Are mushrooms bad for IBS?

Have you ever considered mushrooms a trigger for your IBS? I tend to find my clients are often surprised at how they can affect your digestion.

This blog post covers all you need to know to decide if you should keep eating them.

The benefits of eating mushrooms with IBS

Mushrooms are fungi and are very nutritious. Different species have different benefits, but most contain B vitamins, selenium, copper and antioxidants.

Mushrooms contain a type of fibre called beta-glucan, also found in oats. Beta-glucan is very good for heart health, because it has been shown to lower cholesterol. It can also be fermented by gut bacteria, encouraging healthy populations of microbes.

Eating mushrooms is also potentially linked to mood benefits. An observational study of 24k people showed those who ate (4g) mushrooms daily had a lower chance of depression over 9 years than people who didn’t eat mushrooms. Interestingly eating more (19g per day) mushrooms didn’t lower the risk, so as with many things in nutrition more isn’t always better!

How do mushrooms affect your digestion?

Mushrooms are high in mannitol, a sugar alcohol. This is one of the FODMAP categories, which also includes sauerkraut and celery. Button mushrooms are also moderate for fructan, another low FODMAP category, when you eat more than two mushrooms.

• Button mushrooms are low FODMAP until 10g (or 1.5 mushrooms)
• Shitake & portobello mushrooms are low FODMAP until 15g
• Oyster mushrooms are low FODMAP at a normal serving of around 80g.

As you can see you don’t need many mushrooms to tip you into a high FODMAP meal. Remember that doesn’t always mean it’s bad for people with IBS, just that the microbes in your gut find the fibre fermentable. This is normally a good thing for most people, but in IBS might add to your sensitivity.

Mushrooms and the low FODMAP diet

Mannitol, as a polyol, can draw water into the gut or be fermented by gut bacteria to produce gas.

Are mushrooms bad for IBS?

Whether or not mushrooms will trigger a flare in you is very individual. Not everyone with IBS reacts to all types of FODMAP foods. (And not everyone with IBS needs to follow the low FODMAP diet).

How to start eating mushrooms with IBS

If you haven’t eaten mushrooms for a while, try bringing them back in slowly. Perhaps start with just 1-2 once a day with a meal and build up from there. 

Did you know? 

You can increase the vitamin D levels in mushrooms by leaving them in the sun for 20 mins before eating them because they soak up the radiation.

I wouldn’t rely on mushrooms for your vitamin D as this isn’t a huge amount but you can maximise the nutrition by doing this on a sunny day.

You may not have an issue with any FODMAPs, so if you have IBS, it’s best to test your tolerance using the low FODMAP diet intervention.

If you want help figuring out your IBS triggers, start your Gut Reset with me over 3 months to find a diet that works for you. Just set up a free call to discuss what you need some help with. Email info@goodnessme-nutrition.com