Note: The Prescript-Assist supplements discussed in this article are no longer available. Please click here to learn more about a substitute, the Daily Synbiotic from Seed.
If you’ve ever experienced a diverticulitis attack, I’m sure you’d be the first to say that it’s not a pleasant experience. I bet you’d be willing to do a lot of things to prevent it from happening again! Or maybe you’re someone who has been diagnosed with diverticulosis by your gastroenterologist, but you’re not quite sure what to do to prevent those painful attacks you’ve heard about and you want to learn more. Whatever brought you here, I’m happy to have you. Today I’ll be providing tips on how to prevent diverticulitis attacks naturally.
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What Is Diverticular Disease?
Diverticular disease is the term used to encompass a spectrum of issues from diverticulosis (the presence of sac-like pouches called diverticula that protrude from the colonic wall) to diverticulitis (the inflammation of these pouches and the accompanying symptoms). Diverticular disease is common in the Western world, with the highest rates seen in the United States and Europe. Even in those countries the disease was almost unheard of in 1900, but by the 1970s it was the most common affliction of the colon. (1)
Diverticular disease has been shown to increase with age – by 80, it is estimated that approximately 70% of individuals have diverticular disease. (2) The highest estimates suggest that approximately 20% of patients with diverticulosis (remember these are the people with the pouches, not the acute inflammation of the pouches) will at some point develop diverticulitis. (3) However, newer and more accurate estimates suggest that this rate is somewhere between 1 and 5%, depending on the strictness of qualifying criteria. (4) This is important to note for those who have been diagnosed with diverticulosis but are currently asymptomatic – according to these newer estimates, it is unlikely that you will develop diverticulitis. However, if you have diverticulosis and want be sure to prevent any problems or you’ve had diverticulitis attacks in the past, continue reading!
Despite the fact that diverticular disease is so common, we know relatively little about it and the common recommendations are based on limited data. If you’ve been diagnosed with diverticulosis, you may have received advice from your gastroenterologist about avoiding nuts and seeds and eating more fiber. However, these recommendations are based on inconclusive research and may not provide much benefit to you. In fact, few studies show any benefit to avoiding nuts and seeds and one study even showed that intake of nuts and popcorn was associated with a decreased risk of diverticulitis and diverticular bleeding. (5) High fiber diets are also often recommended, despite inconclusive evidence. (6) It is evident that recommendations for diverticular disease are due for an update.
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Underlying Factors That Contribute to Diverticulosis
Newer research suggests that the factors underlying diverticular disease are the following: (7, 8)
Inflammation
While inflammation is well-accepted in the model of acute diverticulitis, more and more research points to the involvement of chronic low grade inflammation in the development of symptomatic diverticulosis. In fact, of 930 patients undergoing surgery for symptomatic uncomplicated diverticular disease (SUDD), approximately 75% of them had evidence of chronic inflammation in and around the diverticula. (9) It is for this reason that drugs used for treating inflammatory bowel disease like mesalamine are being used to treat diverticular disease with good results as well (but hang tight, we’ll talk about natural ways to prevent diverticulitis, of course!). This is also why chronic use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen have been shown to increase the risk of diverticular complications (10, 11), since they are known to increase intestinal inflammation. (12, 13)
Fecal calprotectin can be measured to identify intestinal inflammation, and is high in those with symptomatic diverticular disease compared to those with functional digestive tract disorders like IBS and those with asymptomatic diverticular disease. (14) If you’re wondering whether you may have intestinal inflammation, it’s a great thing to get tested (and you can order a stool test from a specialty lab like Genova Diagnostics which will measure it). It is clear that chronic inflammation is involved in the development of diverticular disease, and that those who wish to prevent attacks should take steps to reduce intestinal inflammation.
Thankfully, one of the best ways to decrease intestinal inflammation is to eat a paleo diet! By avoiding potentially irritating and inflammatory foods such as grains, omega-6 fatty acids and lactose, we can reduce intestinal inflammation and encourage proper gut health. A paleo diet also positively influences gut bacteria, which in turn results in reduced inflammation as well. A paleo diet for diverticular disease should focus on gelatinous cuts of meat, bone broths, well-cooked vegetables, starchy tubers, and fermented foods.
Reducing your stress level is also important for bringing down levels of intestinal inflammation, as stress has been shown to activate inflammation in the intestine. (15) Stress can absolutely wreak havoc on the gut, so it is essential that any program focused on preventing diverticulitis attacks include proper stress management. This means incorporating mind-body activities such as yoga, meditation, tai chi, etc on a regular basis. If you’re someone who’s constantly stressed out and never takes time to take care of your own well-being, it’s unlikely you’ll be successful in preventing diverticulitis attacks even if you implement all the other suggestions outlined in this article. This one is important!
Another way to reduce an inflamed intestine is to supplement with soothing and healing demulcent herbs – deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL) has been shown to reduce mucosal damage and inflammation in rodents (16, 17) and it is likely that other demulcent herbs such as slippery elm and marshmallow root may have the same effect. Take chewable DGL tablets or mix a spoonful of slippery elm or marshmallow root powder in a small amount of water and drink 1-3 times per day to help soothe and heal an inflamed intestine. Another healing substance for the gut – bone broth – should be liberally consumed for this purpose as well.
Altered Intestinal Bacteria
Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) is common in diverticulitic patients. (18) Rifaximin, a non-absorbable antibiotic (meaning it only affects the gut, not the rest of the body), has been shown to effectively treat SIBO (19) and this treatment has also been shown to improve diverticular disease outcomes. (20) Bacterial overgrowth, along with fecal stasis inside the diverticula, can contribute chronic dysbiosis which can lead to low-grade inflammation (21), so improving gut bacterial balance is crucial to reducing intestinal inflammation.
Probiotic supplementation has been shown to be safe and potentially useful in diverticular disease (22) and is likely to be even more beneficial when combined with other therapies. If you’re not already consuming probiotics from your food (in the form of kefir, kombucha, kimchi, etc) then you should consider adding a supplement like VSL #3 or Prescript Assist (though even if you are consuming probiotics, a supplement isn’t a bad idea!). As Chris has mentioned, Prescript Assist tends to be the probiotic of choice for those suffering from constipation so start with that if you tend to err on the side of decreased motility.
Prebiotics are also very useful for correcting dysbiosis, and should be considered by those with diverticular disease. Prebiotics “stimulate selectively the growth and/or activity of intestinal bacteria associated with health and well-being” (23), which is exactly what we want when we’re trying to shift the balance of the microbes back to the good guys. My go-to prebiotic is Pure Encapsulations fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS) powder, but others include GOS and even lactulose. Supplementation with 10g of FOS per day has been shown to increase counts of bifidobacteria. (24) As with all prebiotics, it’s important to start with a very small amount and increase slowly. If you’re sensitive to FODMAPs you’ll want to be particularly careful as prebiotics are also FODMAPs. However, if you tolerate them well I think prebiotics can be a powerhouse when it comes to correcting imbalanced gut flora.
Most importantly, it’s crucial to treat SIBO or dysbiosis. As we’ve discussed, these conditions are very common in those with diverticular disease so it’s worth checking on your gut bacteria to see how they’re doing, using specialty labs such as Genova Diagnostics (and get your calprotectin tested while you’re at it!). It’s best to work with a practitioner who can test and treat you for these conditions.
Abnormal Colonic Motility
Researchers have found that those suffering from symptomatic uncomplicated diverticular disease have what they like to call a “spastic colon” in the areas affected by diverticulosis. (25) This is similar to what is found in patients with constipation predominant IBS and in functional constipation. These same researchers also found that patients with diverticulitis disease have reduced density of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC for short – a fun name for the “pacemaker cells” of the intestine). (26) In studies on animals with a lack of ICC networks, delayed or absent intestinal motility is noted. (27, 28) What this means for diverticular patients is that these lack of networks and a spastic colon can cause increased symptoms in terms of constipation and bloating/pain. Though we’re not entirely sure what we can do to directly affect these cells (yet), it’s important to use therapies aimed toward improving motility if this is an issue for you.
Know that correcting SIBO and dysbiosis will go a long way toward improving constipation, so this is a good place to start. Given that our stool is mostly made up of dead bacteria, one can imagine that without proper amounts of good bacteria we’re going to have a tough time bulking the stool. Prebiotics can be particularly useful for constipation given that they selectively increase good bacteria like bifidobacteria. However, if you’re still struggling after correcting dysbiosis, here are some additional recommendations.
First, serotonin is an important player in gut motility. Serotonin concentrations in those with colonic diverticulosis are significantly lower than normal controls and contribute to the type of bowel habit following a test meal. (29) Serotonin transporter (SERT) transcript levels are also lower in those with a history of diverticulitis compared to controls and those with asymptomatic diverticulosis. (30) Inflammation is also known to decrease SERT expression and function (31, 32), so following the recommendations to lower intestinal inflammation is of course the first step to improving gut motility. In addition, it is also likely that supplementation with 5-HTP (a precursor to serotonin) may alleviate constipation and increase motility since it will increase serotonin levels. Note: do not take 5-HTP without talking to your doctor first if you are on an SSRI medication.
Second, if you’re currently on a low carbohdyrate paleo diet, you may want to consider increasing your carbohydrate intake. In my experience working with those with constipation on a paleo diet, this is the single most effective diet-based recommendation I’ve seen. If you’re at a loss as to what starches to add in, check out this excellent handout from Balanced Bites. Note: since SIBO is so common for those with diverticulosis, this step may need to wait until that has been treated, and may not be appropriate for some people.
Magnesium supplementation can also be very useful for people with constipation. Given that only about half of US adults consume the RDA for magnesium (33), it’s safe to say that a lot of us probably aren’t getting enough. This is due to the fact that not many foods naturally contain high amounts of magnesium, and even those that do have less due to the depletion of magnesium from our soil. Check out this magnesium soil content map to see how your local area is doing (and think about where most of your food comes from – if you’re not eating local you may not even know what soil your food is being grown in!).
Conclusion
By reducing our intestinal inflammation, balancing our gut bacteria, and improving our intestinal motility it is likely that we can prevent diverticulitis attacks. I’ll leave you with a set of action steps so you remember exactly what to do to improve these underlying factors.
Action Steps to Prevent Diverticulitis Attacks:
- Eat a paleo diet!
- Reduce stress
- Use demulcent herbs such as DGL, slippery elm, and marshmallow root to soothe and heal the intestine
- Take probiotics like VSL #3 or Prescript Assist
- Take prebiotics like FOS powder
- Treat SIBO or dysbiosis
- Reduce intestinal inflammation to increase SERT functioning, and consider supplementation with 5-HTP
- If you’re currently on a low carbohdyrate paleo diet, consider adding some starchy tubers to your diet
- Supplement with magnesium
Better supplementation. Fewer supplements.
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:). I did! I got those three things today and am starting them!
My primary care (same practice but my own doc) today told me to stop the antibx. Because I have NO signs of infection the antibx are doing more harm than good. No fever. No vomiting etc.
So…. Went to whole foods. Got good probiotic and Aloe Juice, grape seed extract and some kefir with probiotics too. We are trying this for a few days. She had some recent study data that showed antibiotics making no difference for uncomplicated diver. If I get sick or spike fever on weekend she said *only* take Cipro not both. Hopeful I take neither!! Big thing is rest and very small amounts of food and only bland and soft. Basically eat like a toddler.
I have read this thread twice trying to take in the details – so much info. I am in my second attack (very quick re-occurrence, making me wonder if the first ever really ended.) I have a couple of comments/questions:
1. my first attack was deemed stage 1/mild (no perforation, etc – CT scan diagnosis) and I was treated with the cipro/flagyl cocktail. Those made me feel odd – not terrible, but not right. I was on liquids only for a few days, then started introducing egg and soft foods (lots of avocado too) before going back to my regular diet. GI guy told me that I should eat anything – the data on limiting intake of nuts, seeds, etc was inconclusive and to not worry about it. In reading – I definitely eat a very high insoluble fibre diet – kale, spinach, peas, green beans, celery, onions, bell pepper. I eat these raw most days, rarely cooked and in salad format. I drink tons of water (70-80 oz per day) too. Chris Kesser opines that is like “rubbing a wire brush over an open wound”. I had no idea. In retrospect – right idea, bad timing? I should have laid way off the insoluble stuff for many WEEKS (not days) to allow healing and inflammation to subside (?). I also did not know until reading this to use supplements to try and re-establish good gut bacteria. I am going out at lunch today to get some probiotics. I need to find or hear about meal planning for weeks to soothe and allow the gut to heal.
2. I felt the faintest twinge at 2AM Tuesday of this week while rolling over – I knew it was flaring again. Got to my primary care and they agreed – back on the antibiotic yuck. I feel worse this time – dizzy and sort of just out of it. Is it risky to stop taking this stuff now? Will I create resistance and end up worse off? I have follow up at 3 today (primary care) and am very confused after reading all of this – on how to proceed. No fever, and this is even milder than the first bout – but I am as panicked about the cipro and flagyl as I am about colon health now. 🙁 I also haven’t eaten since Tuesday so the feeling awful part could also be from that.
I really appreciate everyone sharing and offering input. I do have another GI specialist appointment (new doc, referred by a friend that is a doctor) but not til June 26th. My primary said they really need to do a colonoscopy to see what’s going on in there – but in order to schedule that the inflammation needs to be gone to lessen the risk.
If your panicked about the cipro and flagyl, why not give grapefruit seed extract, aloe vera juice and AMP a try.
WARNING: colonoscopy does have risks
http://roarofwolverine.com/archives/2772
http://blog.naturalhealthyconcepts.com/2014/02/04/5-things-you-should-know-before-getting-a-colonoscopy/
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cross-check/2012/03/12/why-i-wont-get-a-colonoscopy/
Colonoscopy do nothing except inflate the bank accounts of the doctors.
Let’s say the colonoscopy shows that you have diverticulitis. He will recommend standard things like antibiotics and surgery. You are still at the same point as you are now.
You ultimately still have to treat it. It’s simpler and cheaper to just take the remedies and see if it goes away.
Not only may the problem go away but you may also avoid the risks associated with colonoscopy procedure.
Excellent site! Thanks to everyone for their comments. I’m back today from 4 days in the hospital. Spiked a very high fever, and, well, you know the rest of the story.
I had to share what one nurse told me while I was “incarcerated.” She has diverticulosis, and has had several bad flare-ups. She had one piece of advice. She said that when you start feeling an episode come on where you’re bloated and gassy and feel like you simply need to pass gas, DON’T.
She said to get to a bathroom fast, because, “That ain’t gas running down your leg, and that stool you’re sitting on ain’t made of wood!”
Just had to share.
I don’t know exactly what you mean by don’t “pass” it.
Gas was a constant problem for a decade or more before I developed nausea. What I would do is bend forward while sitting and let the gas pass out of my mouth. Sort of like squeezing on a balloon. It expelled the gas.
I had digestive problems early in my life. What I did was do a 7 to 10 day fast and it resolved the many digestive problem for many decades.
There was a point in my life I became sick eating almost any food. What I did was go on a diet consisting of spring water, fish, beans, salt, butter and dates for two years. I was able to eat regular food after that.
“Don’t pass the gas” = “Don’t fart”
Hey, priori, while I have your attention, I was wondering if you could help with some questions I have.
1. How long should I be on bowel rest, eating only very soft foods like scrambled eggs and cream-based soups? I was discharged from the hospital on Monday.
2. On the news this morning there was a segment on food and drug interactions. They said never have dairy (milk, yogurt, eggs … how are eggs like milk and yogurt?) when you’re taking antibiotics. I tend to doubt that, but will look into it today. So much misinformation from the media these days. Why wouldn’t I want to have yogurt and kefir?
3. For the past month or two I have been taking both a prebiotic and a probiotic, switching between several different brands to get a variety. I’ve been taking usually 4 capsules total. Is that too much? Not enough?
I’m also looking into all the advice provided by Kelsey, you, and the others here. So much to think about, though. I certainly can’t do everything that has been advised, and it’s hard to choose.
I had that thought in my mind … lol
What is the reason for the bowel rest. Was it because you were on antibiotics while in hospital. I think it is reasonable advice to go with soft foods. I think you slowly introduce the non soft foods and see how you do.
I can understand not taking dairy or food at same time as the antibiotic. The food may interfere with the efficacy of the antibiotic. You should be able to take the food after the antibiotic is absorbed into your system.
I usually take antibiotics on empty stomach and always with bromelaine. I wait about 45 minutes before I eat. Bromelaine helps destroys the biofilm on bacteria thereby preventing the resistance problem caused by the biofilm. It also makes the antibiotic more effective. I will only use narrow spectrum antibiotics unless it is life or death situation.
I don’t think how much biotics is the important question but which strain of bacteria. A little bacteria should go a long way. of course, the quality of the product is a factor also.
I think probiotic and prebiotics are hit or miss thing. Your digestive system has probably thousand kinds of bacteria. We really don’t know what bacteria are missing. Supplements only have relatively few of those bacteria. New strains will come on the market but still a pittance. This could effect things directly by replacing the missing good bacteria or indirectly by allowing the missing bacteria to propagate.
When you get down to it – your essentially experimenting. Doctor may be able to diagnose some problems but not all. Digestive tract issues are a very murky area to cure. They can be a real battle for people to figure out. As we age, there is wear and tear on the system so the problems and things to fix can accumulate. I try to keep them at bay. I think you have to come at it from many directions. It can be hard but – experiment, experiment, experiment.
What impact does alcohol intake have on the development of Diver and the subsequent treatment. (ie using AMP and Healther’s Tummy Acacia ).
I like to enjoy a couple of beers every evening.
Since one doesn’t know what foods in your case is behind the diverticulitis, no real answer can be given.
On the AMP regimen, the normal course is to take 5 tablets before bed on preferably empty stomach and 4 tablets upon rising where the stomach is empty. I think this is the key since you don’t want anything competing with the AMP – something feeding the bad bacteria – while your trying to douse out the fire and heal the pouches. If it weren’t for the pouches, stamping out the problem would be much quicker.
In my personal experience, before the pain / cramps came, the symptom of nausea was always present. I felt it more on an empty stomach. When I feel nausea, I view it as a precursor event and assume bacteria is brewing. I would intervene with AMP and be looking at my diet for clues to what is causing it.
Just make sure you go to bed on empty stomach should be good enough. Avoiding foods that aggravate the pouches while you heal also makes sense. I’d be more concerned about too much carbonation so use moderation.
My personal opinion, I think the beer would be ok as long as it doesn’t worsen your symptoms. In the end, you have to kind of listen to your own body and interpret what it is telling you.
I’ll add one more thing that may not be related to diverticulitis but may be important to the health of your digestive tract. There is a lot of people developing sensitivity to wheat and gluten due to transgenic wheat. They have also increases the amount of gluten in the wheat also.
We hear about Celiac disease but there is a Non Celiac disease we need to be aware of. Mercola’s nutrition recommendation has looking out for wheat sensitivity number one on his list.
Anybody having digestive difficulties should consider experimenting with wheat free or gluten free diet. It may take up to two years to heal the damage.
Autism has been related to vaccines and processed foods. The government created a binary weapon.
Here are a few snippets about transgenic wheat
…
In a 2009 study “Increased Prevalence and Mortality in Undiagnosed Celiac Disease” published in the Gastroenterology journal, researchers concluded, “The prevalence of undiagnosed CD seems to have increased dramatically in the United States during the past 50 years.” Research once suggested that one in 5,000 Americans had Celiac Disease; in the past decade, now it’s grown to a staggering one in 133. One in 133.org figures suggest upwards of three million Americans suffer from Celiac and another 18 million from non-Celiac gluten sensitivity. (It’s also worth noting that autism rates have skyrocketed in that same time as well.)
In 2002, Monsanto provided its own safety evaluation to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that its genetically modified (GM) glyphosate-tolerant wheat is safe and as nutritious as conventional wheat. The FDA, in turn, accepted this conclusion, using the apparently logic that billion-dollar companies out to make big bucks on their own science experiments that claim their products are safe because they said so is somehow a perfectly legitimate way to determine true product safety. The United States and Columbia are the only two countries that allow Monsanto’s transgenic wheat.
Clarification
Wheat is technically not GMO but it is altered on a genetic level e.g. chemical mutagenesis (mutation). There has been no safety testing.
Here are snippets
Dr. Davis tackles the “Wheat is not GMO” issue head on, saying that he believes the methods used to create modern wheat are “worse than genetic-modification”
One of the parts of wheat altered by all the “hybridization” is called wheat germ agglutinin. It’s a lectin protein that functions as the defense system for the plant to battle mold, fungus, and insects, much like our immune system battles viruses and bacteria for us.
The “new” wheat lectin now wreaks havoc on the digestive system of lab animals (when administered by itself) and in humans, it “disables the normal discriminatory capacity of the human intestinal tract that helps it determine what should remain in the intestine and what should be allowed entry into the bloodstream,” causing many forms of digestive distress including heartburn, acid reflux, and IBS.
Someone mentioned to me that a lot of beer is made with artificial ingredients. One of the reasons micro brewery’s do good business, They said it is regulated by the ATF. Not FDA. So make sure you drink beer with quality ingredients. In europe, they highly regulate beer so it can’t be tainted with artificial ingredients.
I don’t pay attention to what is happening with beer since I don’t drink it much. The best beer I ever tasted was home made. I tend to drink Dos Aqui and Heineckens.
I was diagnosed with diverticulitis for the first time in February. My doctor put me on Cipro – Flagyl for 14 days. Never really felt 100% but just had another bout and am on the antibiotics again. I am using Probiotics twice a day and have found a huge improvement in tolerating the antibiotics. My question is: my doctor recommends 2 Citrucel caplets a day for fiber – she actually wants me to go to 4 a day. I feel that half of my discomfort comes from the caplets – does anyone stop taking them if they have a flare up?
I suffered an abscess about 12 years ago and had surgery with a big open hole in my stomach for months as the doctor wanted it healed from the outside in. Then I had a small part of my colon removed in another surgery. since th e n I’ve been ok. Had occasional bouts but would rest ea t less etc to heal. Now I’m scared because I think my original surgery site is leaking its very slight but it is smelly so I’m sure it is leaking now. Will these suggestions help or do I h ave to have antibiotics
I can’t give any opinion on the immediate medical urgency of a “leak” due to previous surgery.
You mentioned you had bouts later. This is why surgery doesn’t address the root cause. That means that the infection came back. I would bring out heavy artillery and use AMP. This has decent chance of healing your digestive tract including the leaks.
Very appreciative of thoughts on what causes and what helps D. I too feel like my recent bout started with an episode of food poisoning- within half an hour horrible cramping which turned into such digestive and bowel issues and lower left side pain- 2 rounds of cipro and flagyl and 2 months later still have left lower left side pain if I eat too much. Digestive enzymes do seem to help. After reading Cipro horror stories (and relating) I will probably try amp if there is a next time!
People might be interested to read through Paul Jaminet’s blog. He has some comments on diverticulosis/itis. I think he believes he got it from being too low carb and not enough Vitamin C in his diet. This is his blog: http://perfecthealthdiet.com/
Great info – sadly I had to figure a lot of items out the hard way before seeing this artical. Im 46 and have had a number of attacks over the past 4 years. I would like to add for females – avoid large meals – size of your fist rule. Pay extra attention of what you eat especially avoid high iron food (red meats) before menstrual cycle. The menstral cycle slows down the digestive process. Lastly avoid large consumptions of rice in one sitting (binding foods).
Minimizing Stress as noted above is crucial. Drink lots of water and try seltzer water during stressful times.
Wow Sylvia very helpful and timely for me to read your comment- I’m almost 44 and have seen an increase in bouts…. But trying to look at the way I’m doing everything to minimize incidences. Your comment about red meat before cycles is so timely – I have had red meat the last 2 days and about to start and totally experiencing slowing of digestion and constipation & uncomfortabality. Thx for info!
Forgot to include…
Always eat salad after meal not before. Salad is a scrubber and is easy for intestines to push through which helps push certain foods down with less stress on digestive system.
I mentioned earlir, no more than a fist size meal – also no less. Not eating or not enough food is harder for intestines to push and can cause irritation and flair up. So watch your summer diet program.
I’m waiting to order the AMP but wondering Has Anyone found they can do well with a low carb (or keto) lifestyle and keep diverticulitis at bay??? Thx
i just did he 4 day stay in hospital with diver and now home with cpro and flagl.`~I AM CELIAC AND HAVE BEEN ON A GLUTN FREE DIET AND I AM WONDRING IF THIS COULD BE THE CULPRIT AS THE PRIOR COMMENT SAID AVOUT IT BEING SOGGY I WOULD USE MUFFINS ANF GLUTEN FREE BREAD. ANYONE ELSE KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING/ ABOUT/
I am current on my 4th day of ciprofloxacin and metronidazole. This is my second bought of diver. My first was about nine months ago. The side effects of the drugs are almost worse than the original symptoms. The days before my most recent attach I was feeling on top of the world. I am a cyclist and had just completed a very intense ride all leading up to training for my first race that was supposed to happen in a week. Now all is on hold. The drugs make me feel so sick and all I do is sleep. I NEVER want to go through this again. My diet is very healthy…. for 3 years I follow Dr. Furmann (eat to live) they have cured my chronic migraines but now this any suggestions.
Use a natural antibiotic – Aloe Mucilaginous Polysaccharide capsules. No side effects either. Read my posts above.
I would discontinue those antibiotics especially if their wreaking havoc on your system.
Probably your gut flora are being wiped out. Recovering from their effect may take sometime.
I have been reading all these post about this Deverculisis,
I get these attack when I eat cereals or nuts and have not had any problem but three weeks ago this condition started and first I get dry mouth and then constipation .
What got my attention is this Aloe Mucilaginous Polysaccharide capsules , and I even ordered it through on line . Most of the time that something comes from Florida in form of corporation normally does not sound good and smell fraud . but I am down 126 dollars for three month worth of these capsules .
I am taking proboscis with 32 different strains and so far after one week , it is look like that I am feeling much better , plain yogurts and salad at night with Olive oil and avocado made my next day bathroom much more better then before ..
what I am hoping that these capsules are not a hoax and I hope it works and if I find out that are hoax , I do all of y power to make this information available to everybody , so other people do not waste their money .
let’s hop that I am wrong on that matter
So if something is bought from a company located in Florida, your saying that means it “sounds” and “smells” like fraud. That is a very absurd statement to make. What if you buy it from Kentucky, Ohio, California or Vermont. Is that better.
How will you determine if it is fraud. If it doesn’t work for you… ???????
There are plenty of remedies that work for many people but may not work from some. Some people who it doesn’t work for will claim that they have been ripped off or something.
i hope you realize that how long it takes to work will vary depending on the severity of the condition
Also I can’t sit here and give any guarantees that something will work in all people. It is another option. I expect anyone using my information to do their own due diligence.
Someone posted a complaint on the internet that they didn’t even lift a finger to check into. With just a little checking, it would have been found to be bogus.
If you didn’t do your due diligence to check into the company your buying from, maybe you should probably just go to a surgeon and have him cut out some of your intestine. This will save you $126.
I just finished the 7 day Ciprofloxacin/Metronidazole regimine and like Monika, felt lousy and slept. I have never had a bout of diverticulitis with the primary symptom being sharp pain in lower left abdomen. I had a colonoscopy in April with no indication of diverticulosis (???). Feeling good now and grateful for all this information…and like all of you sure want to avoid a ‘next time’. Best wishes.
I am now in a bout with divaticulitis and need help to get better quick!!!! Going on vacation in 4 days and want to be well for my family to enjoy Disney!!!
Any quick fix remedies you can suggest would be appreciated!!!!
each case has a different severity.
read thru the comments, collect remedies and try them.
OMG, I’m in the same boat. Leaving in 3 days!
Which Genova diagnostics lab test do you recommend to check for intestinal inflammation?
4 sets of antibiotics since January so now I will try a Nutritionist.
Diarrhea is a big problem-any suggestions? I am taking
Florastor.
my suggestion is – read my comments
broad spectrum antibiotics do a lot of damage to the gut’s flora because it is killing of a broad range of flora. this is what likely causes fungal infections to develop in the body. this is what to avoid. Just a couple days on them wrecks my gut. Diarrhea will result in these.
my experience is that narrow spectrum antibiotics are far less damaging to the flora. i experimented with antibiotics like penicillin, minocycline, amoxicin etc on long term for something and never had severe gut flora problems. this doesn’t mean that they won’t effect some flora. i noticed i would develop shingles outbreak more as time went by.
I had a bout in 2010. Did anitibiotics, but mistakenly exercised after day 7. This brought a whole lot of pain on. After a second CT scan, they decided it was “scar tissue” or ‘irritable” pain. I was given Levsin for IBS and it took away that pain within a day or two. I started using soluble fiber (Benefiber) and wearing more comfortable clothing to keep the pressure off my tummy.
Fast forward to this week in 2014. I tried to go paleo and dissed my wheat based fiber supplement. I also increased my raspberry consumption (seeds?) and wore smaller clothing as I was losing a few pounds. I was exercising more and feeling better except for some stomach irritation from vitamin C.
So now I have a flare up and I am supposed to travel within a few days. I DO NOT want nasty antibiotics that give me fatigue, stomach pain, and rapid heartbeat! Did I mention the first time I got a flare up, I was traveling also! gee.
The main point of all this is that everyone seems to have different triggers. I will NOT wear tight clothing again, nor will I stop taking my fiber supplement. I will also be very careful about overexercising.
🙁
First the infection comes then the pockets come then the aggravation caused by seeds getting stuck in the pockets worsens it. People erroneously still cling to the notion that the seeds caused it. Irritation from Vitamin C would be another indication that you had infection.
You never healed your pocket sacs. You still had the infection but were non symptomatic. I can tell people many times and they refuse to listen so they are in a life long fire fighting mode. They focus themselves on symptomatic relief and not healing. If the pockets got healed, the seeds wouldn’t have a place to drop into. They’d be more resistant.
Thank you all! What a wealth of information is on this site. I just returned home after 5 days in the hospital as a result of my first (and hopefully only) bout of diverticulitis. It was as has been noted, horrible. I’ve been told to follow up with the surgical group as a possibility of needing surgery in the future. My dilemma is that I have also recently been diagnosed with Gastroparesis. Consequently I had severe pain in both my upper GI tract as well as the intestines during the attack. I’m certainly going to incorporate some of the information provided here to improve my digestive health, and stay away from surgery. All hints/suggestions will be appreciated to treating both conditions.
here some info to look at on Gastroparesis
http://www.earthclinic.com/CURES/gastroparesis.html
I believe that any food that is inflammatory to you is a trigger.
my worst divers attack was after a blackberry smoothie.
seeds are insoluble fiber and create inflammation with the overfermentation. I don’t think seeds or anything else getting stuck in pockets is the problem.
Im intolerant to eggs and blueberries and so those are proinflammatory for ME. Of course sugar and too much coffee could cause a problem.
My flares arise from an extra large meal of any kind or sugar.
constipation is my first clue that Im beginning a flare. The antibiotics were a problem for me. Or anyone . I wont take them unless I am going to die.
I have dodged 3 flares by immediately going on a liquid diet.
Bone broth-water kefir-
olive leaf capsules
lauricidin
black seed oil
probiotics.
i utilize an 8 hr eating window and during the fast phase
I allow a little cream in 1 cp. coffee, coconut oil, and or broth.
my regular diet is low fiber-modified paleo.
white rice, meat , fish, homemade milk kefir.
sauerkraut also homemade.
small amount of non fibrous fruit, cooked vegetables…
my biggest issue is constipation.
I use a tsp of magcitrate vit c combo first thing in the morn.
but the biggest turnaround for it came when I added the soil based probiotic that this article mentioned.
prescript assist.
Im thinking of adding a T or two of aloe without carageenan to the regimen.
I try a little bit of everything because I NEVER want the unexpected full on attack ever again!
So glad I found this blog.
Been suffering from divert for quite a few years on and off Colonscopy showed I have got them EVERYWHERE in Colon not just left side.
Had a bad attack of diarrhea for two and a half weeks, one lot was yet black, Doctor said Divert can bleed and stop again and I had had a Colonoscopy and GAESTROSCOPY only 14 months ago which was all fine,ran to the toilet 13x a day and when I had to go nearly every hour during the night I rang up my Specialist who put me straight into hospital intravenous drip of Saline and antibiotic called KAFTRAXIN (?) and the next day on Flagyl intravenously 3x a day. The Flagyl made me VERY nauseous and gave me more diarrhea so my doctor put me onto plain old Amoxillin, am on the second lot now.
They did all the bloodtests and stool tests and everything came back ok.
I was in for a week and everything was ok no more diarrhea etc.
After ten days at home I started diarrhea again, even tho I don’t eat fat or sugar, last few days only mashed potatoes and white bread.
My husband had had a bowel resection 6 years ago and bowel cancer a year later so we do know a lot about which foods to avoid etc.
I am also on 5mg Warfarin since May because I have bloodclots in my lungs, but use to get lots of bowel problems for years already. I was also diagnosed with IBS years ago so am very “touchy” in that area.
Is there anybody out there who can inform me what to eat and what not to eat? Some say eat nut, others say don’t, I know I can’t eat seeds and high fibre doesn’t agree with me either. Or does anybody else had problems like that?
Like I said, I have had many episodes before but never had to go to hospital for it. I am very careful with my food, but do suffer from a lot of stress.
I live in Australia.
I will try ANYTHING to stop the diarrhea attacks, thanx to all for your input.
Regards,
MONIQUE
Long term use of warfarin (coumadin) causes calcification of arteries. Your body is being damaged by the coumadin. It ranks as one of the top 4 drugs in the US causing emergency visits to hospital.
nattokinase is a clot buster and natural to the body so no side effects. Also add in serrapeptase for good measure.
It isn’t about what to eat or not to eat. The reason you can’t eat certain foods is because the pouches haven’t healed. When they heal, your limitations on food will not be there any longer. It is not about “stress” either. It’s about addressing the bacteria causing it and healing the pouches. Figuring out why it happened becomes the next step after you cure it. You may have a low level infection that just never got knocked out. I would try the natural remedies.
fiber (not too much)
grapefruit seed extract
aloe vera juice
manuka honey (i would consider getting the highest MGO rating – probably 400-550 minimum) (natural antibiotic)
Aloe Muciliginous Polysaccharide (see my posts) (natural antibiotic)
Since you have IBS, it means not only the large intestine is involved but the small intestine. Given the severity of intestine problems you have, you have good cause to roll the dice on different remedies even if they didn’t work.
There is a specific probiotic called Saccharomyces Boulardi that is scientifically proved to prevent antibiotic caused diarrhea .
Doctors neglect to tell people to take probiotics when taking antibiotics. You should take the probiotics around 4 hours after taking the antibiotics.
Prioris,
i see you are from Fort Pierce, FLorida. Me too…
I would like to meet you or talk on the phone about this Diver thing
Hello all, What a wonderful wealth of information. I just found out that my husband has some pockets protrusions of diverticulitis. He actually has no digestive problems as a result of his diet, never has. Occasionally he has gotten cramps but I would give him Colloidal Silver and that would take care of it.
He is on a Peg Tube as he is recovering from non Hodgekins Lymphoma in his throat. The tube food called Jevity and Boost are horrible and made him very sick which he has been taken off them and is now on Perative which is gluten free, suppose to be good for lactose intolerance, yet still has milk and soy, canola and every un-pronounceable ingredient you can think of.
This does agree with him at least, better than the other stuff. But I can’t help but believe that it is a bunch of dead food chemically changed and lots of additives.
I decided as long as he has to be on the tube, I would strain homemade soup, veggies, coconut milk, almond milk, beets, anything to to get something real into him. I also use Coconut oil and Palm Oil.
I am also supplementing with Iodine and use the Colloidal Silver to prevent any bad bacteria.
I know I have to get him a good bacteria product and I will definitely try the above suggestions.
Has anyone had any experience with something like this?
They say that if he gets off the tube and tries to eat, he will probably aspirate and eventually get pneumonia but I am hoping the Colloidal silver and Iodine will prevent bad bacteria taking hold in his lungs.
He either has to risk eating, which I’m not sure at this point if he ever will be able to swallow well enough again, or live on a tube for the rest of his life. Or have his throat operated on to remove his voice box and have to use a mechanism to speak, which will allow him to eat without fear of pneumonia.
I can make him shakes with herbs and such but I don’t want to see him on a tube, don’t want his voice box taken out, don’t want him to catch pneumonia.
I am at the point that the lesser of all the evils would be to have the tube taken out, feed him as healthy as I can, supplement him, use the Colloidal silver and Iodine and hope for the best.
Is there anyone out there who has ever experienced anything like this and what did you do? Does anyone feel that Colloidal Silver can actually prevent pneumonia since it has been known to help people overcome MRSA and many other bacterial infections.
I know Colloidal silver helps the digestive system and was wondering if anyone ever used it to help with their diverticulitis.
I myself have had a JPouch surgery and Colloidal Silver has helped me a lot but I have to take a lot of other stuff because for the most part, I lose my nutrients almost as fast as I take something.
For those contemplating surgery, think twice and then think a million times again. Surgery is horrible and if I knew what I know today, I would have never had it done.
Thanks,
Carol
WOW – WOW – WOW!!! This is the absolute best article and subsequent comment section regarding diverticulitis! Currently finishing day 4 of another 7-day round of Cipro & Flagyl. I hadn’t considered the larger amounts of protein on my low carb lifestyle causing the problem – I eat nuts, seeds, tons of veggies and quality saturated fats like coconut oil, guacamole…but in the past it has always seemed to be stress induced and/or lack of water causing constipation for me. Thankfully I have found magnesium and have been doing pretty good – But this time I believe it was those new dark chocolate covered frozen strawberries that Dole just came out with. Felt like a healthy treat on recent vacation – but encountered some stress plus strawberries and BOOM.
I was in my low 30’s when my first attack happened and was hospitalized for 4 days. So tired of the SAD recommendations and the constant issues i seemed to battle in my health. I have searched for the last decade (with some success) for avoiding flare ups and was so frustrated with the lack of up to date info, and on healing it naturally. I have been on a Low Carb lifestyle for the last year and a half dropping 45 pounds – which is great. I am healthier, off all meds and have been doing more a LCHF diet.. however there is more tweaking that needs to be involved and i am learning to listen to my body. These comments have given me some direction and possibilities in my quest.
As I read these comments I feel so encouraged to find others on similar journeys of reclaiming our health! AND SO MANY great opinions, advice and ideas on moving forward!! SO THANK YOU EVERYONE from Chris Kressser, to Kelsey Marksteiner to everyone who took the time and posted on here!!
Now I have to find these things mentioned… but do i finish this round of antibiotics?!?!
I have read that just being overweight adds to the level of
inflammation in our bodies.
Divers is an inflammatory disease.
You did yourself a favor with the weight loss.
I would like to follow in your footsteps.
by the way I have headed off 2 attacks and avoided
abx meds by EATING/drinking only liquids or pureed soups made with bone broth. olive leaf extract caps, lauricidin and getting plenty of sleep. prescript assist probiotic, homemade milk kefir….even while working a stressful job in the ER.
Diverticulitis is bacteria infection in intestine. No more. No less.
Doesn’t diverticulitis start with diverticlosis though. Isn’t that a deformity of the bowel/ pockets? That’s what I’m most interested in reversing.
It starts with bacteria. The bacteria creates pouches. The food gets stuck in the pouches which aggravates the condition even further. It’s a chain reaction of events.
diverticulosis
diverticula
diverticulitis
diverticular
relate to the same disease
No matter what words you want to use, the bacteria needs to be treated. The only unknown is how severe it is and how much fire power you need to keep the infection doused out so the pouches will heal. It takes time for the pouches to heal.
That’s interesting about the bacteria causing the pouches. I am suspecting diverticulum/osis but no internal investigation has been done to verify this but I have been having pains in my lower left side (mild but noticable). It seems to come on more shortly before I empty my bowels. So to me it feels like some sort of irritation in the sigmoid colon.
Gynacologists have ruled out STD or ovary problems.
I have done a comprehensive digestive stool analysis and the results are very good, showing good digestion and no pathogens of any kind showed up. Just no growth of one of the beneficial bacteria.
I don’t really know what else I should do or what tests to try next.
Any tips would be much appreciated! 🙂
It is my experience that most medical tests are useless. If you have tests done, you have to be very selective in what test you choose.
The major symptoms of diverticulitis are nausea and cramps. This is a pretty good indicator for diverticulitis.
Here is what you do for any body pain.
Locate as best as you can the location of your pain in your body.
Find a good anatomy image of the body on the internet and see what organs are in that area. This gives you some idea of what may be involved.
You say the pain on left side.
I don’t know your age but if you are over 45 I would try doing various cleanses. Treat it like doing an oil change on the car.
Below are some of the possible conditions
Kidney Problems and Lower Left Quadrant Abdominal Pain
Kidney Infection
Kidney Stones
They have many natural products on the market to address this. I used renavive because it addresses infection and dissolves kidney stones. There are other cheaper alternatives but make sure it addresses infection.
Digestive Problems and Lower Left Quadrant Abdominal Pain
Crohn’s Disease
Diverticulitis
Use AMP for these problems.
Ulcerative Colitis
Intestinal Obstruction
Other Problems and Lower Left Quadrant Abdominal Pain
Aortic Aneurysm
Inguinal Hernia
Common Causes of Severe Lower Left Side Abdominal or Stomach Pain Specific to Women:
Endometriosis
Mittelschmerz
Ovarian Cysts
Ectopic Pregnancy
What you want to do is figure out what you don’t have. This will narrow down the list of possibilities.
Whatever is left, try doing the natural cleanses I suggested.
If the kidney cleanse doesn’t work, you can cross that off as a possible condition.
This is how to approach finding and resolving the health problem yourself. You’d be surprised what you can accomplish with your own detective work.
Thanks for that summary. Very helpful. I have been doing detective work. Just so far no results.
My lower left sided pain all started about a year ago with a night of nausea and fever. I was better by the next day. Later I developed a few days of liquid diarhea. I thought it was food poisoning. After I recovered from the diarhea, I got the lower left sided pain for the first time in my life. That was the most painful episode. It gradually dissapeared in 3 weeks time. Only to reappear more mildly a few months later. I’ve now had it for 3 months. Not painful this time but worrying. I’ve noticed certain things aggravate it: stool passing the area. Pain comes on more shortly before emptying my bowels.
Squashing that area e.g. if I crouch makes me notice the pain more.
I don’t think it’s ovarian related- gynae have done various tests/scans and found nothing wrong. No pregancy.
I doubt it’s IBD as no inflammatory markers according to the stool test. However my blood crp levels were slightly raised.
I doubt it’s obstruction since I’m having almost daily bowel movements.
Re. kidney problems, wouldn’t the pain be more round the back?
I’m 30. Do you think I should still try a kidney cleanse? There was no urine infection.
I’m wondering if I should apply poultices to the area to kill a possible infection, with something anti-bacterial for example.
Not really sure what to do next :-S Just trying to be as healthy as I can and hope it won’t get worse.
I forgot to add:
My belly seems bloated especially since my last birth over a year ago. I notice if I wear something tight round my waist- elastic of a skirt, it feels tender, this is not how I would normally feel. Otherwise I am naturally very slim. All these problems started after the birth of my last child. I wonder if that has got something to do with it.
Your relatively young. Kind of young to have kidney stones but in some people it is a life long chronic problem. I’d assume you don’t have that problem.
Everything I am reading tells me you have diverticulitis.
“I’ve noticed certain things aggravate it: stool passing the area.”
I just remembered that was somewhat like I felt with diverticulitis also.
Bloating and gas were preliminary signs in me also.
Anybody with continued gas and bloating should find a way to address that. I used to ignore that thinking that everyone gets that and nothing to get concerned about. An occasional bout can be ignore. Frequent bout should not be ignored.
I used to have frequent bloating and gas problems but since taking CLA (derived from sunflower), I have no problems. Some people react negatively to that CLA. The ideal CLA is the kind derived from meat, eggs milk etc because that is what they use in studies but they don’t have that on the market.
You will have to experiment with something to relieve that continuous bloating also.
You have two problems that need addressing.
So first address what we assume is diverticulitis with AMP and then experiment with finding a solution to the continuous bloating and gas after diverticulitis heals.
Being young, AMP may work quickly for you.
I would be familiar how to do a non commercial solution for kidney stone flush anyway in case you ever need to go in that direction.
Look for video How to Treat Kidney Stones With Lemon Juice and Olive Oil or similar videos.
Thanks for your advice.
I want to try the AMP. s it safe even if by any chance I don’t have diverticulitis?
I did take alow vera juice from Pukka brand which is high quality but I had loads of mucus coming out with and in between bowel movements. I got freaked out. The day I stoped the aloe vera, the mucus stopped. Not sure if the mucus is a positive or negative reaction though.
I am wondering if it is beneficial to get a formal diagnosis. What would be the most safe way to diagnos it? Perhaps a sygmoidoscopy? It’s much simpler and less risky to an endoscopy.
You sau a bacteria causes diverticulitis. I can’t find information on this. Which bacteria is it or could it be various ones? Is there a test that could identify the bacteria?
I wonder if an antiparasitic could help with the bacteria e.g. Humaworm.
Interesting comments about the Vitamin C. I’ve read that Vit C is underused but powerful weapon against bacteria and viruses. I had holistic dental treatment where the detox protocol is high dose IV Vit C (with other things). If I remember correctly I had 35 g Vit C in each dose. 3 doses spread over 2 days! I noticed a noticable improvement in my pain on those days. The pain almost went but is now mildly here while I take 2g Vit C daily now. I’m now considering increasing the dose.
Sorry for yet another comment.
One thing I just don’t understand is why I just developed diverticulitis now in this last year (if that is what I have). I’ve been eating healthier than ever in the last 4 years: WAPF, then GAPS, then adding in some starches/carbs. My digestion definately improved (e.g. indigestion/heartburn went, constipation reduced..)
If it truly is a bacteria I’m wondering if I got it through some contaminated food. The day I got ill I had ham from a poorly working fridge. At the time I thought I got food poisining from it. That’s how it all started. Is it possible the bacteria came from the ham?
We can’t be sure you do have diverticulitis.
The fact that you do have your symptoms makes it a possibility.
I can’t tell you what bacteria is causing diverticulitis but we know it is some type of bacteria because it is causing damage to the colon. It’s simpler to try remedies than figuring out what bacteria.
I would try a good anti-parasite cleanse also. Again, it’s easier to do that then go for a test to see if you got parasites.
I would stay away from doing vitamin C stuff. You have a microbe. There is always possibility that vitamin C could help in some way but then one could say that about niacin or a hundred different things.
I would stay away from the advice that says you need some humongous amount of fiber. That study is flawed.
They can do a colonoscopy or whatever but that should be done later when you hit a brick wall in trying to remedy and diagnose it.
Also understand that many health conditions can’t be diagnosed by a doctor but only guessed at. You should use them as an adjunct to your own detective work.
How does one know if one has a fungal problem. By taking an anti-fungal agent that greatly improves the symptoms. It’s easier to try the remedies than diagnose the fungal infections. Tests don’t catch everything or every fungal type.
Aloe Vera juice has toxins in it so possible you could be reacting to them. I couldn’t drink aloe vera juice without it making me sicker.
What you say about your eating habits being more healthy, this could make a case that you don’t have diverticulitis.
At this point, it’s about trying to come at the problem from different directions and see if you get results. This helps narrow down the list of possibilities.
Last resort, get the perspective from more than one doctor.
Wow – very helpful!!!! Thank you so much!!!!
At 52 I had my first case of D. Within 3 years of the first episode I had 5 more. During those 3 years I drank A LOT of coffee, all day long, everyday, and even occasionally took caffeine tablets to help me stay awake. (Work related issues was the reason for increasing the caffeine intake) After the 6 occurrence I quit all caffeine intake and started drinking water only. I started drinking 3-5 16oz bottles of water a day. It’s become habit. It’s been 2 years since I quit caffeine and started water and I haven’t had one single episode of D. Luck or cause/effect I don’t know, but if you get D and have a high caffeine intake, I’d suggest you try it.
the very first thing people should do is clean up their diet if it is too crappy.
sometimes that alone can cure diverticulitis because the infection is not severe. that can stop feeding the bad bacteria hence they will die out over time especially with more healthy immune people.
when the problems becomes too severe, it takes more powerful methods.
people who have to constantly stay on top of their diverticulitis didn’t really cure it. they just dowsed out the infection enough where it is still present but not symptomatic. instead of addressing the infection directly, they start creating unnecessary and unpleasant diet restrictions.
moderation alone may resolve it. drinking coffee in more moderate amounts can still keep it at bay so one still can drink some coffee.
many sites list foods that have nothing to do with the origin of the problem. once you can cure it, you will have a pretty good idea why your getting it if it returns just by tracking your diet.