garlic and onions effect your gut

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The Garlic and Onions You Always Cook With
Why your gut's not a fan: They contain FODMAPs, or fermentable oligo-di-monosaccharides and polyols—carbohydrates that some people don't digest well in large amounts (garlic and onion are high in particular ones called fructans). While experts don't know for sure how many people have issues with FODMAPs, research suggests that people with irritable bowel syndrome (which affects 10 to 15 percent of Americans) are prime targets. Bacteria in our large intestine and colon start to ferment the FODMAPs, causing gas, bloating and cramping, says Neha Shah, MPH, RD, a clinical dietitian for Stanford Health Care.

How to fix it: If you can't imagine cooking without garlic and onions but your digestive tract is begging you to stop, try Shah's trick of simmering them in olive oil to infuse it with their flavors (the fructans don't leach out into the oil) and then cooking with the oil instead.