Beer

Why beer is rated low

Beer lands in the low range at the one serving that has been tested: 1 can (375mL). The record for beer shows no raised FODMAP subgroup at all, so there is no single carbohydrate driving the load up at that amount, and the rating is simply the tested can coming in low. What the rating does not cover is a second or third can, a pint glass poured larger than a can, or a fruit or honey flavoured brew that brings ingredients of its own. Nothing above 1 can (375mL) has been tested here, so treat that can as the cap rather than a starting point.

What changes your risk

• The size of the pour The low verdict is attached to 1 can (375mL) and nothing larger. Draught glasses, steins and pitchers are poured to house sizes that have not been tested, so a canned or bottled serving is the only amount you can match to the data.
• What is on the plate beside it Beer carries no raised subgroup of its own, so stacking here is about the total FODMAP load of the whole sitting. A can alongside garlic bread, onion rings, a creamy dip and a wheat bun is an evening where everything else is doing the work.
• Fruit, honey and spiced brews Beers brewed or finished with fruit or honey are a different product from a plain lager or ale. Read the label for apple, pear, mango or honey, none of which belong in a low FODMAP glass.
• Shandies and soft drink tops Topping beer with fruit juice adds whatever the juice carries, and juice packs the sugars of several pieces of fruit into one glass while leaving the fibre behind. Sugar-free mixers are worth a label check for sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, maltitol and isomalt.
• Spacing the night out One can with a meal is a very different total from three cans in an hour. Spreading drinks across the evening and alternating with water keeps the amount closer to the serving the data actually covers. Separate from FODMAPs, alcohol itself sits badly with some people, and that is a matter of individual tolerance.

What else works

For a plain drink, a plain lager or ale at 1 can (375mL) is the version the data describes, and gin, vodka and rum each come in low at 1 shot (30mL) on their own records if you would rather have a spirit with soda water and a squeeze of lime. The drinks people treat as interchangeable with beer are not: cider is pressed apple, fruit beers are built on pear, mango or berry syrups, honey-sweetened ales carry honey, and premixed alcopops are often sweetened with high fructose corn syrup. None of those are covered by the beer serving. Gluten free beer is a gluten question rather than a FODMAP rating, so it does not change what the tested can says.

How to keep it low

Buying cans or bottles rather than ordering from the tap is the easiest way to keep the amount matched to 1 can (375mL), because the volume is printed on the container and a bar glass is whatever size the venue stocks. If you are out, ask for a bottled beer and drink it from the bottle or pour it yourself so the measure stays honest. Keep plain lager or ale as the default and save the label reading for anything described as fruit, sour, spiced, honey or dessert style. Having the drink with food rather than on an empty stomach, and putting a glass of water between rounds, keeps the evening tidy.

Common questions

how much beer is low fodmap

1 can (375mL) is the tested serving and it comes in low. Larger amounts have not been tested here, so that can is the figure to work from rather than a starting point.

can i drink beer during the elimination phase

Beer is low at 1 can (375mL), so it fits at that serving. Tolerance is individual, and alcohol itself can be unsettling for some people regardless of FODMAP content.

is cider low fodmap like beer

No. Cider is pressed from apples, which are not low FODMAP, so it is not a substitute for the tested can of beer.

what about fruit beer or a shandy

Both add ingredients that the tested can does not include. Fruit beers are built on fruit syrups, and a shandy adds juice or soft drink, so the beer serving no longer describes what is in the glass.