Research first carried out in Australia and adapted by scientists at King’s College London, has suggested that people suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can ease their symptoms with the Fodmap diet.
The Fodmap diet which stands for fermentable, oligo-, di-, mono-saccharides and polyols, requires IBS sufferers to limit or revoke these five sugars and fibres from their diets, as they are poorly absorbed by the lower intestine and contribute to the symptoms of IBS.
Rise in popularity
The diet is expected to rise in popularity, as was seen with gluten-free for coeliac sufferers, said Julian Mellentin, director of New Nutrition Business. “There will be a rise in self-diagnosis of IBS, as we have seen with coeliacs in the past 10 to 15 years,” he said.
People were already aware of the effects of removing certain foods from their diets, he added. “I’ve read commentary from analysts saying that, in the future, we will have individual nutrition plans. But people are already doing that themselves by using the internet.”
The free-from diet trend was set to rise too, according to Mellentin, who said 20 years ago people were thought of as “strange” for abstaining from certain foods. But it was now common for people to do this and talk about it, he said.
Take advantage
This was where small and niche UK food manufacturers could take advantage of Fodmap-free, he said. There was no reason why there couldn’t be foods such as Fodmap-free soups and sauces on supermarket shelves.
“Gluten-free grew quickly and now supermarkets have gluten-free sections. There’s an opportunity for Fodmap-free foods on the shelves,” he said.