A vegan diet excludes all animal-derived products, including meat, poultry, fish, seafood, dairy, eggs, animal fats, and honey. Vegans instead rely on plant-based foods to meet their nutritional needs, such as fruit, vegetables, breads, cereals, grains, legumes, lentils, soy products, nuts and seeds.
Being a vegan and following a low FODMAP diet can be tricky, as many plant-based protein sources are naturally high in FODMAPs. To make sure this diet is nourishing and nutritionally balanced, you will need to be organised and plan to ensure you get enough protein every day.
As always, it is best to work with a dietitian when trialling the low FODMAP diet, and even more so when you have additional dietary restrictions like following a vegan diet. A dietitian will help to ensure that you meet all of your nutrient requirements, in particular vitamin B12, iron, calcium, zinc, omega 3 and of course protein.
Your protein requirements depend on many factors, the main ones being your age, weight and gender. You must also take into consideration the amount of physical activity you participate in and whether you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Below is an example of a low FODMAP, vegan meal plan that meets the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating for recommended serves, and provides more than enough protein for a 19-30yr old female, weighing 70kg (~52.5g protein). Variety is the key to a well-balanced diet, so use this as a guide and get creative, making sure you include one plant based protein source at every meal!
| Sample Meal Plan – Female Vegan aged 19-30yr* | |
|---|---|
| Breakfast - Porridge | Protein (g) |
| ½ rolled oat porridge, with | 3.1 |
| 1 cup almond milk, topped with | 1.6 |
| 1 banana | 1.4 |
| 1 tsp linseeds | 0.6 |
| Snack | |
| 2 thick rice cakes, with | 1.5 |
| 1 Tbs (20g) crunchy peanut butter (no added salt or sugar) | 4.0 |
| Coffee with 3/4 cup soy protein soy milk (see app for appropriate milk) | 3.9 |
| Lunch - Sandwich | |
| 2 slices low FODMAP bread (e.g. gluten free or spelt sourdough), with | 4.5 |
| 1 tbs homemade capsicum hummus as spread (see link below for recipe) | 0.9 |
| ½ cup baby spinach | 0.4 |
| Cherry tomatoes x 8 | 0.0 |
| Lebanese cucumber ½ small | 0.3 |
| Capsicum ½ small | 1.5 |
| Snack | |
| 1 cup grapes | 1.0 |
| Dinner – Stir fry | |
| 150g firm tofu, stir fried, with | 18.0 |
| 1 cup quinoa, cooked | 7.6 |
| 4 florets broccoli | 2.5 |
| ½ cup Asian greens e.g. bok choy | 1.0 |
| ½ carrots, chopped | 1.0 |
| Low FODMAP stir fry sauce of your choice | 0.0 |
| TOTAL | 54.8 |
*To find out what your protein requirements are you can visit the Australian Government National Health and Medical Research Council website: https://www.nrv.gov.au/nutrients/protein
Try this vegan roast vegetable bowl for 18.7g of protein: https://www.monashfodmap.com/blog/
Use this homemade capsicum hummus as a spread for your sandwich: https://www.monashfodmap.com/blog/4-ways-to-enjoy-roasted-red-pepper/#more
