodmap Cereals / Grains / Wheat products (Good)
- Gluten-free alternatives
- Oats
- Polenta
- Popcorn
- Pretzels
- Quinoa
- Rice
- Rice cakes
- Tortilla chips
- Wheat free muesli and porridge
High Fomap Cereals / Grains / Wheat products (Avoid)
- Bread
- Cereals containing wheat, apple, honey or excess dried fruit
- Couscous
- Pasta and noodles
- Wheat based biscuits and cakes
Low Fodmap Sweets, sweeteners, spreads and condiments
Low FODMAP Sweets, Sweeteners (Good)
- Cocoa powder
- Dark chocolate
- Flourless chocolate cake
- Maple syrup
- Rice Malt syrup
- Sorbets (except ones made with no-no fruits)
- Sugar (brown, palm, raw, white)
- Balsamic vinegar (in small quantities)
- Barbeque sauce
- Dark chocolate
- Golden syrup / maple syrup
- Jams (mostly)
- Milk chocolate (in small quantities)
- Peanut butter
- Pesto (in small quantities)
- Soy sauce
- White, brown, raw & castor sugar
- White chocolate (in small quantities)
- Baba ghanouj (w/o garlic)
- BBQ sauce (beware onions and garlic though — check the ingredients or make your own)
- Chutney
- Fish sauce (this may become your new best friend, by the way)
- Garlic-infused oil (yay!)
- Ground spices (I haven’t found any that raise the alarm)
- Ketchup
- Maple syrup (also your new best friend — use instead of honey!)
- Mayonnaise
- Miso paste
- Mustard
- Oyster sauce
- Peanut butter
- Salt
- Shrimp paste
- Soy sauce
- Tomato sauce, home-made without garlic and onions
- Vinegars
- Worcestershire sauce
High FODMAP Sweets, Sweeteners (Avoid)
- Artificial sweeteners
- Corn syrups
- Honey
- Hommus
- Tahini
- Tzatziki
- Balsamic vinegar (one tbsp OK)
- Cream sauces
- Honey (surprisingly!)
- Hummus
- Mixed-berry jam
- Pesto (1/2 tbsp OK, or alternately you can make your own without garlic)
- Pickles/relish
- Tahini (one tbsp OK)
- Tomato sauce made with garlic and onion (most of them, unless you make them yourself)
- Baked goods and desserts made with wheat
- Carob
- Milk chocolate
- White chocolate
- Frozen yogurt
- Ice cream
Low FODMAP Beans/Pulses/Legumes
High Fodmap Beans/Pulses/Legumes
- Baked Beans
- Black Beans
- Borlotti Beans
- Broad Beans
- Butter Beans
- Chickpeas (Canned)
- Four Bean Mix (Canned)
- Haricot Beans (Boiled)
- Lentils (Green, boiled)
- Lentils (Red, boiled)
- Lima Beans (Boiled)
- Mung Beans (Boiled)
- Red Kidney Beans (Boiled)
- Soya Beans (Boiled)
- Split Beans (Boiled)
Low Fodmap Beans/Pulses/Legumes
- Chana Dal (Boiled)
- Lentils (Canned)
- Urid Dal (Boiled)
Low FODMAP BEVERAGES
HIGH IN FODMAPS (AVOID)
- Coffee and tea beverages with milk (including soy bean milk)
- Apple, orange and raspberry
- Apple juice
- Chamomile tea
- Coconut water
- Dandelion tea
- Fennel tea
- Oolong tea
- Orange juice
- Rum
- “Tropical” juice blends
- Malted chocolate beverage base (1.5 teaspoons OK)
LOW IN FODMAPS (GOOD)
- Beer
- Coffee and tea (except ones in the high-FODMAP list) served black or with soy protein milk
- Cranberry juice
- Gin
- Green tea
- Hot chocolate made with cocoa powder and no milk
- Vegetable juice
- Vodka
- Whisky
- Wine (red and white)
FODMAP Free Foods List
The following foods have just a LOW amount of Fodmap, they can be considered as [highlight]FREE from FODMAP[/highlight].
On the low fodmap diet, these free fodmap foods can be eaten as much as possible:
- Beansprouts
- Bell Peppers (red)
- Capsicum (red)
- Carrots
- Collard greens
- Cucumbers
- Ginger
- Kale
- Lettuce
- Olives
- Parsnip
- Potato (regular)
- Pumpkin
- Radish
- Rocket
- Seaweed (nori)
- Spinach
- Swiss Chard
- Tomatos
FODMAP Additives
People on a low-FODMAP diet should restrict these food additives, which are sweeteners and humectants:
- sorbitol
- mannitol
- xylitol
- maltitol
- isomalt — contains sorbitol and mannitol
- polydextrose — 10 percent sorbitol.
These food additives, however, are low-FODMAP:
- acidity regulators
- anticaking agents
- antifoaming agents
- antioxidants
- bulking agents
- color fixatives
- colorings
- emulsifiers
- enzymes
- firming agents
- flavor enhancers
- flavorings
- foaming agents
- gelling agents
- glazing agents
- leavening agents
- mineral salts
- preservatives
- propellants
- sequestrants
- stabilizers
- sweeteners (other than those listed above)
- thickeners.
I have come here today because my doctor feels I have FODMAP. However I find many of the foods in all of these lists switched places with the high/low columns. It’s pretty confusing. Celery for instance, both sides. Cottage cheese, feta cheese, switching sides. Very confusing.
I agree! Some foods can be listed on both columns, or they switch columns.
And peanuts are a legume, which are supposed to be avoided, but are on the allowable list.
Is tequila high or low? and does it matter if its silver, anejo or reposado?
Hello I think I have Sibo but I didn’t get tested for it yet
I have developed rosacea type for one whole year now it looks like a rash on my cheeks or even hives. I want to follow fodmaps diet. I am afraid I may have a gluten intolerance what do you suggest I do to heal Sibo? Do I need to remove al grains even gluten free oats? I would really apprecaite your help and advice thank you
PLEASE EMAIL ME ANYTHING THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO ME, I HAVE IBS. ANY BOOKS RECOMMENDED TO READ?