Diverticulitis

(Tracy D'angelis) #1

Hi! I was diagnosed with diverticulosis about 6 months before I started Keto, and have just been diagnosed with diverticulitis. I’ve been dirty keto since March 2018. I use a tiny bit of xylitol in my coffee every morning and eat erythritol in Halo Top or occasionally make a dessert for special occasions which I’m sure I would benefit from removing from my woe. Besides cutting out artificial sweeteners, can anyone give me tips on managing diverticulitis with keto?

(Chris) #2

First thing I’d do is a carnivore elimination diet. Eat nothing but meat and water for a good two months and see if it goes away. Based on pretty much all of the studies on diverticulitis, I’ve concluded fiber is potentially a culprit, despite being touted as a cure.

(Chris) #3

Here is a pretty recent testimonial: http://meatheals.com/category/digestion/diverticulitis/

One of the things that the studies on this condition conclude is that red meat causes diverticulitis. They fail to report that all of these studies also had subjects consuming some kind of fiber. No one has studied diverticulitis in carnivorous humans, and yet none of the thousands of extant carnivores have reported contracting the the condition. Obviously this is all anecdote, but even that has merit.

(Tracy D'angelis) #4

Thanks Chris. I’ll look into that.

(Tracy D'angelis) #5

Thanks again Chris. That testimonial is very interesting. I have had more fibre since eating keto than I ever ate before so there could very likely be a link for me. I don’t think I could handle meat only as I’ve never been a big meat lover but once my gut is healed with a liquid diet I’m going to try cutting out fibre as much as possible. I’ve been drinking lots of bone broth that I heard is good for the healing process.

(John) #6

I had my first ever bout of diverticulitis at the first of this year. The initial treatment is a clear liquid diet which basically completely shuts down your lower digestive system. Your bowels are empty, and they stay that way. Then you transition very slowly to a low-residue diet (meaning, very little fiber) for a while. Then later on you are supposed to transition to a high fiber diet. The goal is to keep you regular, and keep your stools fairly soft. You don’t want anything big or hard to pass, so you need to avoid constipation.

I find on the keto diet (I do make sure to include fiber-rich leafy greens pretty much every day) that I have low residue (from all the meat - we digest pretty much all of it) low volume, soft, and easy to pass output. Everything you want to keep your diverticuli happy. That plus drinking lots of water. No flare ups or pain so far on keto / low carb for me.

Since it’s a potentially very serious medical condition, you do need to work with your doctor and not rely on Internet wisdom, at least don’t rely on mine. I am a single example.

(Tracy D'angelis) #7

Thank you John. I’m seeing my familly doctor tomorrow and will see what he has to say. The clear liquid diet has been good for weight loss, although I don’t recommend it!!!

(John) #8

When I did it, that was before I was on a keto diet so I was looking for any way to get allowed calories in. Full-sugar jello, clear fruit juices, clear broths. Lots of empty carbs. I think I did that for about 5 days, before going to low residue, which is where you can start adding in proteins and the types of “bad” carbs we try to avoid on a low-carb diet.

Mayo Clinic has a sample here: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/diverticulitis-diet/art-20048499 Note that this is only for the recovery period, and not long-term maintenance.

(TerryB) #9

I’ve long had diverticulosis but never had diverticulitis until several months after I went keto.

Constipation is a major trigger for diverticulitis. Like many others during the early stages of keto, I had trouble with constipation (for the 1st time in my life) so I suspect that was what brought on my flare. To recover I did the usual clear liquid then low residue regime. I lived on chicken, turkey, bone broth, green beans, yogurt, and scrambled eggs - nothing else - for an entire month.

Then I reintroduced foods one at a time, usually a new one every 3-4 days, watching for symptoms. I discovered red meat is a major problem for me. My gastro doc said that’s very common because red meat moves so slowly through the gut. This was a bummer because I’ve always been a carnivore and could happily eat beef every meal.
But the misery of full blown diverticulitis is something I never want to experience again so I reluctantly gave up red meat That’s been several months and to my surprise I’m not missing it at all. I do just fine with fish, poultry, and eggs as protein sources. I limit pork to one small serving a week. Raw greens - lettuce, spinach, broccoli - don’t play well with me either. I have to limit salads and make sure my green veggies are well-cooked.
The good news is I can eat raw tomatoes, berries, cantaloupe, and all seeds and nuts without any problems.

Through trial and error I’ve also discovered that my ideal fiber intake is in the range of 15-20 grams daily. If I deviate much from that, constipation and/or hard stools start to set in. A balance of soluble/insoluble fiber from real foods, not supplements, works well for me.

That’s my story. For others, red meat and salad don’t seem to cause any problems at all but nuts, seeds, and berries do. The only way to find out for sure is an elimination diet, adding back one food at a time.

(Bunny) #10

Some posts I made on the subject, bone broth could help and matcha green tea:

https://www.ketogenicforums.com/t/diverticulitis-and-keto/49071/18?u=atomicspacebunny

(Susan) #11

One thing I found that triggered my diverticulitis was ground beef that had been too well browned.

#12

Hi, I agree with Dread1840. I was vegan for 6 months and was getting diverticulosis symptoms when I ate wheat. The more ‘grains’ I ate the more pain I had. Luckily for me my diverticulosis gives me warning pain so that I know to stop eating the offending food in time. I’m now keto, totally off all grains and the thing is if you buy keto products, most of them contain grain fiber, oat, wheat or corn. You may think you’re not eating grains when in fact you are. Smart Cakes contain corn and oat fiber. If you were keto and had a flare were you eating these things containing grains which are highly inflammatory? I will see if staying off all grains will stop my symptoms. So I need a year or two to see. (Its only been a couple of months) I also try to get the fat in and try not to eat too much cheese which is constipating…

(Rosemary Easter) #13

God, I hope so!

#14

I took antibiotics then was on broth for 10 days, then was fasting on water for a few weeks. I didn’t have to force it, just was how it evolved. I took a desertspoon of collagen with each bowl of broth 2x a day. Have been primarily carnivore for a few months since.

Occasional handful of baby spinach leaves.