Although I've seen the term "FODMAP", I'm not really familiar with the diet. But here are two articles that say there is no evidence that it helps "non-gut" issues.
http://www.webmd.boots.com/healthy-eating/guide/fodmaps-diet
http://www.kcl.ac.uk/lsm/research/divisions/dns/projects/fodmaps/faq.aspx

Another online article suggests that "inflammation" is the basic problem and that one must find the source of the inflammation and take care of that. Read item "1."
http://getwellified.com/think-twice-before-going-low-fodmap/

Something to keep in mind is that making a dietary change is fairly easy and can often give us relief from at least one aspect of our health issues. And if the change doesn't work, it's easy to revert back to how you ate before. Hope you find the answers you're seeking.

I have been on both Fodmaps and gluten-free diet since February. Gluten-free is easier to follow, the Fodmaps can be a trial and error type of thing as not all things seem to affect us all. Then there are things we may try that affect us sometimes but not all the time as long as we don't eat too much or too often. I do my best as it can be tricky dealing with both diets, for example, there are gluten-free foods that contain some sugars they tell us to avoid on Fodmaps.

I haven't noticed any negative side effects and I am not sure why it is suspect for your aching joints. I have to admit that I do have several conditions that cause chronic pain so it may be hard for me to identify something "new", but there hasn't been any noticeable increase in pain. For me, it has been a huge help with my digestive issues. I really hope you are able to figure out what is causing your symptoms. By any chance, have you begun any new meds?

I think I may have misunderstood. Your dr. recommended the diet for your achy joints? Well, I have heard, and my gastro brought it to my attention, it sometimes helps with fibromyalgia. Since I have had this for almost 24 yrs, he asked me whether it has helped with those symptoms. Achy joints are often one of the many symptoms of FMS. What I have noticed is this. My sleep has improved and with improved sleep comes less pain because without deep sleep, our muscles cannot repair and it leaves us achy and unrefreshed. Definitely, I have seen some improvement.

Thank you for the information. It echoes what I've been finding. My diet is so limited already that I was having a really hard time convincing myself to eliminate even more foods. The list is extensive with FODMAP.

Caroline04, I think my doctor is desperate for anything to try. I don't fit into any clear disease and nearly all my test come back negative. That is other than my nutrients--low on D, B-vitamins, zinc, calcium, etc. The B-vitamins they finally figures out and so now I take the mutilated versions. The joint pain started way before starting this supplement and I've contact the manufactures of everything I take to make sure they are free of known problem causes (same with makeup, shampoos, lotions, etc.). I've been to the Mayo Clinic and they were less than helpful. Getting quality rest doesn't seem to make much difference.

I have managed to make the symptoms worse (I should say the doctor has managed to make them worse), but I'm still missing the connection between things that make the joint pain worse. Eating gluten, corn, and soy definitely make my joints worse, but they also set off a whole bunch of GI issues; dairy, coffee, and sesame to a lesser degree.

I don't even know if my joints are related to food or not. When I gave up dairy, I got very sick for about a week. Not sure if I was decoding or what. Nothing I'm trying seems to be making much since. As a scientist, it is driving me nuts.

Sorry, this was so long. I really appreciate the feedback that you have both given me.

You say they looked for arthritis, have they also looked for things like Lyme?

Your latest post triggered a thought with me. Do you use artificial sweeteners? I can't even drink a few swallows of diet pop or eat anything made with artificial sweeteners (including maltodextrin), because it will cause me lots of joint pain. Also, too much refined sugar does almost the same thing.

Another thought was something I read recently, posted by Jennifer Esposito on her blog, "Jennifer's Way." Jennifer has celiac disease, and still had problems while on a strict gluten-free diet. Here's a link to the article.
http://jennifersway.org/frustrated-celiac-missing-link-mtrfr/

Don't know if either of these applies to you, but thought I'd mention them.

If you do decide to look into Lyme disease you need to know that the test for it is not very good, a lot of inaccurate labs out there except for two. This has just been a big discussion on the hypothyroidism board. There are only two labs that do a good test for Lyme disease. One is in California and the other is in Germany. If you want the name of the labs or to read the posts let me know. Hope you get to the bottom of this soon and are feeling better.

FODMAP refers to certain natural sugars in foods but also, it includes some fibers. Some people have difficulty digesting these carbs. It stands for : Fermentable Oligo, Di-, and Mono-saccharides And Polyols.

If it would be of any help to anyone, there is a book written by Patsy Catsos entitled IBS Free at Last. It does say that it has nothing to do with gluten however we must eliminate wheat, rye and barley. Unfortunately, in my case, the gastro said I am also gluten intolerant.

I'm not an authority on this subject as I am learning too. It was a diet, I believe devised for a completely new approach to IBS. My gp always suggested I increase my fiber, well the more I did, the worse I got!, I am assuming the doctor has ruled out other causes for your joint pain and maybe thinks this is worth trying. Again, good luck with trying to
sort this out. I guess I should add, this book is a book dedicated to the FODMAPS elimination diet. We have to do our own detective work because it may not involve all things on the lists.

I have not been tested for Limes, but the symptoms have been going on for probably 10 yrs. It wasn't until recently that it became a full-body experience. I'd get a new joint hurting every time I got contaminated. Then my latest doctor took me off dairy and started me on thyroid meds and the pain became global. I see my GP in 2 wks. I'll see what she says.

Xylitol is the only sugar substitute that I'm regularly exposed to (in tooth paste and breath mints). Evaporated cane juice, honey, and maple sugar are the only sweeteners I use or allow in foods (and then sparingly).

Oh, an back to the thyroid med for a minute. I was allergic to the first one he prescribed--made me drowsy. Now, I have a pharmacy compound one specially for me. If I go off of it, my joints still hurt and I get the benefits of a hypothyroid, so I don't think it is the cause. I've done the same experiment with my other med/vitamins.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll keep checking them out.

Two no-nos on this particular diet, xylitol and honey, others ok. If you can, why not eliminate those two for a while and see if it has any effect. Worth a try. Aspartame is allowed, however, I can't take that one. Some people have unusual symptoms with this sweetner, my stepson used to get bad headaches.

One more thought. Have you tried an anti-candida diet?

Hello Chemnut,

I have had a lot of trouble with abdominal discomfort, bloating, gas, and heartburn during the past couple of years. I was diagnosed with SIBO and a couple of food allergies, including lactose, wheat, corn, peanuts and soy and was given Rifaximin + VSL#3 which helped when I took them. The effect lasted for a few more months. At the same time I was also having joint pain in various parts of the body. I was told I have osteoarthritis in shoulder and a mild one in the back. I tried many different diets and supplements. Nothing seemed to help, except taking Digest Gold Pro, apple cider vinegar and baby carrots with meals especially dinner almost always made the abdominal problems less severe. I also noticed that my joint pain correlated with abdominal pain the night before. About a month back I started experimenting with the FODMAP diet. Very quickly I started noticing an improvement in abdominal symptoms. Although that continued, after a couple of weeks on the diet I started noticing more joint pain mixed with a different kind of pain which felt like it was in the tendons, especially the elbows. I also felt a lack of energy. A few days back while researching for arthritic pain, I read about the benefits of probiotics so I started having some home-made tart yogurt with lunch. Lo and behold, the pain has subsided quite a bit and energy has improved. It seems to me the diet not only reduces bad but also good bacteria in the gut and the lack of the latter affects one's joint and metabolic health. I would love to know how you resolved your issue and if other people are also having similar experiences with the diet.

I forgot to say that I have also been experiencing increasing cold sensitivity for over a year or two while thyroid levels were well within check. Like to see if longterm probiotics use helps with cold sensitivity. I am hoping that my IBS symptoms will stay in check while on probiotics. I did feel some gurguling coming on in the last couple of days.

@Rufi
Hi, Rufi, and welcome to this forum of nice people. I hope you can keep your IBS in check. Do keep us posted. Best wishes to you.

Chemnut, someone on the hypo board went through years of different health problems. Saw multiple doctors, tried the thyroid drugs. She finally went to the Hotze clinic in Texas. After I think it was about 6 years of treatments, Hotze figured out it was Lyme in just a few months. You can have it for years before being Dx'd.

I hope you get some answers and feel better.