ArticleBMC women's health2025
Effects of a low-FODMAP diet on patients with endometriosis, a prospective cohort study.
Article in BMC women's health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Low-FODMAP Diet for Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Endometriosis: A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2026Pooled it
- Effect of Fish-Derived Lipids on Inflammation Status and Health-Related Quality of Life in Women with Endometriosis.Nutrients · 2026Trial
- Lifestyle factors and symptom burden in endometriosis: an exploratory mixed-methods analysis of nutrition, physical activity, and psychosocial well-being.BMC women's health · 2026Article
- Immune-nutritional interactions in endometriosis: current evidence and future perspectives in disease management.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Nutrition and Endometriosis: Current Evidence on Dietary Risk Factors and Clinical Impact - A Narrative Review.Journal of inflammation research · 2026Review
- Effectiveness of Medical Nutrition Therapy in the Management of Patients with Obesity and Endometriosis: from the Mediterranean Diet To the Ketogenic Diet, Through Supplementation. The Role of the Nutritionist in Clinical Management.Current obesity reports · 2025Review
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Abstract
backgroundPatients with endometriosis often experience bowel symptoms such as changing stool, abdominal pain and bloating similar to those associated with irritable bowel syndrome. These symptoms reduce quality of life (QoL). Visceral hypersensitivity seems to be a shared pathogenic factor. The low-FODMAP (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides and Polyols) diet is a known visceral hypersensitivity targeted therapy with significant reduction in bowel symptoms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of low-FODMAP diet on bowel symptoms such as constipation and bloating, pain and QoL in patients with endometriosis.
methodsThe diet involved four weeks of FODMAP elimination, followed by a reintroduction-period of at least ten weeks, varying by patient. Questionnaires were sent at baseline and after these periods. The primary outcome was constipation change after the reintroduction period compared to baseline, assessed by Groningen-DeFeC-questionnaire (0-30 scale) with paired-T-test or Wilcoxon-signed-rank-test. Secondary outcomes included changes in bloating, QoL and abdominal pain, assessed by Endometriosis Health Profile-30 (EHP-30). P-value < 0,05 indicated statistical significance.
resultsForty-seven patients were included; thirteen withdrew before starting the diet, mostly due to lack of motivation. Of the remaining 34, 24 (71%) completed the diet (i.e. following the prescribed periods) Constipation scores improved significantly after low-FODMAP diet compared to baseline from 7.0 to 5.0 (p = 0.023). There was no significant difference observed in bloating, however 53% of patients that completed the diet mentioned a decrease. The following domains of the EHP-30 improved significantly: pain (from 47.8 to 29.2 (p = 0.002)), control and powerlessness (from 69.4 to 36.7 (p = 0.000)), emotional well-being (from 45.2 to 29.2 (p = 0.001)), social support (from 46.4 to 31.3 (p = 0.0017)), self-image (from 51.2 to 40.5 (p = 0.035)), work-life (from 35.0 to 21.7 (p = 0.003)) and sexual intercourse (from 61.6 to 45.7 (p = 0.023)). 65% of patients that completed the diet mentioned a decrease in pain, especially chronic pelvic pain.
conclusionsThis study suggests the low-FODMAP diet may improve bowel symptoms and QoL in endometriosis patients motivated to follow the diet, highlighting its potential in endometriosis care. However, further research in larger populations is needed to explore factors like endometriosis type, pain intensity and dropout rates to confirm these findings.
trial registrationICTRP: NL-OMON28996: Feasibility study: The effect of the low FODMAP diet on women suffering from endometriosis ( https://trialsearch.who.int/Trial2.aspx?TrialID=NL-OMON28996 ) on September 13th 2019.
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