Diet Tips:The Low FODMAP Diet For IBS – It does not need to be difficult!

By Marina Iacovou (PhD candidate and Accredited Practising Dietitian)

There is no reason why a low FODMAP diet cannot be a nutritionally balanced diet. There is a variety of foods to choose from in each of the five core food groups which are outlined in the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating:

1) Grain foods

2) Vegetables and legumes/pulses

3) Dairy and dairy alternatives – milk, yoghurt, cheese

4) Fruit

5) Meats and meat alternatives - lean meats, poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds and legumes/pulses

Our app breaks down each of the 5 core food groups for you, making it easier for you to find suitable foods in each group while trialling the low FODMAP diet. So if anyone has recently been diagnosed with IBS and is about to trial the low FODMAP diet, or you are simply trying to explain this diet to friends and family – it is not a fructose-free, dairy-free, nut-free, wheat-free, gluten-free diet or a diet that excludes a particular food group.  

The first step is to see a dietitian to help you. This is something we always recommend to people and something we have written about before http://bit.ly/1BfAYNL and http://bit.ly/1HSJhRi.  It is also important to remember it is not a ‘lifetime’ diet http://bit.ly/2ccWi4b and once your symptoms are well-controlled, the next step is to work with your dietitian to re-introduce foods back into your diet.

Also, if your symptoms are well-controlled and there are foods you want to eat but we are yet to test or you are unsure of, we recommend you try them in small amounts to begin with and then monitor your symptoms as you go. This is something we have also written about http://bit.ly/1Upsw8K, which your dietitian can help you with as well.  

If you have a family, are entertaining at home, or have children with IBS there is no reason why everyone has to eat a low FODMAP meal, or for anyone to feel different/left-out.  This can be done by creating meals where everyone can choose what they eat. This can be fun especially for children and a way of re-introducing moderate-high FODMAP containing foods back into your diet. Here are some ideas to get you thinking: 

- Antipasto platters http://bit.ly/1KXVI1S

      -  Baked potatoes http://bit.ly/1SzdxH2

The low FODMAP diet does not need to be plain and boring – we have that covered for you as well. Here is how to add some flavour without adding symptoms http://bit.ly/1EwLRy3 and some tips on adding the taste of onion and garlic http://bit.ly/1MnpAG7into your meals.

If you are travelling or dining out this may need a bit more planning. For instance, when dining out you may want to source a menu from the restaurant beforehand or call ahead and ask what can be arranged for you. You may like to try some Asian cuisine, http://bit.ly/208AS8qor Greek cuisine http://bit.ly/1E2qSSh - whatever you prefer there will always be an option for you. When travelling you may need to organise a special meal on a flight or take some suitable snacks with you just in case. There are several tips and ideas to get you through while travelling, which you can read all about here http://bit.ly/1RnI7IM and http://bit.ly/1YqHvRL. 

If you want to learn more about our team, our history, our resources, what research we are doing and more, here it all is http://www.med.monash.edu/cecs/gastro/fodmap/

           

Diet Tips:It's Time To Refresh Your App!

It's Time To Refresh Your App! 

We will be releasing an app update soon, meaning that new food data will be available for your Monash Low FODMAP Diet App. In order to make sure that you receive this new data immediately, you will need to manually 'refresh' your app. Otherwise, your app will refresh itself automatically, however this may not occur for several weeks. Refreshing your app is really simple, just make sure that you have a secure Internet connection, offline mode is not active and follow these two steps: 

Step 1: In the guide section of your app, select "Settings" in the top left hand corner of the screen. 

Step 2: Scroll down the "Settings" page until you find the "Clear Cache" option. Select "Clear Cache" and your app will automatically begin to download any new data available from our server. 

           

Diet Tips:Low FODMAP Vegetarian Frittata

By Monica Rundle (Student Dietitian) & Lyndal McNamara (Dietitian)

National Nutrition Week is almost here and this year's theme is 'Try for 5'- which challenges all Australians to look for new ways to incorporate 5 serves of vegetables into their everyday diet. This simple vegetarian frittata recipe provides 3 or your 5 daily serves of vegetables per portion and is a quick, healthy lunch or dinner option that the whole family will enjoy!

Top tip- Use leftover cooked/roasted low FODMAP vegetables from a meal earlier in the week to make your frittata! This will make dinner preparation even faster and is a great way to reduce food wastage.

Serves 4

 

Ingredients

·         ½ medium sweet potato, cubed

·         2 tbsp. olive oil

·         1 tsp. paprika

·         3 spring onions (green tops only), chopped

·         1 bunch of broccoli, chopped

·         1 medium zucchini, grated

·         5 eggs

·         Dash of lactose-free milk (or other low FODMAP milk alternative)

·         ½ cup mixed herbs (basil/parsley)

·         4 tbsp. chives 

·         ¼ cup Danish feta

·         Salt and pepper to taste

Method

 

Step 1	Pre heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Toss sweet potato in half of the oil and paprika, place on lined baking tray. Roast in oven for 45 minutes of until tender
Step 2	Heat the remaining oil in a large 22cm ovenproof frying pan over medium heat.  Sauté spring onion and once softened, add the broccoli stirring occasionally until charred. Add zucchini; cook for 2 minutes or until softened. Remove from heat.
Step 3	Combine eggs, milk and mixed herbs in a food processor. Process until herbs are finely chopped and egg mixture is fluffy.
Step 4	Once cooked, add the roasted sweet potato to the broccoli mixture within the frying pan, and turn heat back to medium.  Add the egg mixture to the frying pan and stir until well combined. Sprinkle with feta and chives and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low and cook for 8 minutes of until the egg mixture has mostly set.
Step 5	In the meantime, preheat the grill on high. Place the frying pan under the grill and grill until golden brown and egg mixture is set. Top with rocket salad (see below for recipe).

Rocket Salad

 

Serves 4

 

Ingredients

·         2 cups rocket

·         1 cup baby spinach leaves

·         ½ medium avocado

·         ¼ cup black pitted olives

·         3 tbsp. olive oil

·         1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

·         Pinch of salt and pepper

Method

Step 1

Add salad ingredients to a bowl. To make dressing, add oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to a jar. Shake well. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Add to salad, toss and serve with frittata.

Nutrition Information/serve:

Energy	1791kJ
Protein	13.6g
Fat	35.0g
Saturated fat	6.3g
Carbohydrates	11.8g
Dietary fibre	6.6g
Sodium	266mg

 

Diet Tips:#Tryfor5 - Tips for Eating More Vegetables Everyday

It’s National Nutrition Week in Australia soon and the theme this year is Try for 5. The Try for 5 campaign encourages consumers to include 5 serves of vegetables in their diet every day. Legumes are included in the vegetable group, so including these everyday is important too. People following a low FODMAP diet sometimes find it difficult to include enough vegetables due to the additional dietary restrictions imposed by the low FODMAP diet. But eating enough low FODMAP vegetables is easier than you’d think. Read on for some tips to increase your vegetable intake:

Breakfast

·    Serve your hot breakfast on the weekend with wilted spinach and grilled tomatoes

·    Make vegetable fritters using corn, grated sweet potato and/or grated zucchini

·    Try making scrambled tofu on toast  - see our app for the recipe

·    Add capsicum, green tips of spring onion, zucchini, spinach and/or tomato to your favourite scrambled egg / omelette recipe

·    Try making a low FODMAP green smoothie using the recipe we posted on our blog earlier this year http://fodmapmonash.blogspot.com.au/2016/03/low-fodmap-green-smoothie.html

Snacks

·    Snack on sticks of raw carrot and capsicum

·    Make a batch of vegetable muffins and freeze extras for healthy snacks on the go. Check out the recipe section of our app for details

Lunch

·    Cook a low FODMAP vegetable or minestrone soup and freeze portions for mid-week lunches. Check out our app for low FODMAP recipes

·    Make a roasted vegetable salad using sweet potato, capsicum, Jap pumpkin, parsnip and zucchini and dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar

·    Make a cheese and salad sandwich full of low FODMAP vegetables. You’ll need low FODMAP bread (e.g. sourdough spelt), cheddar cheese, sliced tomato, sliced cucumber, grated carrot, lettuce and grainy mustard.

·    If you’re having a barbeque, be sure to add some vegetables to the hot plate by making meat and vegetable kebabs or roasting corn and capsicum

Try this Zesty Moroccan Chicken and Roast Vegetable Salad: http: http://bit.ly/1nmjf6s  

Dinner

·    Add grated zucchini, grated carrot and spinach leaves to your favourite bolognese recipe

·    Have a meat-free night once a week at home. Many of your favourite casserole / curry / stir fry recipes will be just as nice with legumes or tofu substituted for meat. Low FODMAP meat alternatives include firm tofu, canned chickpeas and canned lentils.

·    Make a low FODMAP pizza using a gluten free wrap for the base, tomato paste, semi-dried tomatoes, olives, red and green capsicum, pineapple, roasted Jap pumpkin and ham.

·    Add a layer of roasted Jap pumpkin or spinach and ricotta to your favourite lasagne recipe

Try this Vegan Coconut & Pumpkin Curry with Roasted Chickpeas: http://bit.ly/1R6k15b
Image via Alana Scott- A Little Bit Yummy