Be aware: this is only the goal of this diet, not necessarily its outcome. Results vary from person to person. Consult your doctor or dietician before starting this (or any other) diet.
The GAPS diet was created by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride and is based on the specific carbohydrate diet.
As with the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, the most important thing here is to eat less polysaccharides and disaccharides. Monosaccharides (simple carbohydrates) are allowed.
An important difference with the specific carbohydrates diet is that GAPS contains a lot of fermented foods.
On the homepage you can compare this diet with other diets.
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The GAPS diet focuses on treating various psychological and physiological conditions by restoring the intestinal flora and the 'leaky gut'.
Psychological and physiological conditions mentioned include autism, ad(h)d, chronic bowel problems, depression, dyslexia, eating disorders, OCD, gout, schizophrenia and Tourette’s syndrome.
If you have, or think you have, one of these conditions, contact your doctor. Do not start the GAPS diet just like that. If you have any questions about the GAPS diet you can also contact a dietician.
Dr. Campbell-McBride's theory is that various psychological and physiological conditions can be attributed to a 'leaky gut'. Leaking guts allow substances and organisms to enter your body that shouldn't be there.
The GAPS diet attempts to restore the intestinal flora and the leaky gut. This is done by removing various food products from your diet, including grains, pasteurised dairy products, refined carbohydrates and starchy vegetables.
The focus of the diet is to remove foods that are difficult to digest or harmful to the intestinal flora. In different phases these foods are eliminated from your diet and then reintroduced into your diet one by one. The GAPS diet is therefore an elimination diet.
An elimination diet is intended to find foods you are (hyper)sensitive or allergic to. By completely avoiding different foods for a certain period of time and then reintroducing these foods one by one, an elimination diet tries to find out if you have a (hyper)sensitive or allergic reactive to one or more of these foods.
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The GAPS diet consists of three different phases: the introduction phase, the full GAPS phase and the reintroduction phase.
The introduction phase is also called the 'gut healing phase'. Depending on your symptoms, this phase can last from 3 weeks to a year and is divided into 6 stages.
It is advised to stay in one stage for at least 3-5 days. If you experience intestinal problems, this is a reason not to proceed to the next stage and possibly to go back to an earlier stage.
For each stage there are new products which you may eat. If every new phase you are allowed to continue to eat all the products from the previous stages.
During the first stage you eat home-made meat or fish stock, meat or fish stews or soup and drink fresh ginger tea, camomile tea (with honey) and/or purified water. You also consume products rich in probiotics, such as home-made yoghurt and kefir.
In the second stage, you are allowed to eat raw egg yolks, meat/fish and vegetable stews, fermented fish and homemade ghee. You start eating more of the fermented products as well.
At this stage, you may add avocado, fermented vegetables, pancakes (according to GAPS recipe) and scrambled eggs made with ghee, duck fat or goose fat to your diet.
At stage 4, grilled or roasted meat and cold-pressed olive oil are added to the diet. You are also allowed milkshakes and bread (for both, there is a specific GAPS recipe).
In stage 5, mashed apple, raw vegetables and vegetable juice, possibly with some fruits (no citrus), are added.
In the final stage you are allowed raw fruits (including citrus fruit), (more) honey and some sweets. After this stage you move on to the 'Full GAPS' stage.
The 'full GAPS' phase is also called the maintenance phase and can last between 1.5 and 2 years. In this phase, you base your diet on fresh meat, animal fats, fish, eggs, fermented products, vegetables, fruits and shellfish. You may also eat some nuts.
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The maintenance phase also includes a number of rules:
If you have had normal digestion for at least 6 months, you may proceed to phase 3. In this last phase you can slowly reintroduce products into your diet. Every time your bowel movements remain normal for 2-3 days, you can reintroduce a new product.
After going through all the phases, and finding out which products you do not tolerate well, the advice remains to avoid processed products.
The GAPS diet also makes extensive use of supplements. These include supplements with probiotics, essential fatty acids, digestive enzymes, cod liver oil and fish oil.
Consult your doctor or dietician before starting this (or any) diet.
Many different books have been written about the GAPS diet. We've listed a selection of ad links from Amazon, Apple and Ebooks of such books for you:
A preview of the latest audiobook is also available below:
Examples of other diets that eliminate foods are the RED diet, the FODMAP diet and the Galveston diet.
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As you see fit
With the professional help of a dietitian it should be easier to reach your goals. Please contact a dietician in your area or talk to a doctor before starting any diet.
Please take note that most diets do not have a scientific basis.
Consult your doctor or dietician before starting a diet, especially if you have a chronic condition like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, lung disease or kidney disease.
If you think you might have an eating disorder (like anorexia or bulimia), it is important to look for professional help. Contact your (house) doctor or find help elsewhere. Here you can find a list of several websites that can provide (online) help. These sites also provide information for people that know someone with an eating disorder.