Papaya (Pawpaw)
Fruits · Tropical
A whole cup of cubed papaya, 140 g, is rated green, with 0.05 g of fructans and nothing else recorded in it. Tropical fruit is usually rationed out by the quarter cup, so a serve this size is worth knowing about. It is sold as pawpaw in Australia and New Zealand, and the name is the only thing that changes.
Last updated 4 September 2026Serving sizes for papaya (pawpaw)
One cup cubed, about 140 g, is the only tested serve, and it is rated green.
Tested serving sizes
| Serving | Amount | Main FODMAP | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup cubed | 140 g | Fructans 0.05 g |
Breakdown for 1 cup
Is papaya (pawpaw) low FODMAP?
Five of the six groups read nothing at the tested cup: GOS, lactose, sorbitol, mannitol and excess fructose are all absent, which leaves 0.05 g of fructans as the entire FODMAP content of a full cup. Set that beside mango, the fruit papaya usually shares a bowl with. Mango holds its green rating at a quarter cup and turns red at a full one, where 0.33 g of excess fructose puts it well past the high mark. Two tropical fruits, two completely different portion rules.
Papaya (Pawpaw) and IBS: what to know
Papaya carries a reputation as a digestive aid, and that comes from papain, an enzyme in the fruit that breaks down protein. Whatever you make of it, that is a separate question from FODMAPs, which are carbohydrates, and the rating here speaks only to the second. The more useful point for IBS is volume. Because a full cup stays green, papaya is a fruit you can build a real breakfast bowl around instead of measuring by the spoonful. The tested serve stops at one cup, though, so a second bowl in the same sitting is unmeasured rather than ruled out.
Gut-friendly ways to eat papaya (pawpaw)
Cubes with lime squeezed over them is the standard way to serve ripe papaya, and the acid does the job sugar would otherwise be asked to do. Blended with ice it makes a thick drink that needs no sweetener, and a cup spooned over Greek yoghurt is a breakfast without a recipe. Green papaya salad is a different dish entirely: the fruit goes in unripe and shredded, and the dressing is normally built on garlic and fish sauce, which is where the FODMAPs on that plate come from.
Frequently asked questions
How much papaya can I eat with IBS?
One cup of cubes, 140 g, is the tested portion and it holds a green rating, so this is a bowl rather than a token slice. Anything past that cup has not been measured. Worth knowing if you buy the pre-cut tubs from the chiller: a supermarket tub is often closer to two cups than one, so half a tub sits nearer the tested serve than the whole thing does.
Is pawpaw the same as papaya?
In Australia and New Zealand the two names cover the same tropical fruit, and this entry and its one-cup serve apply to both. Some markets use pawpaw for the larger yellow-fleshed type and papaya for the smaller red-fleshed one, which is a difference in variety rather than in the figures. American pawpaw is a different fruit altogether and is not covered here.
Is green papaya salad low FODMAP?
Usually not, and the papaya is rarely the reason. The dressing is built on garlic, which carries fructans, and there is often palm sugar and dried shrimp in it too. Unripe green papaya has not been tested separately in this guide, so the ripe-fruit figures on this page do not answer for it. Asking for it made without garlic is the practical move.
Is dried papaya low FODMAP?
Treat it as a different food. The water goes, the sugars stay behind, and the strips sold in shops are usually candied with more sugar on top of that. A small bag holds far more fruit than the cup measured here, and it disappears without ever feeling like a bowl of fruit. Fresh cubes in a container keep the portion visible, which is the whole trick.
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