Diet For Diverticulitis Bread

People inflicted with diverticulitis need to adjust their diet, but what’s a good diet for diverticulitis?  What should I eat?  When do I eat it?  What to avoid?  The answers to these questions depend on whether a painful flare up exists or not.

Some background:  Diverticulitis is an inflammation of the diverticula.  “So what’s a diverticula”, you ask?  Diverticula is the plural of diverticulum, a bulge or protruding sac in the colon wall.  Imagine a bulge on theweak spot of an inner tube and you’ll have the idea.  The presence of these bulges is called diverticulosis.  The cause of these bulges is sometimes attributed to the stereotypical”bad western diet” of high fat, low fiber, high processed foods.

A person who has developed diverticula usually has no symptoms.  In fact, they often don’t even realize they have diverticulosis until the diveticula pockets become infected or rupture, causing an infection in the surrounding tissue.  This is, of course, the condition called diverticulitis.  It’s at this point that people then, on the advice of their doctor, begin a special diet for diverticulitis.

As with many diets, a diet for diverticulitis refers to long-term, healthy eating habits, not short term, although the diet is greatly different during active flare-ups than when in maintenance mode.

In general, a good diet for diverticulitis includes a variety of high fiber foods.  The ADA recommends that adults consume 25- 30 grams of fiber daily, and some physicians may recommend even more.  This level of dietary fiber is important for anyone eating a diet for diverticulitis.  High fiber food examples include beans and legumes, bran, oatmeal, whole grain foods, brown rice, and fruits such as apples, bananas, pears, and figs. fresh fruit such as apples, pears, and peaches, brown rice,whole grain breads and cereals.

Diverticulitis foods to avoid in general include spicy or fatty foods that are difficult to digest.  Some believe that foods such as seeds, nuts, and corn can get trapped in a diverticulum leading to an infection, although some professionals disagree. Pay attention to what you eat, and if it seems that certain foods precede a flare up,consider avoiding those foods.

During a flare-up the diverticulitis diet will need to be switched to low-fiber mode or even extremely low-fiber mode for a few days in order to allow the intestine to recover.  This diet alteration may be combined with antibiotics or other physician-prescribed treatment. Low-fiber foods include white rice, plain pasta, canned or cooked fruit without peels, fruit and vegetable juice (no pulp), and eggs.

When a full on flare up occurs, a clear liquid diet should be adopted in order to create as little stress on the digestive system as possible.  A clear liquid diet for diverticulitis could include water, ice chips (not substantial, but crunchy and psychologically a little more satisfying than water), strained fruit juice, vegetable broth, and jello.

In some cases, the first course of action for the onset of a flare-up is to begin the clear liquid diet, then gradually add fiber as the symptoms disappear.

A physician may have specific recommendations, so it’s important to stay in touch with medical care providers. Overall, a healthy, high fiber diet for diverticulitis will help keep flare-ups at bay.

Tagged with: clear liquid diet • Diet For Diverticulitis • diverticulitis foods to avoid • diverticulosis • high fiber foods • low fiber foods

Filed under: Diverticulitis Foods

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