Preventing Diverticulitis Flares: Diet and Lifestyle Changes that Help

Diverticula are small sacs that bulge outward through weak spots primarily in the lower part of the colon. Diverticulosis is the name given to the condition in which you have these pouches. Most people with diverticulosis have no symptoms or ill effects. However, the pouches can become inflamed, causing pain and other symptoms.

Diverticulitis is the name for the condition where one or more pouches become inflamed. It may come on suddenly, and it can create serious health problems.

At Advanced Surgical Associates of Northern Minnesota, board-certified general surgeon Dr. John Bollins and our team regularly diagnose diverticulitis and treat it through surgical means. However, in this month’s blog, the team would like to focus on how diet can be effective as the first line of treatment.

What causes diverticulitis?

Researchers aren't yet certain what causes either diverticulosis or diverticulitis. The working theory is that several factors play a role in causing or increasing the risk for these conditions, including:

Having certain genes makes some people more susceptible
Eating diets low in fiber and high in red meat
Not exercising enough
Taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and/or steroids
Having obesity
Smoking

Other factors that may play a role are changes in your intestinal microbiome or bacteria or stool (poop) getting caught in a pouch in your colon, inflaming the tissue.

What are diverticulitis symptoms?

When the diverticula become inflamed, symptoms may include:

Severe abdominal pain
Distended abdomen or palpable colon
Fever
Nausea and vomiting
Rectal bleeding
Constipation or, less commonly, diarrhea

Symptoms will be similar whether you’re having an acute diverticulitis attack or a flare-up of chronic diverticulitis. A flare-up may build up over a few days, but you should be able to locate the precise spot of the inflammation. The pain can feel sharp and penetrating or have a burning sensation, and it’s often moderate-to-severe.

Diet and lifestyle changes

If you have only mild symptoms and no complications like fistulas (small tunnels), GI bleeding, and intestinal obstructions, the condition is called uncomplicated diverticulitis. Diverticulitis is diagnosed as uncomplicated 80% of the time. In such cases, you can be treated at home.

Dr. Bollins generally recommends that you adopt a liquid diet to allow your intestines to heal; he also generally prescribes antibiotics to quell the infection. As your symptoms start to improve, you can begin to introduce solid foods, beginning with low-fiber foods.

When you're fully healed, you can resume a regular diet with high-fiber foods, but the doctor is likely to also recommend a fiber supplement.

If you have a complicated case, you may need to be hospitalized for IV antibiotics, and it’s possible you may require surgery, up to and including a colectomy (removal of the colon) and a colostomy (an opening in the abdomen that expels waste into a pouch).

If you’re experiencing severe abdominal pain, don’t wait to schedule an appointment at Advanced Surgical Associates of Northern Minnesota. Call us in Hibbing, Duluth, or Hermantown, Minnesota, or book your appointment online.

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