What the heck is a FODMAP?

I just learned that FODMAP is an acronym that describes a group of carbohydrates that are not well absorbed in the small intestine. If you eat too much of them, they cause all kinds of trouble once they get to your colon. The acronym stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides Disaccharides Monosaccharides And Polyols. While you may have never heard of a FODMAP, you may have discovered the effects of one or more of these foods through trial and error.

The list of such foods is long. The oligosaccharides include wheat, onions, garlic, legumes, and artichokes; the disaccharides are milk products, including yogurt and ice cream; the monosaccharides include watermelon, honey, apples, high-fructose corn syrup; the polyols are sugar-free sweeteners, such as sorbitol, maltitol, and xyltol, although sorbitol is also found in a wide variety of fruits.

In addition to being poorly absorbed during the digestive process, these foods are rapidly fermented by bacteria that live in your gut and are capable of pulling fluid into the gut. The fluid load plus the gas produced by the bacteria are what usually cause the discomfort.

As I said, the list of FODMAP foods is long. You can find them on the internet, of course. Here’s a link to one list—a paleo diet one. For my part, I can only be certain about one of these foods causing me problems: maltitol. I discovered this while trying sugar-free candy, such as chocolate. There may be plenty more. I can’t tell because my gut problems are chronic and I choose to ignore them. I just figure my gut microbiome is out of whack.  

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