Soft Drink

High FODMAP

Serving sizes

Soft Drink changes rating with portion size. Its rating is estimated from what it is made of, so the servings are described rather than weighed.

Small serving Moderate
Moderate serving High
Large serving High

Excess Fructose

Soft drink is High FODMAP, since most regular versions are built on a sweetener that carries more fructose than your gut can easily absorb.

The Excess Fructose from high-fructose corn syrup is the main driver: even a small serving sits at moderate, and it climbs to high by a moderate serving and stays there at a large one.
Diet versions swap in different sweeteners that can bring their own polyols, so the type of sweetener really shapes the picture, and the common regular case leans high.

When you want something fizzy, plain soda water with a squeeze of citrus keeps things bubbly without the fructose load.

Why soft drink is rated high

Regular soft drink is rated high FODMAP overall, an estimate based on what it is made of rather than a measured serving. The sweetener is the problem: most regular versions are built on a syrup that carries more fructose than glucose, and that Excess Fructose is what the gut struggles to absorb. Even a Small serving reads MODERATE, so there is no low rung on this ladder. By a Moderate serving it reads HIGH, and a Large serving stays HIGH.

What changes your risk

Serving size The ladder never reaches low. A Small serving reads moderate, and both a Moderate serving and a Large serving read high, so refills and supersized cups only push further into high.
The sweetener on the label This rating describes the common regular version sweetened with high fructose corn syrup or glucose-fructose syrup. Diet and sugar-free versions use different sweeteners entirely, so this rating does not describe them and their labels need their own check.
Fruit juice blends Soft drinks with added fruit juice concentrate, especially apple or pear, add another source of Excess Fructose on top of the syrup.
Stacking with other fructose foods A soft drink alongside honey-glazed food, apple, pear, mango or fruit juice in the same meal piles Excess Fructose on Excess Fructose, so the meal lands higher than the drink alone.

Swaps

For the fizz, plain soda water or sparkling mineral water is the cleanest swap, and it takes well to fresh orange, mandarin, crushed strawberries or raspberries. For something sweet and cold, a homemade fizzy drink of soda water, fresh orange and table sugar or maple syrup stirred through fills the same role without the fructose-heavy syrup. Watch the swaps that look healthier but share the same problem: apple juice, pear juice, mango drinks and anything sweetened with honey or agave syrup all carry Excess Fructose, so they are not a step down.

How to lower the load

Read the ingredient list rather than the front of the can: high fructose corn syrup, glucose-fructose syrup, fructose syrup and fruit juice concentrate are the names that mark the regular version this rating describes. At a restaurant or fountain machine there is no label to read, so soda water with fresh orange or a still water is the predictable order. At home, keep a bottle of soda water in the fridge and a jar of maple syrup or rice malt syrup nearby, so a sweet fizzy drink you control is quicker than reaching for a can.

Common questions

is soda high fodmap

Yes. Regular soft drink is rated high FODMAP overall, estimated from what it is made of, because its sweetener carries Excess Fructose.

can i have a small soda on low fodmap

Even a Small serving reads MODERATE, so there is no low serving on the ladder. A Moderate serving and a Large serving both read HIGH.

is soda high in fructose

Most regular soft drinks are sweetened with high fructose corn syrup or glucose-fructose syrup, which carry more fructose than glucose. That Excess Fructose is the reason for the high rating.

what can i drink instead of soda on low fodmap

Plain soda water or sparkling mineral water with fresh orange or mandarin gives the fizz without the syrup. For sweetness, table sugar or maple syrup stirred in at home is a low FODMAP way to do it.

Learn more

Informational only, not medical advice. Individual tolerance varies. Talk to a healthcare professional or a dietitian for personal guidance.

Soft Drink is an estimated rating: it is inferred from the food's ingredients and composition and cross-checked, not measured directly in the papers below. The low, moderate and high cutoffs are still those of Varney et al. (2017).

References

Fructan and free fructose content of common Australian vegetables and fruit. Muir et al. (2007), J. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 55(16):6619-6627.
Measurement of short-chain carbohydrates in common Australian vegetables and fruits by HPLC. Muir et al. (2009), J. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 57(2):554-565.
Quantification of fructans, galacto-oligosaccharides and other short-chain carbohydrates in processed grains and cereals. Biesiekierski et al. (2011), J. Human Nutrition and Dietetics 24(2):154-176.
Dietary sorbitol and mannitol: food content and distinct absorption patterns. Yao et al. (2014), J. Human Nutrition and Dietetics 27(Suppl 2):263-275.
FODMAPs: food composition, defining cutoff values and international application. Varney et al. (2017), J. Gastroenterology and Hepatology 32(Suppl 1):53-61. Supplies the low, moderate and high cutoffs used on this page.