Hermiones Mom's Journal, 12 February 2016

Grrrrr. Fingers crossed that you can get the digestion issue settled down enough to enjoy the rest of your Birthday celebrations and your lesson! Do Quest Bars work for you? I happen to really like the taste of a couple of them. I've shared with a friend though and while not overly sweet for her, she said she could taste "something" that just made it not work for her. You can find the individual bars in GNC stores, Trader Joes, etc. I am personally fond of the Peanut Butter Supreme and Cookie Dough flavors. I think I've read something recently though about a reformulation that now includes Sugar Alcohol. I'm not sure if that is an issue for FODMAP but wanted to mention it.  

Some of those bars have sugar alcohols in them to give the a sweetness - that gives many people indigestion and gas 

Every body bragged about Quest bars. I looked every where finally found them at our organic health food store in Fernandina beach. The girl said they couldn't keep them on the shelf, they was so popular. So I bought 3. Never had I been so disappointed at anything Took 2 bites of 1 and it had to go. The other 2 was just as bad. so what 1 likes does not mean every 1 will like. I make the fat bombs and just a bite or 2 satisfies. and I know what is in them also because they came from my kitchen. 

I got some quest bars for my husband he hated them...he usually eats cliff bars and i'm pretty sure they are like a candy bar, lol!  

The Detour bars are "clean" -- don't have any sugar alcohols or anything bad. They just taste bad. I eat Luna Protein Bars even though they do have some chicory root, which is a non-FODMAP approved ingredient, but it doesn't seem to bother me. What attracted me to Detour was a) high protein b) high fiber and c) "clean" ingredients. But if they taste bad it's pointless. The Luna protein bars are really quite good -- they are also a bit sweeter than I'd like, but not bad at all. I don't think it was the Detour bar that disturbed my gut -- I'm on an approximate 24-hour reaction schedule, so it's much more likely it was something at dinner. Sometimes people put sulfited vinegars in Caesar dressing, which doesn't work for me. Before I developed IBS-D, sulfites just gave me a rash. But since I got sick, now if I eat something with sulfites, I get diarrhea. It's very frustrating. 

Ahhh - yes, it is very frustrating because it must be hard for you to predict. Luna bars are tasty. Also not sure what you cannot eat, but KIND bars come in different types and I think they are great. I seldom eat them though because of the carbs... 

I eat Kind Bars more as a treat/snack than for meal supplement. Kind Bars are low glycemic, so I don't worry about the carbs in them. However, many of the varieties have non-FODMAP-safe ingredients. I stick with the nuts and spices flavors, and they seem to be OK. They all have honey in them though -- so some people on FODMAP can't eat them. I don't use honey in my cooking, but I seem to be able to tolerate the amount of honey in the Kind Bars I do eat. I also have started eating the new Kind Healthy Grains Granola bars. Some of these also have non-FODMAP-safe ingredients, but there are several that don't have any dried fruit in them, and I've been using those as snacks. But like the regular Kind Bars, the granola bars are really treats -- they don't have the nutrition of a Luna Protein bar. 

I bet you could make your own protein based bars with ingredients that fit your program...I know you have made "ice cream" and baked things so I bet you would be a whiz at creating bars! 

I tried the Quest whey bars that I saw at the local gym (Trader Joe's carries them, too), and the ones I tried were pretty tasty. They come in lots of different flavors -- I like the mixed berry and the lemon ones. 

Try these: No Bake coconut cashew bars: 1 cup almond flour-1/4 cup melted butter-1/4 cup sugar free Waldens farms maple syrup ( it is all natural nothing artificial)-1 tsp cinnamon-pinch salt-1/2 cup cashews-1/4 cup shredded coconut. Combine melted butter and almond flour in large bowl. To that add cinnamon and salt syrup and shredded coconut. mix well. Roughly chop 1/2 cup cashews and add it to your dough. mix well again. line baking dish with parchment paper and spread your dough in a even layer. place in the frigerator and chill for 2 hrs. slice into bars and EAT. makes 8 bars each bar has 189 calories, 17.6g fat, 4 net carbs 4g protein. 

Sweet Georgia Peaches -- Thanks so much for thinking of me, but this recipe is not FODMAP safe. Have to limit cashews and almond flour consumption, and I can't eat any sugar substitute -- only real sugar and real maple syrup. Unfortunately, "Natural" does not mean FODMAP safe. I'm doing ok with Luna Bars and the occasional Kind Bar. I also have a good recipe for a peanut butter chocolate chip bar that has no flour and no butter -- it's not by any means a nutrition bar, but it's gluten and cholesterol free, so it makes for a nice dessert.  

Thanks for the heads up I may make Sweet Georgia Peaches recipe I'm trying to work harder to not use processed food hoping to get better results. 

Addie Aline -- Using fewer processed foods is an excellent enhancement to your eating plan. I can't eat processed foods due to the restrictions of FODMAP and my sulfite allergy. It's a lot of work to make everything from scratch - but eliminating processed food gets rid of lots of hidden sugar. And I'm also finding that when you get processed food out of your diet, you end up eating a lot more whole foods, like berries, citrus, and low-glycemic melons, like honeydew. It makes for a more varied and nutritious diet all round.