The low FODMAP diet is widely used and recommended as a dietary intervention for managing the symptoms of IBS, offering many people relief. This diet cuts out many common products that contain certain foods. The principle behind the diet is to give the gut a chance to heal.
FODMAP stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols, which are short chain carbohydrates and sugar alcohols that are poorly absorbed by the body, resulting in stomach pain and bloating .
The main concern with the low FODMAP diet
Gases are produced - in turn causing bloating, flatulance and tummy pain - when our large intestine feeds off fermented prebiotic foods which is why the diet eliminates these. However, prebiotics help stimulate the growth of beneficial gut bacteria, so cutting them out means that you are not feeding the diversity of bacteria living in your gut. Research reports that restricting our prebiotic (FODMAP) foods leads to the reduction in specific types of gut bacteria.
We have many types of bacteria, yeasts, fungi and viruses living inside us, some of which are good and some not so good. The key is to keep our ‘good’ microorganisms in greater quantity than the ‘bad’ to maintain a health gut environment.
Without enough variety of fermentable fibres, the good bacteria won’t be able to survive, and other types of undesirable bacterial strains can start thriving. Some of these bacteria can dissolve the mucus layer over time and if it gets too thin, we no longer have the protection needed. This can then result in gut problems and inflammation.
Overview of the risks of the low FODMAP diet
The risks of the low FODMAP diet (most of these points are relevant to any restrictive elimination diet):
Many follow the diet for too long, often becoming 'dependent' on it.
Increases risks of nutritional inadequacy.
Promotes food related anxiety.
Often leads to a potentially unfavorable gut microbiota (see above).
The solution
Clearly, having guidance with implementing the diet will reduce the above risks BUT even then, I have seen clients who have had that guidance, yet testing confirmed that despite perceived or real benefits whilst on the diet, either the root cause of the digestive symptoms had not been addressed (e.g. a nutritional imbalance, stress or an energy blockage in the digestive tract) or there were foods which were still being consumed which there was a sensitivity to, not allowing full healing to take place.
From my experience, the FODMAP diet can be beneficial to combat symptoms of SIBO (smalll intestinal bacterial overgrowth) if done in a careful and balanced and time limited manner (there are experts I can recommend to help you with this) but other than that it can carry many more risks than benefits.
Your body knows better than any researcher, health practitioner, nutritionist or dietician what is going on in your gut so why go on a restrictive diet just to check if it makes a difference, rather than letting your body communicate the root cause and the solution. That’s what the IBS Freedom Therapy is about - getting to and rectifying the heart of the problem to set you on the path to freedom of IBS and other long-term or recurring digestive issues.
To request a FREE initial consultation to discuss suitability and details of the therapy, please visit tauntonkinesiology.setmore.com
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