Low FODMAP Diet: Food List, 3 Steps and a Sample Day

If you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), your doctor may have mentioned the low FODMAP diet. It sounds complicated, but the idea is simple: for a few weeks you avoid certain carbs that are hard for some guts to handle, then you add them back one by one to find out which ones cause your symptoms.

The short answer: the low FODMAP diet is a short-term diet for IBS, developed at Monash University in Australia. FODMAPs are sugars and fibers found in foods like onion, garlic, wheat, beans, milk, apples, honey and some sugar-free sweeteners. You cut them for 2–6 weeks, then reintroduce them one group at a time, then keep only the limits you really need. About 3 in 4 people with IBS get relief. It’s not a weight-loss diet and not meant for life – and it’s best done with a dietitian.

Before you start: get a diagnosis first. Bloating and tummy pain can also come from celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease and other conditions. Your doctor may want to test for celiac disease before you cut out wheat. See a doctor quickly if you have weight loss, blood in your stool, fever, or symptoms that wake you at night.

What are FODMAPs?

FODMAP stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides And Polyols. They’re short-chain carbs that some people don’t absorb well in the small intestine. They pull water into the gut. Then gut bacteria break them down (ferment them), which makes gas. In people with a sensitive gut, that means bloating, pain, wind, diarrhea or constipation.

FODMAP group	Found in
Fructans	Wheat, rye, barley, onion, garlic, some vegetables
GOS	Beans, lentils, chickpeas
Lactose	Milk, yogurt, soft cheese, ice cream
Excess fructose	Apples, pears, mango, watermelon, honey, high fructose corn syrup
Polyols	Apples, pears, stone fruit, mushrooms, cauliflower, sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol

You won’t react to every group. That’s the whole point of the reintroduction step.

Does it work?

• Monash University, which developed the diet, says about 3 in 4 people with IBS feel better on it (Monash University).
• In a controlled study, people with IBS had much milder symptoms on a low FODMAP diet than on a typical diet (Halmos et al., Gastroenterology, 2014).
• The American College of Gastroenterology recommends a limited trial of the low FODMAP diet for people with IBS (Lacy et al., American Journal of Gastroenterology, 2021).

IBS is common: about 4% of adults worldwide meet the strict medical definition (Sperber et al., Gastroenterology, 2021), and many more have milder gut symptoms.

The 3 steps of the low FODMAP diet

Step	How long	What you do
1. Low FODMAP	2⁠–⁠6 weeks	Swap high FODMAP foods for low FODMAP ones. If your symptoms don’t improve, stop and talk to your doctor about other treatments.
2. Reintroduction	About 6⁠–⁠8 weeks	Test one FODMAP group at a time, for a few days each, while staying low FODMAP otherwise. Note how you feel.
3. Personalization	Long term	Eat everything you tolerate. Limit only the foods and amounts that really trigger you.

Source: Monash University, the 3 steps of the low FODMAP diet.

Low FODMAP food list

Group	Low FODMAP (okay in normal portions)	High FODMAP (limit in step 1)
Vegetables	Carrots, zucchini, cucumber, spinach, potatoes, tomatoes, red bell pepper, eggplant, lettuce, green beans, green onion tops	Onion, garlic, cauliflower, mushrooms, asparagus, leeks (white part)
Fruit	Oranges, kiwi, strawberries, blueberries, grapes, pineapple, firm bananas	Apples, pears, mango, watermelon, cherries, dried fruit
Grains	Rice, oats, quinoa, potatoes, corn tortillas, gluten-free bread, spelt sourdough	Wheat, rye and barley bread, pasta and cereals in larger amounts
Protein	Meat, chicken, fish, eggs, firm tofu, tempeh	Beans, lentils and chickpeas in larger portions, processed meats with onion or garlic
Dairy	Lactose-free milk and yogurt, hard cheeses (cheddar, parmesan), feta	Regular milk, yogurt, soft cheeses, ice cream
Nuts and seeds	Peanuts, walnuts, macadamias, pumpkin seeds, chia	Cashews, pistachios
Sweeteners	Table sugar, maple syrup (small amounts)	Honey, agave, high fructose corn syrup, sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol

Portion size matters. Many foods are low FODMAP in a small portion and high in a large one. The list above is a guide. For exact serving sizes, Monash University has a paid app with lab-tested foods.

Check labels. FODMAPs hide in packaged food: onion and garlic powder in sauces, soups and spice mixes, inulin and chicory root fiber in “high fiber” products, and sorbitol, mannitol and xylitol in sugar-free gum and candy. Read more about inulin, sorbitol, xylitol and agave syrup.

A sample low FODMAP day

Meal	What to eat
Breakfast	Oatmeal made with lactose-free milk, strawberries, a firm banana and 1 tbsp walnuts
Lunch	Rice bowl with grilled chicken, carrots, cucumber, spinach, tomatoes, feta and olive oil + lemon
Snack	Lactose-free yogurt with blueberries, or an orange and a few peanuts
Dinner	Baked salmon with potatoes and green beans, cooked in garlic-infused oil with chives

Cooking tip: use garlic-infused oil instead of garlic. FODMAPs don’t dissolve in oil, so you get the taste without the trigger. Green onion tops, chives, ginger and fresh herbs add flavor too.

Mistakes to avoid

• Staying on step 1 for months. Many high FODMAP foods – beans, onions, wheat, apples – are healthy and feed good gut bacteria. Long, strict restriction isn’t the goal.
• Skipping reintroduction. Most people react to only one or two groups. Without testing, you avoid far more foods than you need to.
• Doing it without a diagnosis. Rule out celiac disease and other conditions first.
• Eating too little fiber. Use oats, rice, quinoa, potatoes, firm tofu, chia, kiwi and low FODMAP vegetables. See our list of high-fiber foods.
• Going it alone. A registered dietitian trained in FODMAPs makes the diet easier and keeps it balanced.

Keep a food diary for your low FODMAP diet. With NutriSmart, you snap a photo of what you eat, and the app logs the food with its calories, protein, carbs, fat and fiber. On days you feel bad, you can look back and see exactly what you ate – handy when you reintroduce FODMAP groups and talk to your dietitian.Get the app free

The bottom line

The low FODMAP diet is a short-term tool for IBS, not a lifelong diet or a weight-loss plan. You cut high FODMAP foods like onion, garlic, wheat, beans, milk, apples and some sweeteners for 2–6 weeks, then add them back one group at a time and keep only the limits you need. About 3 in 4 people with IBS get relief. Get a diagnosis first, read labels for hidden onion, garlic and polyols, and work with a dietitian if you can.