[Updated April 2025]. Craving chocolate but worried about triggering your IBS symptoms? Good news: you don’t have to give up chocolate completely on a low FODMAP diet. With the right knowledge about serving sizes and ingredients, you can still enjoy this decadent treat without the digestive discomfort.
Let’s explore low FODMAP chocolate, how much you can enjoy, and what to look for when satisfying your sweet tooth on a low FODMAP diet.
Understanding Ingredients in Chocolate
Chocolate is made from cocoa beans found inside cocoa pods. After the cocoa beans are extracted from the pod, they’re fermented, roasted, and then crushed to release the cocoa nibs inside the beans. These nibs are ground into a fine paste called cocoa mass (also known as cocoa liquor or chocolate liquor). Cocoa mass contains both cocoa solids (the brown stuff) and cocoa butter (the white stuff).
FUN FACT: the percentage on a chocolate bar indicates the proportion of the bar (eg. 70%) that is made up of cocoa mass (both cocoa solids and/or cocoa butter). White chocolate is sometimes described in percentages (eg. 32%), because that percentage of the bar is made up of cocoa butter, but does not contain cocoa solids.
To make the chocolate we eventually eat, manufacturers mix various ingredients into the cocoa mass. Depending on the flavour profile of the chocolate bar, it can include varying combinations and amounts of cocoa butter, sugar, milk, vanilla, and soy lecithin.
Good quality dark chocolate is made with cocoa mass, cocoa butter and sometimes sugar, and does not contain milk. Cheaper dark chocolate has less cocoa butter (to keep the price of the bar lower), but contains milk or soy lecithin to give it a creamy texture.
Which FODMAPs Are Found In Chocolate?
The main FODMAPs found in chocolate are lactose and fructans depending on the ingredients in the chocolate.
Cocoa contains fructans, so chocolate bars with high cocoa content, like dark chocolate, will have more fructans.
Since milk contains lactose, milk chocolate tends to be higher in lactose compared to dark chocolate which contains little to no lactose.
Low FODMAP Chocolate Serving Sizes and Chocolate Bar Examples
Dark Chocolate
Dark chocolate (with milk ingredients) is low FODMAP at 30 grams.
The dark chocolate listed in both the Monash FODMAP app and the FODMAP Friendly app contain milk, as evidenced by the lactose. If you’re looking for good dark chocolate, you’re probably not buying a dark chocolate with milk ingredients, so see the 85% dark chocolate described below.
Examples of dark chocolate that contains milk:
- Possibly Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate (contains “milk fat”, so the lactose content is a bit of a mystery).
- Because semi-sweet and bittersweet baking chocolate are darker chocolates that contain milk ingredients, treat these like dark chocolate and stick to 30 gram portions.
85% Dark Chocolate
Very dark chocolate (85%) is low FODMAP at 20 grams.
Because 85% dark chocolate is high in cocoa solids, it will contain more fructans.
But what would the fructan content be in a lower percentage milk-free dark chocolate, like a 70% bar? Probably lower, possibly making the low FODMAP serving size larger than 20 grams. But to keep things simple and ensure you’re eating a low FODMAP serving size, stick to 20 grams for any dark milk-less chocolate until Monash can test more types of chocolate.
Examples of dark, milk-less chocolate (some of which are my favourite bean-to-bar chocolates):
- Camino 70% dark chocolate
- Dick Taylor 70% dark chocolate (bean-to-bar; Eureka, California)
- Ghirardelli Intense Dark 72% and 85% bars
- Hummingbird 70% and 85% bars (bean-to-bar; Almonte, Ontario)
- Lindt Swiss Classic dark chocolate
- Lindt Excellence bars – 70%-85% dark chocolate – I especially like the velvety vanilla-infused Madagascar 70% bar.
- President’s Choice 70% dark chocolate
- Qantu 70% dark chocolate (bean-to-bar; Montreal, Quebec)
- Sirene 70% dark chocolate (bean-to-bar; Victoria, BC)
- Theo Pure Dark 70%-85%
- Whittaker’s Dark Block
Milk chocolate
Milk chocolate is low FODMAP at 20 grams. Examples include:
- Aero
- Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate
- Dick Taylor Vanilla Dark Chocolate (bean-to-bar; Eureka, California)
- Finnia Buttermilk milk chocolate (bean-to-bar; Gore Bay, Ontario)
- Hershey Creamy Milk Chocolate
- Jersey Milk
- Lindt Swiss Classic Milk Chocolate
- McGuire Big Booty Hank Milk Chocolate (bean-to-bar; St Andrews, New Brunswick)
- Qantu Crème de la Crème milk chocolate (bean-to-bar; Montreal, Quebec)
- Theo Pure Milk Chocolate
- Whittaker Creamy Milk
If milk chocolate contains lactose, could one have a larger portion if the chocolate contained a plant-based milk rather than cow’s milk? Perhaps, but these haven’t been tested so we don’t know for sure.
Most dairy-free chocolate is made with oat milk, rice milk or coconut milk. Rice milk is low FODMAP up to 200ml, oat milk is low up to 120ml and coconut milk is low up to 60ml.
Since we don’t know how much dairy-free milk is added to any given chocolate bar, it’s hard to recommend a serving size that would be low FODMAP without testing it. Therefore, I think the best advice is to just keep your portion size modest, around 30 grams.
Here are some examples of dairy-free milk chocolate:
- Qantu Oat Milq Chocolate – oat milk
- Lindt Vegan Original Chocolate Bar – oat milk
- Purdy’s Vegan Mylk Chocolate Bar – rice milk
- Prana No Mylk snacking chocolate with hazelnuts and cripy rice – rice milk
- Jacobean Coconut Milk Chocolate – coconut milk
White chocolate
White chocolate is low FODMAP at 25 grams. Examples include:
- Amedei Toscana White Chocolate
- Cococo Chocolatiers White Chocolate
- Lindt Swiss Classic White Chocolate
- Obolo White Chocolate
- President’s Choice Blond Bar
Cocoa Powder
Whether you use natural cocoa or Dutch process, 8 grams (2 heaped teaspoons) is low FODMAP.
How to Determine Whether Your Chocolate Dessert is Low FODMAP
If you want to know whether your favourite chocolate cake or brownie recipe contains a low FODMAP serving size of chocolate, do this simple calculation:
- Divide the total number of servings the recipe makes by the total amount of cocoa and/or chocolate and compare that to the low FODMAP serving size.
- For example, my favourite brownie recipe makes 24 2″ brownies and contains 106 grams of cocoa. So 106g / 24 brownies = 4.4 grams of cocoa per brownie, which is low FODMAP!
- My brownies also contains 340 grams of semi-sweet chocolate chips (dark chocolate with milk ingredients). So 340g / 24 brownies = 14 grams per brownie, which is less than the low FODMAP serving size of 30 grams.
Since we can have multiple low FODMAP serving sizes at a sitting, this 2″ brownie – made with gluten-free flour of course – is low FODMAP. Yay!
Low FODMAP Additions in Chocolate
Since the amount of chocolate that’s low FODMAP is pretty small, any additions to the chocolate will likely be in low FODMAP serving sizes too, such as:
- Almonds
- Coffee
- Corn flakes
- Coconut
- Ginger
- Hazelnuts
- Macadamia nuts
- Mint
- Maple syrup
- Peanuts
- Peanut butter
- Rice, crisped
- Salt
- Vanilla
High FODMAP Ingredients to Avoid
Again, because the serving size of chocolate you’ll be eating is so small, the amount of FODMAPs in these high FODMAP foods may not actually be high, but best to avoid them just in case.
- Agave syrup
- Blackberry
- Dried fruit
- Honey
- Maltitol (maltitol is sometimes used to make sugar-free milk chocolate. Since maltitol is a polyol, it should be avoided on the low FODMAP diet).
How Can Chocolate Affect the Gut Beyond FODMAPs
In addition to FODMAPs, chocolate contains other ingredients that can trigger digestive symptoms. Of course, if you eat chocolate in small, low FODMAP serving sizes, take comfort because you’ll likely not succumb to the symptoms I describe below.
Chocolate’s High Sugar Content Can Trigger IBS Symptoms
Chocolate is high in sugar, especially milk chocolate. Sugary foods are well-known for triggering diarrhea, and many of my clients report that sugary foods trigger gut symptoms.
Research has discovered that some people with IBS have genetic variations that could mean they may not produce enough sucrase isomaltase, the enzyme that breaks down sucrose. Undigested sugar draws water into the gut which accelerates gut motility, potentially leading to cramping, bloating, flatulence or diarrhea.
Research has found that a reduced sugar diet can markedly improve overall IBS symptoms. One of the studies also found noted a reduction in extra-intestinal symptoms like joint pain and tiredness
Chocolate’s High Fat Content Can Trigger IBS Symptoms
Chocolate is also high in fat, particularly dark chocolate. If you’re eating more than the tiny low FODMAP portion, the fat content can quickly skyrocket and potentially aggravate symptoms. Thirty grams (30g) of 70% dark chocolate has 12 grams of fat (that’s a lot!).
Roughly half of people with IBS report that fatty foods trigger symptoms. Studies that infuse fat into the small intestine have found increased pain in people with IBS compared to people without IBS. Fat has been shown to slow the movement of gas through the intestine, which can contribute to bloating, distension and pain.
Chocolate Can Trigger Reflux for Some People
Reflux is a common co-condition among people with IBS. Research has found chocolate can reduce the ability of the lower esophageal sphincter from preventing the rise of stomach acid into the esophagus. Indeed, chocolate does appear on lists of potential trigger foods to avoid for reflux (in addition to the usual suspects like tomatoes, citrus, coffee, etc).
Can Dark Chocolate Cause Constipation?
Although one study found slower gut motility and firmer stool when participants ate 100 grams of 72% dark chocolate (B), we need way more research before we recommend that people with constipation avoid dark chocolate.
Again, if you’re eating small low FODMAP portion sizes, I don’t think people with constipation-predominant IBS need to worry about this effect.
Bottom Line
Enjoying chocolate while following a low FODMAP diet is absolutely possible with the right knowledge and portion control.
Dark chocolate at 20-30g, milk chocolate at 20g, and white chocolate at 25g can all be part of your low FODMAP lifestyle.
Remember to check ingredient labels for hidden high FODMAP additives and be mindful of personal triggers beyond FODMAPs, such as high sugar or fat content.
With these guidelines in hand, you can confidently satisfy your chocolate cravings without sacrificing your digestive comfort.
xoAndrea, RD
