IBS can have a completely devastating impact on quality of life. But because experts still don’t know exactly what it is or what causes it, there are no concrete means of managing symptoms beyond controlling what you eat.
That’s why low-FODMAP eating is so popular among people living with the syndrome.
FODMAP stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols (what a mouthful…) – groups of carbs known to trigger digestive symptoms like bloating, gas and stomach pain. Cut those down and you’re more likely to rest easy. Although it’s only supposed to be a short-term solution, it’s still a restrictive regime which sees certain fruits and veg, wheat, legumes, garlic, onions, dairy and sweeteners all gone from your diet.
That may be fine if you’re a meat eater; you could just follow a standard gym-bro diet of boiled chicken, eggs and green veg. But if you’re vegan? Surely you’d be left with nothing to eat?
Carrie Gill, AKA The Wild Gut Project, is a vegan Instagrammer and YouTuber who is sharing her experiences of managing ‘wild’, turbulent symptoms of IBS using the low-FODMAP diet protocol.
‘It started as a personal project in 2017 when I attempted the diet and found there were almost no resources available for people also following a vegan lifestyle,’ Carrie tells Metro.co.uk.
It was pretty lonely so I started a YouTube channel and website to share recipes and my journey.
‘Since then it’s grown into something more, gathering a kind little, global community and I’m on a bit of a mission to help others manage their tummy-troubles without compromising their values!’
Carrie’s own IBS journey began at the end of high school.
‘I can pretty much tell you the exact day I got IBS. From the stress of my final A-Level exams, I developed tonsillitis for which I was prescribed a strong course of antibiotics. The pills quickly gave me diarrhoea. I waited for things to settle down but instead, I found everything I ate made me bloated, gave me severe cramps and intermittent diarrhoea.
‘I didn’t really want to face up to it, so didn’t seek medical advice until half a year later, after a rough week when asparagus was on sale, which I didn’t know was a major trigger for me. Who would have guessed?’
That was back in 2011, when the low-FODMAP diet hadn’t made its way into the NICE guidelines yet. As a result, doctors searched for signs of cancer and finding nothing, essentially left her to manage the condition alone. That meant cutting out what she thought were triggers.
‘I didn’t eat pasta for six years!’ Carrie recalls.
And then in 2017, Carrie decided to go vegan – partly to help animals and secretly hoping that a plant-based diet might ease her symptoms. But because Carrie had never had any problems with dairy and because her intake of fibre dramatically increased, her symptoms only got worse.
After months of going backwards and forwards with her GP and dietitians, Carrie finally embarked on a plant-based version of the diet and believes that it’s transformed her quality of life.
‘I feel in control of my symptoms, which can be almost non-existent if I’m organised, so things like parties and travelling don’t fill me we dread like they used to. I feel very aware of how my body will respond to certain foods and can knowingly make the decision if I want to risk an IBS flare-up.
‘Around 70% of people with IBS will respond to the diet, so I feel very lucky.’
How to be a low-FODMAP vegan
‘Vegan and low FODMAP feel like completely opposite diets and it has definitely been difficult to eat a balanced diet. The strict elimination phase isn’t forever though, so you can liberalise your diet eventually,’ Carrie explains.
After following a strict low-FODMAP diet, Carrie then underwent some months of reintroducing certain FODMAPs – increasing the amount to learn her personal limits.
Today, she eats a low-FODMAP breakfast, avoids things like mangoes and asparagus, adapts meals to have less onion and garlic and eats lower FODMAP foods in anticipation of meals that she knows she’ll have less control over.
Oh, and because stress can make you more sensitive to FODMAPs, she’s also been learning to be more resilient to help eat more variety.
A day of vegan low-FODMAP eating
The diet is a tool for identifying your triggers – it won’t heal your gut. And because it’s a pretty antisocial way of eating and FODMAPs are mostly in very healthy foods, it’s important to keep trying to eat more and more high FODMAP foods as your symptoms allow.
So what does a vegan low-FODMAP day look like?
It’s not just about what you eat, it’s about how much. Some foods become high-FODMAP the more you eat of them.
Breakfast: porridge (60g of oats is low-FODMAP, 100g is high) with 2 tbsp of peanut butter, rice protein powder, almond milk and a low-FODMAP fruit like strawberries.
Lunch: buckwheat pasta, with aubergine, spinach and lentils. Gluten-free pastas are usually low-FODMAP because wheat contains oligos, but gluten itself isn’t a FODMAP.
Dinner: tofu and chard leaf curry with rice. You can have 160g of firm tofu, which is pretty good going compared to say, the 46g serving of canned lentils.
Snacks: it’s really important to make sure you are eating enough, as you have to space out meals with restricted portions. If you’re quite active, something like a rich chocolate and peanut protein smoothie with banana and a bit of coconut cream as a midday afternoon snack really helps.
If you’re vegan, look at supplementing to make sure that you’re hitting your RDA of protein and vitamins. Non-vegans can tend to rely very heavily on meat and eggs because they are FODMAP-free (which isn’t great either), so make sure that you are making up for lost nutrients.
How to combat a flare-up
Carrie’s go-to dish for a bad flare-up is a dish based on potatoes or brothy soups. But food alone isn’t enough.
‘A hot water bottle and peppermint oil capsules can help with cramps and then gentle yoga and a lot of sleep. As anyone who has IBS can tell you, a bad flare-up is exhausting and you have to just wait it out.’
Diet vs diet culture
We’ve come along way since the days of size 0 back in the 00s… but what effect has calling out diet culture had on people who genuinely have to follow restrictive diets for their health?
No one wants to be accused of clean eating but for conditions like IBS, these FODMAP plans can sound suspiciously like it. The difference, of course, is that you don’t embark on a low-FODMAP diet for weight loss.
‘”Diet” feels like a bad word after the crash diet craze of the ’00s – synonymous with short periods of unsustainable deprivation which don’t come from a place of love,’ says Carrie.
‘Saying you are on this diet is often met with misunderstanding! The low-FODMAP diet isn’t for weight loss and really has do be done with a strong sense of self-care, doing something difficult, but ultimately for your own good.’
How to get started
If you think you’ve got IBS, Carrie advises going to chat with your GP to rule out any other causes of your symptoms, before being referred to a dietitian.
‘If they advise you try the low-FODMAP diet, prepare to cook a lot from scratch! I’d strongly recommend spending a couple of weeks familiarising yourself with the FODMAP app by Monash University, stocking up your cupboards and trying out new recipes before you dive into the strict elimination phase.’
Things are improving, she says – particularly low-FODMAP has become available as a treatment on the NHS.
Before NICE included the diet in its guidelines, doctors didn’t have much to offer so beyond a few words of sympathy, there wasn’t much they could do.
‘While it was slow, I’m very appreciative of the service provided by the NHS. I think people with IBS, especially if they were diagnosed over four years ago, need to know they have more options now,’ she says.
‘In Australia, where the diet was developed, it’s much better known and catered for; eateries will even label their low-FODMAP options. In the same way, gluten-free options are available in a lot of shops and restaurants nowadays, I hope low-FODMAP will be catered for and understood here one day too.’
So if you live with IBS and you’re vegan or thinking of going plant-based, know that it is possible…with a lot of prep and resilience.
Why not give Carrie’s coconut and peanut noodle soup a go? It only takes ten minutes to make – including the prep – and it’s just the ticket for a cold, February day.
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