Please help low fodmap diet

Sharon mc

My son aged only 11 has been put on a low fodmap diet as he has been having ongoing diarrhoea, and abdo pains since Jan. the idea being to remove common food intolerances and then to re-introduce to see what is the culprit. However on top of the low fodmap diet he is not allowed lactose(dairy) ,gluten (wheat), fructose ( fruit ), many vegetables, honey, garlic, onion, corn, noodles and pasta of any types.I have spent a fortune on gluten/dairy free/ fructose free breads, crackers, rice cakes etc. he doesnt seem to like any of them and i am having a real problem trying to feed the poor child. I am pulling my hair out at this point and am only in week one, another 3 to go! Does anyone have any idea on alternatives, lunch boxes are the hardest.... No normal sandwiches, no yoghurts, no fruit. Normal dinners eg bolognaise are out ,no pasta and the mince is awful without onion or garlic. Tried making him a pizza with gluten free base but it was awful too, and my sauce wasnt great!would appreciate any advice, recipe's or help !!!!!

Mary-Ellen

Sharon mc wrote: »

My son aged only 11 has been put on a low fodmap diet as he has been having ongoing diarrhoea, and abdo pains since Jan. the idea being to remove common food intolerances and then to re-introduce to see what is the culprit. However on top of the low fodmap diet he is not allowed lactose(dairy) ,gluten (wheat), fructose ( fruit ), many vegetables, honey, garlic, onion, corn, noodles and pasta of any types.I have spent a fortune on gluten/dairy free/ fructose free breads, crackers, rice cakes etc. he doesnt seem to like any of them and i am having a real problem trying to feed the poor child. I am pulling my hair out at this point and am only in week one, another 3 to go! Does anyone have any idea on alternatives, lunch boxes are the hardest.... No normal sandwiches, no yoghurts, no fruit. Normal dinners eg bolognaise are out ,no pasta and the mince is awful without onion or garlic. Tried making him a pizza with gluten free base but it was awful too, and my sauce wasnt great!would appreciate any advice, recipe's or help !!!!!

Please check with your dietician to make sure the foods below are allowed

For breakfast porridge, muesli, rice crispies, corn flakes, scrambled eggs and bacon

Oat cakes are good, they're a bit like unsweetened digestives, with peanut butter and chopped banana on top for lunch.
The be free bread range isn't bad.
Salads, soups etc

For bolognese the flavour from the garlic and onion will be gone so you need to get other flavours in. Chopped peppers, green part of spring onion, chillies, carrots, spices, herbs.
The diet suits meat and veg dinners so steak/chicken/pork with allowed veg and potatoes mashed/baked/chips
Finally if he'll eat omelettes there are sone options there: minted pea and feta, tomato and homemade pesto, spinach and cheddar, potato.
Pasta sauces can be made with lactose free cream too. Chicken, spinach, spring onion that kind of thing

2xj3hplqgsbkym

Mary-Ellen wrote: »

Please check with your dietician to make sure the foods below are allowed

For breakfast porridge, muesli, rice crispies, corn flakes, scrambled eggs and bacon

Oat cakes are good, they're a bit like unsweetened digestives, with peanut butter and chopped banana on top for lunch.
The be free bread range isn't bad.
Salads, soups etc

For bolognese the flavour from the garlic and onion will be gone so you need to get other flavours in. Chopped peppers, green part of spring onion, chillies, carrots, spices, herbs.
The diet suits meat and veg dinners so steak/chicken/pork with allowed veg and potatoes mashed/baked/chips
Finally if he'll eat omelettes there are sone options there: minted pea and feta, tomato and homemade pesto, spinach and cheddar, potato.
Pasta sauces can be made with lactose free cream too. Chicken, spinach, spring onion that kind of thing

Some nice suggestions here. However just be careful as Mary Ellen said and check first. Most oats contain small amount of gluten but you can buy gluten free ones. Most muesli contains wheat but you could make your own (toasted oats, coconut, seeds etc...) The coeliac society of Ireland can provide you with a list of gluten free products, go to their website.
Also did you know lidl has a coeliac section?

I have no idea what fodmap is. Can you explain and maybe we can help you more.

Is he allowed potatoes? If so he could have pies, mash, mash with bacon/ veg mixed in, home made wedges or chips with eggs or gluten free sausages, baked potato with toppings such as salsa, home made coleslaw, tuna etc... Roast potato with roast meat and whatever veg he is allowed.


Look up paleo diet or primal diet, this is usually wheat and dairy free and not much fruit so it may suit.

Sharon mc

Thanks Mary-Ellen and Rosebush some really helpful suggestions there.
Fodmap stands for the following
F fermentable
O oligo-saccharides
D di-saccharides (lactose)
M mono-saccharides (fructose)
A and
P polyols (sugar alcohols)

Usually i make things like curry, bolognaise, shepards pie, where i can blend up veg and hide it. The only problem is even with herbs/spices it all tastes so bland now. The onion/garlic free stockcubes are grand for gravys with cornflour to thicken. He loves roast beef/chicken so thats 2 dinners, boiled bacon a third. I have not foud a single gf bread he will eat and i have bought them all! I have even tried making my own! I made a pizza yest with a beefree gf tortilla which he ate but my tomatoe sauce base wasnt great. Unfortunately he doesn't eat salads or liked any of the soups i have tried to make! Of course it could just be my cooking.......! He will eat omelettes at a push. I have tried chicken stir fry with spices but he wouldn't eat it. Im fine for breakfast as you rightly said Mary-Ellen, managing dinners just about, but the lunches are my undoing!! He didnt like the oatcakes unfortunately. I might try to make some kind of healthy flapjack....green part of spring onion is a great idea as it may add bit of flavour to dinners.

2xj3hplqgsbkym

Oh thanks for explaining that. Very tough for lunch alright when most kids have sandwiches.

Has he tried hummus? Could have it with carrot or celery sticks.

He is right gluten free bread is not nice, but it is actually quite nice toasted.

Corn tortilla chips and corn tortilla wraps may be good for lunch and can be used to make nachos, enchiladas and tacos.

Making tomato sauce without onion or garlic is a challenge alright. I would cook a stick of celery and a finely chopped carrot in some butter for 4 mins, add a tin of tomatoes, salt, pepper, pinch of sugar, dried oregano. Bring to boil and simmer for at least 20 mins. Then blend.
Good luck

2xj3hplqgsbkym

http://www.mymexicanshop.ie/16-tortillas

Mary-Ellen

Corn chips are a good idea.
You can get flasks with a wide mouth that could be used for bringing leftover dinners into school.

Considering its short term and the rest of his meals can be made pretty balanced some popcorn with fruit and some mixed nuts wouldn't be the worst option

amazingemmet

http://www.thepaleomom.com/ loads of ideas here

Dotcomdolly

amazingemmet wrote: »

http://www.thepaleomom.com/ loads of ideas here

paleoparents
and
nomnompaleo
are both family friendly paleo blogs too. I know Stacy of paleoparents does low fodmaps diet.

ninjabox

Hi I noticed that your still feeding him "gluten free" food. You should listen to this podcast its very good:

Dr. Peter Osborne Gluten Free Lie

I have gluten intolerance which causes acne and digestive problems. I find that after slipping up and having some bread it takes a long time to get back to normal i.e. my skin wont start to clear for about a month.

You can make pizza with cauliflower.

Also Just think of food this way: meat and veg [and olive oil]. So for dinner have roast butternut squash / parsnip / turnip with fried chicken breast. For lunch have some real ham (cooked on sunday) with a salad. For breakfast you could have tinned or smoked salmon with avocado.

Sharon mc

Thank you all so much for your help. I have plenty of food ideas now. I listened to that podcast ninjabox, bit long at 71 mins, but very interesting. I would never have put down autoimmune diseases to nutrition. And its interesting because myself and my daughter (12) have hashimoto's (under active thyroid) never mind my son's ongoing gastro problems. It is food for thought and i will definately have to do more research into this field. Interesting too ,that many people who replied recommended the paleo diet which is also the one Dr Osbourne recommends. I had never heard of it before this. So lots more reading for me to do!!!
Thanks guys for all your help.

El_Dangeroso

Lunches are a nightmare on low fodmaps! I know when I did it (it worked btw!) ploughman's salads were a staple. So cubes of hard cheese, ham, tinned tuna and some rice with a bit of sesame oil and tamari sauce stirred in (so delicious cold!) were what I ate every day and I never got sick of it.

Flat rice noodles (the ones that look like tagiatelle, I get mine in the asian foodstore) are brilliant pasta substitutes.

This is also a great sheet to print out if you need to explain to people what he has to avoid/can eat:

http://www.ibsgroup.org/brochures/fodmap-intolerances.pdf

El_Dangeroso

Oh and on the flavour front, garlic powder and onion powder (available in the spices ailse) are fodmap free.

Sharon mc

He's actually not allowed any garlic or onion or any derivitives of them for the moment anyway. Its low fodmap with a few extra's thrown in! Thanks anyway.

MissAM

Oh goodness, I really feel for you as it is so hard getting used to this diet, particularly as a young person.  I know this is a bit old but I would really recommending to anyone reading this to download the Monash Uni Low Fodmap app.  It has a list of all the foods that are and are not allowed on it.  I use it all the time to double check as even though my husband has been doing the diet for 5 years, I still am not alway certain about all foods!  This is also a really good recipe blog (www.) fructosefreecooking (.com)  (sorry for writing it weirdly but I am new here so can't post links!) that might prove helpful for some ideas as to what to make.  Good luck!