If you haveirritable bowel syndrome (IBS), eating raw vegetables may make your symptoms worse. If you can’t tolerate raw onions, garlic, or broccoli, strategies like cooking and juicing can be a more IBS-friendly way to get the nutritional benefits of veggies. There are also certain raw veggies, like carrots and green beans, that some people with IBS find easier to tolerate.
This article will explain why raw vegetables can trigger IBS symptoms and how to figure out which veggies don’t work for you. You’ll also learn some alternative ways to get your veggies that are less likely to trigger IBS symptoms.
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What Is IBS?
Why Raw Vegetables Can Trigger IBS
Research on IBS has shown that people with the condition often notice that certain foodsmake their symptoms worse. That said, there’s no one food that is always a trigger for every person with the condition.
Still, some people with IBS do get an increase in symptoms like bloating, gas,constipation, and/or diarrhea after they eat raw vegetables.
There are a few reasons why raw veggies could contribute to IBS symptoms:
Raw may not be the problem—you may have trouble with certain vegetables no matter how you eat them.For example, mushrooms, celery,cauliflower, onions, and snow peas arehigh-FODMAPfoods that can trigger GI symptoms in people with IBS (and even some people who don’t have it).
Raw may not be the problem—you may have trouble with certain vegetables no matter how you eat them.
For example, mushrooms, celery,cauliflower, onions, and snow peas arehigh-FODMAPfoods that can trigger GI symptoms in people with IBS (and even some people who don’t have it).
What Causes IBS?
Figuring Out Which Raw Vegetables You Can Have With IBS
Everybody is different, and IBS is different for every person that has the condition.
If raw veggies don’t make your symptoms worse, you don’t need to cut them out. If you think that veggies could be contributing to your symptoms, you’ll need to do a little experimenting to find out which ones are troublesome for you.
As a starting point,use the FODMAPs food listto figure out which veggies in your diet might be the source of your symptoms.
Raw Vegetables That Can Trigger IBS Symptoms
Leafy raw vegetables like kale, lettuce, and arugula arelow-FODMAP, but some people with IBS and other GI disorders find them hard to digest.
Best Foods for IBS
How to Make Vegetables IBS-Friendly
If you find that you feel better not eating certain raw vegetables, you may worry that not including them in your diet will make it harder to meet your nutritional needs and goals.
While you may not want to eat them raw, there are some other ways you can try preparing veggies that may make them less likely to trigger IBS symptoms:
Some people with IBS can tolerate certain veggies raw, like carrots, bell peppers, green beans, radishes, and tomatoes.
What to Do If Diet Changes Don’t Help With IBSIf your IBS symptoms are continuing or getting worse even after you’ve changed your diet, see a gastroenterologist. Your symptomsmay not be from IBSand could be from another GI condition such asceliac diseaseorchronic pancreatitis.
What to Do If Diet Changes Don’t Help With IBS
If your IBS symptoms are continuing or getting worse even after you’ve changed your diet, see a gastroenterologist. Your symptomsmay not be from IBSand could be from another GI condition such asceliac diseaseorchronic pancreatitis.
When to See a Provider About IBS Pain
Summary
Some people with IBS find that eating raw vegetables triggers symptoms. You may want to try cutting out certain raw vegetables from your diet to figure out which ones are most likely to bother you. Cooking or juicing veggies that you can’t eat raw can jumpstart the process of breaking them down, making it easier on your digestive system.
What to Eat If You Have IBS
8 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Ligaarden SC, Lydersen S, Farup PG.Diet in subjects with irritable bowel syndrome: A cross-sectional study in the general population.BMC Gastroenterology. 2012;12(1). doi:10.1186/1471-230x-12-61Jarvis MC.Structure of native cellulose microfibrils, the starting point for nanocellulose manufacture.Philos Trans A Math Phys Eng Sci. 2018;376(2112):20170045. doi:10.1098/rsta.2017.0045Monash University.FODMAPs and irritable bowel syndrome.Dugum M, Barco K, Garg S.Managing irritable bowel syndrome: The low-FODMAP diet.Cleve Clin J Med. 2016;83(9):655-62. doi:10.3949/ccjm.83a.14159Vanhauwaert E, Matthys C, Verdonck L, De Preter V.Low-residue and low-fiber diets in gastrointestinal disease management.Advances in Nutrition. 2015;6(6):820-827. doi:10.3945/an.115.009688Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Eating guide for pureed and mechanical soft diets.Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.IBS Diet: The foods you can eat.Pyo YH, Jin YJ, Hwang JY.Comparison of the effects of blending and juicing on the phytochemicals contents and antioxidant capacity of typical korean kernel fruit juices.Prev Nutr Food Sci.2014;19(2):108-14. doi:10.3746/pnf.2014.19.2.108
8 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Ligaarden SC, Lydersen S, Farup PG.Diet in subjects with irritable bowel syndrome: A cross-sectional study in the general population.BMC Gastroenterology. 2012;12(1). doi:10.1186/1471-230x-12-61Jarvis MC.Structure of native cellulose microfibrils, the starting point for nanocellulose manufacture.Philos Trans A Math Phys Eng Sci. 2018;376(2112):20170045. doi:10.1098/rsta.2017.0045Monash University.FODMAPs and irritable bowel syndrome.Dugum M, Barco K, Garg S.Managing irritable bowel syndrome: The low-FODMAP diet.Cleve Clin J Med. 2016;83(9):655-62. doi:10.3949/ccjm.83a.14159Vanhauwaert E, Matthys C, Verdonck L, De Preter V.Low-residue and low-fiber diets in gastrointestinal disease management.Advances in Nutrition. 2015;6(6):820-827. doi:10.3945/an.115.009688Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Eating guide for pureed and mechanical soft diets.Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.IBS Diet: The foods you can eat.Pyo YH, Jin YJ, Hwang JY.Comparison of the effects of blending and juicing on the phytochemicals contents and antioxidant capacity of typical korean kernel fruit juices.Prev Nutr Food Sci.2014;19(2):108-14. doi:10.3746/pnf.2014.19.2.108
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Ligaarden SC, Lydersen S, Farup PG.Diet in subjects with irritable bowel syndrome: A cross-sectional study in the general population.BMC Gastroenterology. 2012;12(1). doi:10.1186/1471-230x-12-61Jarvis MC.Structure of native cellulose microfibrils, the starting point for nanocellulose manufacture.Philos Trans A Math Phys Eng Sci. 2018;376(2112):20170045. doi:10.1098/rsta.2017.0045Monash University.FODMAPs and irritable bowel syndrome.Dugum M, Barco K, Garg S.Managing irritable bowel syndrome: The low-FODMAP diet.Cleve Clin J Med. 2016;83(9):655-62. doi:10.3949/ccjm.83a.14159Vanhauwaert E, Matthys C, Verdonck L, De Preter V.Low-residue and low-fiber diets in gastrointestinal disease management.Advances in Nutrition. 2015;6(6):820-827. doi:10.3945/an.115.009688Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Eating guide for pureed and mechanical soft diets.Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.IBS Diet: The foods you can eat.Pyo YH, Jin YJ, Hwang JY.Comparison of the effects of blending and juicing on the phytochemicals contents and antioxidant capacity of typical korean kernel fruit juices.Prev Nutr Food Sci.2014;19(2):108-14. doi:10.3746/pnf.2014.19.2.108
Ligaarden SC, Lydersen S, Farup PG.Diet in subjects with irritable bowel syndrome: A cross-sectional study in the general population.BMC Gastroenterology. 2012;12(1). doi:10.1186/1471-230x-12-61
Jarvis MC.Structure of native cellulose microfibrils, the starting point for nanocellulose manufacture.Philos Trans A Math Phys Eng Sci. 2018;376(2112):20170045. doi:10.1098/rsta.2017.0045
Monash University.FODMAPs and irritable bowel syndrome.
Dugum M, Barco K, Garg S.Managing irritable bowel syndrome: The low-FODMAP diet.Cleve Clin J Med. 2016;83(9):655-62. doi:10.3949/ccjm.83a.14159
Vanhauwaert E, Matthys C, Verdonck L, De Preter V.Low-residue and low-fiber diets in gastrointestinal disease management.Advances in Nutrition. 2015;6(6):820-827. doi:10.3945/an.115.009688
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Eating guide for pureed and mechanical soft diets.
Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.IBS Diet: The foods you can eat.
Pyo YH, Jin YJ, Hwang JY.Comparison of the effects of blending and juicing on the phytochemicals contents and antioxidant capacity of typical korean kernel fruit juices.Prev Nutr Food Sci.2014;19(2):108-14. doi:10.3746/pnf.2014.19.2.108
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