Managing IBS and Easter eggs

When it comes to the good old plain chocolate egg, the FODMAPs that we need to keep an eye out for are lactose and fructans.

If you are planning to step up the easter egg game and get fancy with some fillings, then there are some other FODMAPs that you will need to be on the lookout for, including fructose and polyols.

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Low FODMAP serve sizes of chocolate

Lactose

The following serve sizes are considered low lactose.

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milk chocolate = 4 squares (20-25g) approx. 2-3 small easter eggs

white chocolate =  4 squares (20-25g) approx. 2-3 small easter eggs

dark chocolate = 5 squares (25-30g) approx. 3-4 small easter eggs

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If lactose isn’t a trigger for you then you could probably get away with slightly larger serves.

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If lactose is a trigger, you could use a lactase enzyme if you were wanting to eat a slightly larger amount.

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Keep in mind that chocolate is high in fat (which can impact on gut movement) and therefore may trigger IBS symptoms, so try to avoid eating in excess.

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Fructans

Carob (sometimes used as an alternative to cocoa), is higher in the FODMAP fructans than cocoa and should be limited if fructans are a trigger for you.  

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Keep to 1 tsp per serve for a low FODMAP dose of carob.

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There is a bit more room to move with cocoa powder where you ca have up to 5 heaped teaspoons per serve and still be low FODMAP.

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Other FODMAPs

Try to go for plain chocolates rather than those with fillings that may contain high FODMAP ingredients such as honey, agave syrup, high fructose corn syrup, fructose, lactose, mannitol, xylitol, sorbitol, maltitol, and isomalt.

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If you want to try out some low FODMAP hot cross bun recipes, take a look here.

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