Fructose Malabsorption

[tea-and-crumpets]

Does anyone also suffer from fructose malabsorption? I have been gluten free for almost six months. I'm quite strict in my house: no gluten at all, replaced all of the pans, all of that. I rarely eat out of the house and then only at restaurants that are definitely gluten free. Yet still I have some bad days. More good days than bad, I'd say, but I've found myself taking immodium more often when I have somewhere to be. When I get sick it's the usual culprits. Big D, but not often the floating kind. (Sorry!) Extreme stomach cramping, and often lower down in my large intestinal area.

I have noticed that I have a lot of problems with onions, for example. Last night I had tomato sauce and today I was really sick. Some days, though, I eat a stew that I make that has a small bit of tomato and I have no problem.

I am trying to find a new doctor right now, but money is tight. I also would like to find out what's wrong with me as soon as I can. I was doing so well for a while that it's really discouraging to feel like I'm moving backwards. Could I just still be healing from gluten? I was sick about three years before I went gluten free, and I stopped eating gluten completely, barring being glutened twice.

Any advice?

[Mack the Knife]

Does anyone also suffer from fructose malabsorption? I have been gluten free for almost six months. I'm quite strict in my house: no gluten at all, replaced all of the pans, all of that. I rarely eat out of the house and then only at restaurants that are definitely gluten free. Yet still I have some bad days. More good days than bad, I'd say, but I've found myself taking immodium more often when I have somewhere to be. When I get sick it's the usual culprits. Big D, but not often the floating kind. (Sorry!) Extreme stomach cramping, and often lower down in my large intestinal area.

I have noticed that I have a lot of problems with onions, for example. Last night I had tomato sauce and today I was really sick. Some days, though, I eat a stew that I make that has a small bit of tomato and I have no problem.

I am trying to find a new doctor right now, but money is tight. I also would like to find out what's wrong with me as soon as I can. I was doing so well for a while that it's really discouraging to feel like I'm moving backwards. Could I just still be healing from gluten? I was sick about three years before I went gluten free, and I stopped eating gluten completely, barring being glutened twice.

Any advice?

My girlfriend suffers from this. She blows up like a bullfrog if she eats too much fructose. A lot of the symptoms are similar to Coeliac disease so it may be hard to tell them apart. Fructose malabsorption is all to do with quantity and loading. So some days a certain food might be fine and other days it will set you off. It all depends on how much fructose you've had that day already. And everyone's tolerances are a bit different.

You can be tested for Fructose Malabsorption though hydrogen breath testing. However, the testing probably won't be covered by your health insurance.

If you suspect fructose is a problem then the simplest thing would be to avoid high fructose foods for a couple of weeks and see if that settles you down. You can always go through the testing at a later date if you want. Unlike Coeliac disease, the testing won't be negated by having removed the problem food in your diet.

The major foods you need to avoid or eat very minimally are:

Fruit:

Apples, pears, mango, watermelon, quince, paw paw, lychee, guava, pomegranate, dried fruit, fruit juice, tomatoes, tomato paste.

Vegetables:

Onion, garlic, spring onion, leek, asparagus, artichoke, Jerusalem artichoke, witlof, chicory, radicchio, endive and dandelion greens.

Others:

Honey, coconut milk and cream, wheat, brown rice, fructose, fruit juice sweeteners (apple or pear juice concentrate), artificial sweeteners (ie sorbitol and xylitol), and high fructose corn syrups (which are used a lot in soda drinks)

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and nightshade sensitivity are other areas you might want to look into. Tomatoes and onions are both nightshades and lots of people have problems with them.

[tea-and-crumpets]

My girlfriend suffers from this. She blows up like a bullfrog if she eats too much fructose. A lot of the symptoms are similar to Coeliac disease so it may be hard to tell them apart. Fructose malabsorption is all to do with quantity and loading. So some days a certain food might be fine and other days it will set you off. It all depends on how much fructose you've had that day already. And everyone's tolerances are a bit different.

You can be tested for Fructose Malabsorption though hydrogen breath testing. However, the testing probably won't be covered by your health insurance.

If you suspect fructose is a problem then the simplest thing would be to avoid high fructose foods for a couple of weeks and see if that settles you down. You can always go through the testing at a later date if you want. Unlike Coeliac disease, the testing won't be negated by having removed the problem food in your diet.

The major foods you need to avoid or eat very minimally are:

Fruit:

Apples, pears, mango, watermelon, quince, paw paw, lychee, guava, pomegranate, dried fruit, fruit juice, tomatoes, tomato paste.

Vegetables:

Onion, garlic, spring onion, leek, asparagus, artichoke, Jerusalem artichoke, witlof, chicory, radicchio, endive and dandelion greens.

Others:

Honey, coconut milk and cream, wheat, brown rice, fructose, fruit juice sweeteners (apple or pear juice concentrate), artificial sweeteners (ie sorbitol and xylitol), and high fructose corn syrups (which are used a lot in soda drinks)

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and nightshade sensitivity are other areas you might want to look into. Tomatoes and onions are both nightshades and lots of people have problems with them.

Thank you for the info! The concept of loading makes a lot of sense to me, as some days are worse than others. I did consider nightshade sensitivity, but I don't have any problems at all with potatoes, so I discounted it.

I find myself very sad at the thought of losing onions and tomatoes. Wasn't gluten enough?

[cassP]

Thank you for the info! The concept of loading makes a lot of sense to me, as some days are worse than others. I did consider nightshade sensitivity, but I don't have any problems at all with potatoes, so I discounted it.

I find myself very sad at the thought of losing onions and tomatoes. Wasn't gluten enough?

ya, i suffer from this- it's a REAL PAIN IN THE A... exactly! shouldn't gluten be enough :/

what's tricky with this is that it's kind of trial and error with each food item- and like mack the knife said- with quantity as well. also- if you research online- you're gonna see a different list of foods everytime.. tho every list has the biggest culprits.

i am ok with tomatoes & tomato paste in moderation. if i have more than 1 bowl of rice pasta bolognese than i get fructose problems. but just one bowl and im ok. i also noticed that i handle homemade sauce better than a jar. dont know why. onions are ok for me in moderation. garlic is a little more iffy.

i avoid Pears, Prunes, Apples, and Dates like the PLAGUE. i can do a SMALL amount of mango.. and i usually limit my banana to a 1/2 a banana-> and try to eat it more ripe. the riper it is-> the higher sucrose content & lower fructose. today tho, i had my new fave snack- of a little banana, berries, and goat yogurt... and unfortunately i overdid it, tho i dont know how- i stuck to the low fructose fruits... but i was a little bloated & uncomfortable for the rest of work.

i also avoid grapes. and im still feeling out sweet potatoes & asparagus.

its a HUGE pain in the A- because we need fruits and veggies to be healthy- so, im constantly "testing the waters".

_______________

Mack the Knife: why is brown rice a culprit and not white??? this is VERY INTERESTING... because my brother was telling his wife that since she switched to brown rice- its been bothering him... and she thought he was crazy... but hhmmmmm.

[Austin Guy]

I've not felt right much of the time after going gluten free last May. I have good days and bad days. I've gone through every food intolerance imaginable except one that should have been obvious. To maintain a healthy diet I started eating just meats, fresh vegetables and fruit - specifically an apple and a banana a day. I finally figured out today that I have a problem that is most likely lactose malabsorption. Gurgly gut, fatigue, lack of motivation, not enjoying things, bloating, gas, mild brain fog. Can't wait for tomorrow to come because I will avoid foods with much lactose in them.

[kkgirl]

I just seen your  post.i have celiac and can't have dairy proteins or lactose. But fructose a huge issue for me. The dumb thing is the breath test was negative but i was so sick during that test I thought it was going to be positive and I told them I never want to do this test again. Yet it came back negative and they think it was a false negative because of how sick I was but I refuse to take the test again it was that bad. I'm new to it so I haven't found what I can can have it know pasta sauce if I have to much makes me sick. Iv tried adding it back in but it makes me so sick.