diverticulitis

Topic summary contributed by volunteer(s): Crystal

Diverticulosis, outpouchings of the colon, is a prevalent intestinal disease and may be caused by not eating enough fiber. These pockets can get inflamed, resulting in diverticulitis. A plant-based diet may help treat and prevent diverticulitis. Plant-based diets are often high in fiber, allowing for bigger, more easily passable bowel movements, which may lower the risk of diverticulosis among other intestinal disorders. Eating nuts may be beneficial in lowering inflammation.

For substantiation of any statements of fact from the peer-reviewed medical literature, please see the associated videos below.

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14 videos

All Videos for Diverticulitis

The Best Diet for Colon Cancer Prevention

What would happen within just two weeks if you swapped the diets of Americans with that of healthier eaters?

Lose Two Pounds in One Sitting: Taking the Mioscenic Route

Our physiology evolved for millions of years eating a plant-based diet. What would happen if researchers tried to recreate our ancestral diet in the lab?

The Five-to-One Fiber Rule

A guideline is suggested for how to read food labels for grain products such as bread and breakfast cereals.

Putrefying Protein and “Toxifying” Enzymes

Certain gut bacteria can “retoxify” carcinogens that your liver successfully detoxified, but these bacteria can be rapidly suppressed by simple dietary changes.

Does Fiber Really Prevent Diverticulosis?

The parable of the tiny parachute explains the study that found no relationship between dietary fiber intake and diverticulosis.

Diverticulosis: When Our Most Common Gut Disorder Hardly Existed

More than two-thirds of Americans over age 60 have diverticulosis, but it was nearly unknown a century ago, and remained extremely rare among populations eating whole food plant-based diets.

Should You Sit, Squat, or Lean During a Bowel Movement?

Squatting and leaning can help straighten the anorectal angle, but a healthy enough diet should make bowel movements effortless regardless of positioning.

Diet and Hiatal Hernia

Straining at stool over time may force part of the stomach up into the chest, contributing to GERD acid reflux disease. This may explain why hiatal hernia is extremely rare among populations eating high-fiber diets.

One in a Thousand: Ending the Heart Disease Epidemic

Many of our most common diseases found to be rare, or even nonexistent, among populations eating plant-based diets.

More than an Apple a Day: Preventing the Most Common Diseases

Dr. Greger has scoured the world’s scholarly literature on clinical nutrition, and developed this brand-new live presentation on the latest in cutting-edge research on how a healthy diet can affect some of our most common medical conditions.

Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

Death in America is largely a foodborne illness. Focusing on studies published just over the last year in peer-reviewed scientific medical journals, Dr. Greger offers practical advice on how best to feed ourselves and our families to prevent, treat, and even reverse many of the top 15 killers in the United States.

Say No to Drugs by Saying Yes to More Plants

A study of 15,000 American vegetarians suggests their lower chronic disease rates translate into fewer surgeries (including hysterectomies) and medications (including aspirin, sleeping pills, tranquilizers, antacids, pain-killers, blood pressure medications, laxatives, and insulin).

Stool Size Matters

Larger bowel movements are associated with lower risk of appendicitis, colon cancer, constipation, and diverticulitis.

Diverticulosis and Nuts

Should people with diverticulosis avoid nuts, seeds, and popcorn?