Gluten and dairy free, THREE INGREDIENT, WHOLE FOODS FLAPJACKS (WITH AN Olive Oil, DARK CHOCOLATE AND SEA SALT VERSION)
Okay guys, I know we did a vote in my next recipe and most of you wanted the chocolate fudge cake with hot fudge sauce first - but it’s far too hot to make that right now, so we’re going with classic flapjacks, which was a close second! Plus, these won’t melt if you take them with you to work, so that’s a win atm.
Now, as you may have guessed, I really like to jazz up my recipes with ingredients that will support blood sugar and add a little extra hormonal support. However, I know some of you don’t love the taste of flax or chia (which are some of my standard go-tos), and also, I know some of you enjoy fewer ingredients too (the less work the better for chronic fatigued girlies).
So, that being said, this recipe is only three ingredients - four if you drizzle some dark chocolate on top, I’ve made it with better-for-you ingredients that do support blood sugar, but if your blood sugar does struggle a lot, you might want to add some flax or chia in the mix, or extra nuts or seeds, to slow down glucose absorption a bit (because these are high carb, though in theory, are slow release).
I’ve never been a major flapjack fan, but when I worked in charity, we used to buy these little flapjack bites for the volunteers we were training, and they reminded me of those, so that’s a good sign!
These taste a bit more grown up because I’ve used olive oil (see below for all the reasons why!) instead of butter, and to elevate that flavour further, I really recommend drizzling or dipping in dark chocolate, and sprinkling in sea salt, but feel free to use this recipe as your foundation, and then do what you will with them and make them your own!
Better for blood sugar to stabilise hormones, reduce PMS, reduce period pain and lower oxidative stress.
Most flapjacks are made with blood sugar spiking foods such as golden syrup and granulated sugar, and whilst tasty of course, high sugar and processed foods can potentially contribute to more PMS, menstrual pain and endo pain. Blood sugar spikes increase oxidative stress, which leads to more inflammation in the body and that may trigger further pain and symptoms. In fact, oxidative stress is higher in people with endo, and it’s a key driver of endo growth.
To avoid these issues, I have focused on the presence of healthy fats from the olive oil and fibre from the oats and dates, which have both been shown to help stabilise blood sugar levels and slow down the uptake of glucose/starch from our food (dates, oats and chocolate, in this case) to our blood stream, preventing blood sugar spikes. In fact, just one flapjack gives you around 5.5g of fibre!
One of the easiest ways for us to support our blood sugar is to opt for whole food carbohydrates, such as dates, instead of sugar or maple syrup, as I have done here. Whole foods still contain their fibre, which helps slow down digestion and the resulting absorption of glucose to the blood stream, creating a steady drip rather than a flood.
Another great way to support blood sugar is with lower glycemic index foods, and every ingredient in this recipe, even the dark chocolate (because we are opting for a high percentage and low sugar version) is low to moderate on the glycemic index scale. The glycemic index is a tool that looks at foods and the impact they can have on your blood sugar, on a scale of 0-100. A high GI index would be 70 and above, a medium GI is 56-69 and a low GI index is 55 or less. High GI foods are very likely to spike your blood sugar levels and do so quickly, foods with a medium GI rating tend to cause a moderate rise and low GI foods tend to keep blood sugar levels stable and steady over time with a gentle rise. This is because low GI foods break down slowly in the gut because they are rich in fibre and slow release carbohydrates, this means that the release of glucose to the blood stream is slow and gradual.
A quick word about dates: Dates have a low to moderate glycemic index, which means they shouldn’t cause a dramatic or quick rise in blood sugar. However, research has shown that individual blood sugar responses vary from person to person, and if you eat a lot of even a low glycemic index food, it may have a greater impact on your blood sugar levels because you’re eating more in one sitting. You can learn about this here. Many people with diabetes use dates to get a quick rise of blood sugar when they have low levels, suggesting for some, dates may increase blood sugar fairly quickly. Therefore, I’ve kept the amounts of dates to 250g total so you have 30g of dates per flapjack (about 1.5-2 dates). This isn’t because I don’t want you to enjoy dates, I just want to ensure I am catering as well as possible - including those who are more sensitive to dates!
We’ve also got some added benefits from the oats and the olive oil for blood sugar!
A recent systematic review found that in multiple studies, tahini improves fasting blood sugar levels and HbA1C (average blood sugar levels) and also has been shown to improve post-prandial (after meal) blood sugar too!
Rolled oats contain beta-glucan, a special type of fibre found in oats that offers a wide range of health benefits, including stabilising blood sugar post-meals, and as a result, makes oat-based foods more effective than wheat based foods (like using regular flour) for blood sugar stability.
Research has also shown that adding olive oil to meals reduces the post-prandial blood sugar levels (meaning it helps prevent blood sugar spikes from foods/meals), even in high glycemic meals (meaning meals/foods high in sugar or starch that can cause rapid blood sugar spikes).
Constant blood sugar swings can take their toll on hormones, leading to issues like elevated androgens (think testosterone), which can affect ovulation and cycle length. Blood sugar swings may also cause oestrogen excess or dominance and low progesterone if ovulation is interrupted or stopped entirely. Both of these imbalances can cause more PMS, heavier periods, and may also exacerbate endometriosis symptoms.
Additionally, these flapjacks can help us out with luteal phase or period cravings. When we’re in our luteal phase, we often experience more blood sugar swings because oestrogen, which dominates in our follicular phase, helps us to regulate our blood sugar response, but is lower in the luteal phase. As a result, we tend to get cravings for sweet foods or foods high in starch. The problem is, these foods keep us on a blood sugar rollercoaster, and raise inflammation levels, resulting in more of those inflammatory symptoms and pain that we’re trying to avoid. These flapjacks, being made with fruit rather than simple sugars, and rich in fibre, can help us get our fix without the pain and PMS triggering spikes.
Finally, blood sugar swings are linked heavily with mood disorders such as depression and anxiety, so if you struggle with low moods in your luteal phase, supporting blood sugar can actually support your mental health.
Now, let’s be clear before we wrap up this section. I am not saying you have to avoid sugar or refined carbs for the rest of your life, but if like me, you enjoy a sweet treat as a snack or after dinner, it can help to make these regular goodies a bit more blood sugar balancing, so that we’re looking after ourselves on a day to day basis.
Rich in prebiotics and polyphenols to help heal the endo belly and reduce systemic inflammation.
The latest data shows that 96% of UK adults are getting less than the recommended 30g fibre a day. That’s not great for our guts, which rely on fibre to thrive, and people with endo need extra gut support already (as you’ll come to learn shortly) so a lack of fibre isn’t going to help the situation (though you may find you need to tailor your fibre sources if you have IBS or SIBO). These flapjacks offer 5.5g of your recommended 30g!
Additionally, a major study of 10,000 people found that eating 30 or more plant foods a week helps to create a healthier and more diverse microbiome. This recipe offers you 4 of your 30 already, and with herbs, spices, olive oil, fruits, veggies, beans/legumes, teas and coffee and whole grains all counting, you can easily top up your levels further. For extra guidance on how to reach your 30 a week, check out this article by The Gut Health Doctor or this one by Zoe.
And thanks to our specific ingredients of dark chocolate, dates, and olive oil, this recipe is also high in polyphenols. Polyphenols are types of antioxidants found in certain plant foods that not only reduce inflammation levels and improve overall health, but they are also an absolute favourite food (prebiotic) for our gut microbiome, which means they can support our good gut bugs to thrive.
The anti-inflammatory effects of extra virgin olive oil, thanks to its polyphenol content, are far reaching. For example, research has shown that extra virgin olive oil can decrease C-Reactive Protein levels, a marker for inflammation.
But why does this matter for us endo folk?
Research is finding a strong correlation between microbiome disturbances and endometriosis development, such as reduced levels and variety of good gut bugs and higher levels of pathogenic (bad, infectious), opportunistic (in high numbers, can cause problems like inflammation) gut bugs, as well as gut bugs linked to elevated oestrogen levels. These microbiome differences have also been associated with higher IL-8 levels, a type of inflammatory cytokine shown to be involved in the development of endometriosis.
Polyphenols and prebiotic fibre are like gut bug boosters - the more we provide to our good gut bugs, the more they grow and outnumber the bad guys. This helps to bring the gut back into harmony, which can improve gut symptoms and intestinal inflammation and whilst we need to do more research, could even help us fight endo.
These prebiotic fibres help us to increase our production of gut friendly fats, called short chain fatty acids, which are made when good bacteria consume fibre. Research shows that people with endo may be low in short chain fatty acids, especially one called butyrate. Butyrate is a short-chain fatty acid produced by our gut microbiome, and has been found to be low in people with endo. Butyrate has a range of benefits for endometriosis and gut health (so therefore, can help us tackle endo belly) such as reducing intestinal inflammation, improving insulin sensitivity, preventing leaky gut, promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria and inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria. Butyrate inhibits our inflammatory immune response to lipopolysaccharides (LPS), LPS are toxins that come from certain bacteria, and have been shown to be heavily involved in endo pathogenesis, so by improving our fibre levels, we may actually be improving some of our defences against endo!
Gluten and dairy free to help minimise symptoms and reactions in certain endo folk.
Whilst not everyone with endometriosis needs to go dairy free or gluten free or entirely gluten/dairy free (some people feel better just not eating them that often), reducing gluten and/or dairy may help some of us manage our pain and endo belly symptoms.
In a major and recent survey study of 2388 endometriosis patients, out of those who removed or reduced gluten, 45% experienced a reduction in pain. In another study, 75% of patients had a significant reduction in painful symptoms after eliminating gluten for 12 months. There is also a significant association between endometriosis and coeliac disease. And whilst the research on endometriosis and gluten has limitations, I myself experienced improvements by reducing gluten in my diet (in fact, it was one of the key players for helping me live a normal life again no longer ruled by pain and my periods), as have many of my clients (though not all, it’s very individual).
Likewise, the same major study found that 45% of those who reduced dairy also had a reduction in pain.
If you’d like to learn more about why gluten or dairy may impact some of us with endo and how, and what all the research says, I recently did a huge deep dive into all the research on my podcast, here and here.
Rich with hormone and endo beneficial nutrients, including vit E, iron, magnesium and zinc.
Oats, olive oil, dates and dark chocolate contain some key nutrients for hormone health…
Vitamin E
A recent meta-analysis of over 589 participants, concluded that vit E supplementation can reduce period pain, pain with sex, daily pelvic pain and even improve quality of life with endometriosis patients. And a systematic review and meta-analysis of eight studies and over 1000 people concluded that vitamin E significantly reduced period pain and could be used as a treatment for dysmennorhea.
But it’s not just supplements that help - food helps too.
One study found people with endo had a 40% reduced intake of vitamin E, but levels increased after following a high antioxidant and vit E rich diet, and oxidation levels reduced by 20%!
Vitamin E can also help raise progesterone levels, and whilst we’re not using as high a dose as used in the studies, ensuring you’re getting enough vit E can support a healthy corpus luteum and progesterone production
Magnesium
Research has shown magnesium to be an effective treatment in preventing dysmenorrhea (period pain) because it reduces inflammatory prostaglandins that are the drivers of both endo and period pain. One study showed that six months of magnesium treatment reduced prostaglandin F2a by over half! In fact, in recent research, magnesium is being explored as a dietary treatment for endo and a higher intake of magnesium rich foods was associated with a lower risk of endo. Additionally, magnesium helps to regulate our sex hormones, and as result, is a recognised treatment for preventing PMS.
Iron
A recent major study of over 43,000 endo patients found that we have a six-fold increased risk of iron deficiency. SIBO could be a player here, as it inhibits iron absorption but it could also be from heavy menstrual bleeding, restricting red meat and other factors.
Iron plays a major role in preventing fatigue, and yet many of the clients who I work with, come to me with significantly low levels. Supporting healthy iron absorption and intake is a key part of beating endo fatigue and recovering from heavy blood loss and low levels can cause brain fog, extreme tiredness, heart palpitations, dizziness, muscle weakness and depression to name a few.
Healthy iron levels are also essential for ovarian function, which is key to producing healthy amounts of sex hormones and low levels are associated with menstrual irregularities and fertility problems.
Additionally, low iron levels are linked to ADHD development and can worsen ADHD symptoms, and ADHD is a condition which many people with endo struggle with.
Zinc
Low levels of zinc have been linked to endo, and research has shown it can significantly reduce period pain thanks to its anti-inflammatory benefits. It additionally supports follicle development and ovulation, while deficiency has been linked to infertility.
IMPORTANT NOTES TO HELP YOU TAILOR THIS RECIPE TO YOUR OWN BODY AND NEEDS (AND TASTEBUDS!)
Everything you’ve said about blood sugar and processed foods, does that mean I can never have my favourite treats again?
Absolutely not. I am all for ‘worth it moments’. Enjoy our fav foods, whatever they are, in moments when we really desire them. But I am a health coach, and my goal is to minimise your symptoms and lower things like oxidative stress and inflammation that could contribute them, so I am going to encourage snacking smarter and leaning on healthier treats on a day to day basis, and that’s way these recipes are for. So you can have your cake, and eat it!
Are oats gluten free?
Oats are naturally gluten free, but are often processed in a factory that handles gluten, so if you’re coeliac, then go for gluten-free oats which have been processed in a factory without gluten.
Are these flapjacks low FODMAP?
A low FODMAP serving of dates is 20g, so if you’re on a low FODMAP diet, I suggest cutting these flapjacks into 12 squares rather than 8, which will give you a low FODMAP serving.
Why do you make so many recipes low FODMAP?
The low FODMAP diet is being shown in the research to be one of the most effective dietary interventions we have for symptom relief in endo (esp. for those with IBS issues). That doesn’t mean you have to do it, and if you do, it should be done under supervision of a doctor or low FODMAP trained professional, but some people may be on the diet already, so I like to tailor to as many people as possible. It also means this recipe is less likely to trigger bloating (though that’s not guaranteed, because everyone is different).
Is this recipe suitable for SIBO?
Everyone’s triggers vary with SIBO, but this recipe is low FODMAP so can help reduce bloating and flares.
Further resources
If you’re struggling with your endo symptoms or gut health, you might find my courses and one to one coaching helpful. You can find out more here. I’ve also got endless podcast episodes on endometriosis and SIBO.
Gluten and dairy free, THREE INGREDIENT, WHOLE FOODS FLAPJACKS
Ingredients:
250g rolled oats (gluten free if needed)
250g medjool dates
90ml extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tbsps of water
Optional:
30-50 85% or higher dark chocolate to drizzle
Flaky sea salt, to top
Makes: 8-12 flapjacks
prep time: 15 minutes
bake time: 18-20 minutes
chill time: 2-3 hours
Method:
Remove the stones from the dates.
In a food processor, blend 50g of the oats, dates, 1 tbsp water and olive oil until a smooth dough forms and the dates have become a paste.
Add the remaining oats and either pulse a few times briefly to combine (so that the oats are largely still whole and intact), or stir through until a fully incorporated. Leave for 10 minutes for the oats to absorb the moisture.
Squeeze a portion of dough in your hands to form a ball, if it holds together - you’re good to go, if it’s a bit crumbly, add 1/2 to 1 tbsp water, but don’t go too aggressive with the water - we want a chew not a mush!
Flatten down into the loaf tin or brownie tray very, very well - work on this for a bit longer than you think and push down with pressure to ensure the mix is intact. We don’t have the same binding properties that come with the standard ingredients found in regular flapjacks, so compacting the mix will help it hold together once baked.
Bake for 18-20 minutes until the edges are starting to turn golden brown.
Leave to cool completely in the pan, and then if desired, drizzle with melted chocolate and sea salt.
Pop into the fridge and leave to set and firm up for 1-2 hours.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge, for up to 5 days. These freeze well too! Just take them out and leave to soften for 15-20 minutes before eating.
June and July special offer - if you’ve got half way through the year and endo has taken much of that time from you, for June and July only, I’m offering £500 off my 12 session 1:1 coaching or £250 off the six session coaching. Learn more about coaching here.
Looking for tools to help you manage endo and your hormones?
These are some of my favourite brands…
DITTO - DITTO is a clinically studied PMS and PMDD supplement with 10 ingredients that target both the mental and physical challenges that come along with the menstrual cycle, developed by a PhD Nutrition Scientist. You can use the code: ENDOBELLY (all caps) for 20% off any and all orders, now and in the future.
Mira - Mira is an at-home hormone testing device for every day use. Use this link and code 2DJESS20 to get 20% off the device and any future wand orders.
Tempdrop- Track fertility effortlessly with Tempdrop’s Wearable Sensor. Get 15% off with code: ENDOLIFE
Need more help or want to learn how to work with me?
Ways to work with me:
One to one coaching info and application
Live and Thrive with Endo 2.0 DIY online course
Endo Sessions: Single and mini-package one to one endo coaching
SIBO Sessions: Single and mini-package one to one SIBO coaching
Masterclasses in endo nutrition, surgery prep and recovery and pain relief
This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast digital cookbook
Free resources:
This podcast!