Anyone who suffers from IBS knows the pain and frustration associated with the disease. Lots of people have advice for those dealing with stomach issues: take probiotics, try yoga, give up wheat. But digestive problems are more complicated than that, especially since what works for one person may not work for another. But a couple of registered dietitians got together and came up with a 28-day play for those suffering from IBS, using the low-FODMAP system to help soothe the ups and downs of IBS and help create a game plan for future meals, so that the digestive distress becomes a thing of the past.
With lots of useful information on what high-FODMAP foods are and how they cause problems for those with a sensitive system, authors Audrey Inouye and Lauren Renlund show the way forward in The 28-Day Plan for IBS Relief. What are high and low-FODMAP foods? FODMAP is an acronym for the digestible carbohydrates in food. Low-FODMAP foods are easier to digest, giving those with IBS options to help alleviate the painful symptoms and allow their digestive systems to work more naturally.
After a more detailed explanation and lists of foods that are high, moderate, and low-FODMAP, the authors then give you encouragement to fill your pantry with helpful foods and beverages and prepare yourself for their 28-day plan to reset your system. This book includes a plan for 4 weeks of this new diet, along with shopping lists and recipes, many of which can be made ahead to prepare for the week. The authors encourage you to keep a journal, so you can track exactly what you ate and how it made you feel.
After those 4-weeks, they invite you to slowly reintroduce other foods to your diet, continuing to pay attention to how you’re feeling and how your body is reacting to them, so you can find a long-term diet that brings you the digestive health you’ve been craving. And with 100 recipes to take with you on your new journey, you can be ready for anything that comes up.
The recipes include breakfasts like granola, French toast, pancakes, smoothies, and even Banana-Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bites. There are soups and salads, sides, meatless main dishes, seafood, poultry, pork, and beef, and even snacks and desserts. You can enjoy a Canadian Maple Salmon with a Caesar Salad or Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken with Crispy Parmesan Baby Potatoes, followed up with some classic Chocolate Chip Cookies or Chocolate-Walnut Brownies.
I am not someone who suffers from IBS, but I do have some digestive distress from time to time. While the books is titled The 28-Day Plan for IBS Relief, this plan can also benefit those with celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, endometriosis, or SIBO. And while I may not go all in on the 28-day plan, I can still take some of this advice and help soothe my stomach when things get bumpy. Just knowing the low- and high-FODMAP foods will help me make better choices and live a better life.
A Copy of The 28-Day Plan for IBS Relief was provided by Rockridge Press through the Callisto Media Publisher’s Club, with many thanks.