To gear up for the full blown 30 FODMAP challenge, I’ve been trying to be mindful of what I currently eat that I’ll have to remove or limit.
So far here are a few that I’ve already made an effort to remove:
1. Gum- lots of chemicals and sugar alcohols, all of it bad. Instead I brought a toothbrush/paste to work for after lunch.
2. Flaxseed- okay technically this is fine on the FODMAP diet, but I’ve been reading about how it can have some bad effects, like acting similar to estrogen, which is the reason I’ve avoided soy for many years. I started taking this out just by not adding it to my smoothies this week.
3. Wheat- this is a hard one, for the most part, but since I don’t eat cereal normally or have sandwiches, it’s actually not as hard as I thought it would be. Mostly I just have to tell myself no cracker munching!!
4. Onions and garlic- at first I didn’t think this would be a big deal, I’m really not that big of a fan of either of them, but then it dawned on me that these are in SOO many things! All of my homemade soups? Yup, got onions and garlic. Just about any tomato based sauce? Oh yeah, big time! This will take some forethought, especially because they are often used in powder form…
5. Sugar and “fake sugars”- this is an obvious one, really. Now the slightly strange thing about the FODMAP diet is that regular, granulated sugar is actually, technically okay. This is because it is not fructose. Unfortunately, honey is basically all fructose, so that one is out for awhile I guess. I have mostly been using pure maple sugar. I was using Truvia for my coffee, and again a little strangely, stevia is technically okay as far as the FODMAPs go. But I have read a lot of things that stevia is well known to cause GI issues, plus the fact that it is labeled as “a dietary supplement” makes me feel sketchy about it. So I have decided that when I can, I’ll use maple sugar and avoid regular sugar as much as I can.
Foods to limit:
1. Avocados!! Waaahhh!!! This is super depressing for me!!! But I probably do overdo it a bit on them.. I suppose a break will be doable.
2. Mangoes: another one that I love, but I can live with it.
3. Chickpeas: this is surprising to me, but even the SCD diet says to omit these, so I guess I’ll avoid them.
4. Mushrooms: another sad one, this is my favorite pizza topping! 
5. Cocoa powder: crushingly terrible.. though again, I suppose I don’t eat it every day. I did get some raw cacao powder that is supposed to be not as high in FODMAPs so if I have a craving I can give that a whirl.
Adventures in Picky Stomachs 