I have had diverticulosis twice in recent years. The first time was a result of substituting sugar with xylitol for my coffee, and the second time was when a coffee cream manufacturer substituted sugar with sucralose. On both occasions reversing the condition was simple, stop consuming that biome destructive poison.
Many believe Xylitol is a beneficial substitute for sugar, but I was guided years ago not to use it. I use Kal Liquid Stevia, which comes from a plant. I have been using it, since it came on the market over 20 years ago.. It satisfies my need for a sweetener in my beverages... and I have no craving for any sweets. It helps cut calories and helps me maintain my weight.
My mother had diverticulosis in the late 60s. She had multiple bowel surgeries and eventually a colostomy.
I have 2 siblings. We're all in our 70s. We were all told that we have diverticula following our first colonoscopy. We were all well aware that fiber intake was suppose to reduce the possibility of diverticula/diverticulosis before getting our colonoscopies.
My sister and I have eaten a high fiber diets and take a fiber supplement starting whenever this was recommended. Not sure about my brother. My sister has been hospitalized twice with diverticulosis and my brother once. So far I've never had diverticulosis.
A study...
A High-Fiber Diet Does Not Protect Against Asymptomatic Diverticulosis
"In this colonoscopy-based study, a high-fiber diet did not protect against asymptomatic diverticulosis. Instead, we found that a high-fiber diet was associated with a higher prevalence of diverticula. The association was both dose-dependent and stronger when limited to cases with ≥3 diverticula. The risk was increased for total fiber, fiber from grains, soluble fiber, and insoluble fiber. Although constipation is conventionally thought to predispose to diverticulosis, we found that less frequent bowel movements were associated with a decreased prevalence of diverticulosis. No associations were found between the presence of diverticulosis and red meat intake, fat intake, or physical activity. The only expected finding was that the prevalence of diverticulosis increased with age."
As we often discuss here in the "dissident" section of Substack, you can find a study to bolster pretty much any theory with regard to medical conditions. The study you found is similar to the information I've found and/or been told.
I have diverticula from one end of my extra-long "tortuous" colon to the other. I also have irritable bowel and assorted other related problems. With the exception of diverticulosis, which appeared somewhere between age 50 and my late 60s, most of those problems have been present for most of my life. Too much fiber from any source, which for me is not much fiber, brings a whole lot of misery up to and including excruciating pain. So for me, fiber is not the answer.
Gut specialists in Western medicine are gastroenterologists, most of whom specialize in colonoscopies and other diagnostics. They can tell you what they found, but they can't give you an individualized plan to manage it, because our knowledge of non-life threatening complex medical issues remains in its infancy, for the most part. When it comes to the gut, one size definitely doesn't fit all.
Edited to add: My understanding is that "diverticula" are the pouches; "diverticulosis" is the condition of having pouches; and "diverticulitis" is inflammation and sometimes infection of a section of pouches. One can have the condition of diverticulosis that never develops to diverticulitis, which is considered a medical emergency. My GI doc told me that many people experience a one-and-done flare up of the -itis form of the condition at some point in their lives. I'm hoping I'm one of them!
I only listed that study because it validated my experience. It also aligned with advice from the GI doc that did my last colonoscopy when I asked about my high fiber diet and fiber supplement. He said if I had been doing it that long and it wasn't causing any problems I should keep following it. But, he added that in terms of it benefiting my diverticula and potential itis/losis it wasn;t clear that it would matter.
Imagine that, a doctor saying the benefit wasn't clear.
LOL! Yep, I received similar "advice." Apparently the advice that was once given to people with the condition involved avoiding foods that might get "stuck" in diverticula, like nuts. That's all out the window now according to my GI doc! "Eat whatever" seems to be the latest standard. I do appreciate that some GI docs seem to understand the problem fiber causes for certain people with gut issues.
He is a young MD, PhD. Unconventional and provocative, but very solid reasoning. At least in my opinion. He almost died from UC/IC. Cured himself based on his own research. Went on to study medicine
If you consume a lot of sugar, you'll notice that your stool is messy and takes effort to clean up afterward. Animals don't have this issue either.
However, with a clean diet with no refined sugar and lots of veggies, you'll notice that cleaning up after a bowel movement is almost unnecessary. Try it, stop using refined sugar for a couple of weeks; your body has a hard time processing refined sugar, and the end result will be registered at your rear end 😁
Our intestines are actually long, and our teeth are primarily flat, like herbivores’ digestive systems. From a Biblical perspective, God gave us only plants to eat in the beginning; only a long time later, after the flood, were we given animals as additional food. From a physical standpoint, the longest-lived people (in the Blue Zones) eat mostly plants. Of course, if eating meat, local, pasture-raised, humanely-treated meat is the healthiest.
when you say "intestines" Theresa; are you referring to the small bowel, or the large bowel, or neither?
"the longest-lived people (in the Blue Zones" I think you need to know that it is likely there is fraud or data manipulation when folks talk of these mythical and mysterious "Blue Zones": likely invented by vegans. A great narrative though, I concede that.
The large intestine is much longer than the intestines of carnivores (suited for breaking down plants/roughage rather than quickly getting rid of rotting meat).
Sardinia, Ikaria, Okinawa, Costa Rica, and Loma Linda might be considered mysterious, but they’re definitely not mythical. The largest numbers of centenarians live in these areas.
Except for the two canines, all our other teeth have flat surfaces for breaking down plants (rather than being pointed for tearing flesh).
Timely and helpful prophylactic information Doc. Many of the younger folk seem to believe the advertising gimmicks for trail mix and all manufactured snacks readily available to them while they have fun, instead of staying home, growing and learning to prepare good, healthy food to underpin a disease free life. "Vaccines" have been oversold, while nutrition has been snubbed by the medical and educational authorities. Our children are being sickened for profit.
I have had diverticulosis twice in recent years. The first time was a result of substituting sugar with xylitol for my coffee, and the second time was when a coffee cream manufacturer substituted sugar with sucralose. On both occasions reversing the condition was simple, stop consuming that biome destructive poison.
Xylitol seems to be creeping into a lot of products these days. Careful label reading has become a must for healthy living.
Many believe Xylitol is a beneficial substitute for sugar, but I was guided years ago not to use it. I use Kal Liquid Stevia, which comes from a plant. I have been using it, since it came on the market over 20 years ago.. It satisfies my need for a sweetener in my beverages... and I have no craving for any sweets. It helps cut calories and helps me maintain my weight.
Xylitol seems to be creeping into a lot of products these days. Let the buyer beware.
My mother had diverticulosis in the late 60s. She had multiple bowel surgeries and eventually a colostomy.
I have 2 siblings. We're all in our 70s. We were all told that we have diverticula following our first colonoscopy. We were all well aware that fiber intake was suppose to reduce the possibility of diverticula/diverticulosis before getting our colonoscopies.
My sister and I have eaten a high fiber diets and take a fiber supplement starting whenever this was recommended. Not sure about my brother. My sister has been hospitalized twice with diverticulosis and my brother once. So far I've never had diverticulosis.
A study...
A High-Fiber Diet Does Not Protect Against Asymptomatic Diverticulosis
https://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085(11)01509-5/fulltext
"In this colonoscopy-based study, a high-fiber diet did not protect against asymptomatic diverticulosis. Instead, we found that a high-fiber diet was associated with a higher prevalence of diverticula. The association was both dose-dependent and stronger when limited to cases with ≥3 diverticula. The risk was increased for total fiber, fiber from grains, soluble fiber, and insoluble fiber. Although constipation is conventionally thought to predispose to diverticulosis, we found that less frequent bowel movements were associated with a decreased prevalence of diverticulosis. No associations were found between the presence of diverticulosis and red meat intake, fat intake, or physical activity. The only expected finding was that the prevalence of diverticulosis increased with age."
As we often discuss here in the "dissident" section of Substack, you can find a study to bolster pretty much any theory with regard to medical conditions. The study you found is similar to the information I've found and/or been told.
I have diverticula from one end of my extra-long "tortuous" colon to the other. I also have irritable bowel and assorted other related problems. With the exception of diverticulosis, which appeared somewhere between age 50 and my late 60s, most of those problems have been present for most of my life. Too much fiber from any source, which for me is not much fiber, brings a whole lot of misery up to and including excruciating pain. So for me, fiber is not the answer.
Gut specialists in Western medicine are gastroenterologists, most of whom specialize in colonoscopies and other diagnostics. They can tell you what they found, but they can't give you an individualized plan to manage it, because our knowledge of non-life threatening complex medical issues remains in its infancy, for the most part. When it comes to the gut, one size definitely doesn't fit all.
Edited to add: My understanding is that "diverticula" are the pouches; "diverticulosis" is the condition of having pouches; and "diverticulitis" is inflammation and sometimes infection of a section of pouches. One can have the condition of diverticulosis that never develops to diverticulitis, which is considered a medical emergency. My GI doc told me that many people experience a one-and-done flare up of the -itis form of the condition at some point in their lives. I'm hoping I'm one of them!
Sorry, I had the itis and losis turned around.
I only listed that study because it validated my experience. It also aligned with advice from the GI doc that did my last colonoscopy when I asked about my high fiber diet and fiber supplement. He said if I had been doing it that long and it wasn't causing any problems I should keep following it. But, he added that in terms of it benefiting my diverticula and potential itis/losis it wasn;t clear that it would matter.
Imagine that, a doctor saying the benefit wasn't clear.
LOL! Yep, I received similar "advice." Apparently the advice that was once given to people with the condition involved avoiding foods that might get "stuck" in diverticula, like nuts. That's all out the window now according to my GI doc! "Eat whatever" seems to be the latest standard. I do appreciate that some GI docs seem to understand the problem fiber causes for certain people with gut issues.
Do you follow Nick Norwitz on Substack?
He is a young MD, PhD. Unconventional and provocative, but very solid reasoning. At least in my opinion. He almost died from UC/IC. Cured himself based on his own research. Went on to study medicine
https://substack.com/@nicknorwitz
Had not heard of him ... thanks for the tip!
If you consume a lot of sugar, you'll notice that your stool is messy and takes effort to clean up afterward. Animals don't have this issue either.
However, with a clean diet with no refined sugar and lots of veggies, you'll notice that cleaning up after a bowel movement is almost unnecessary. Try it, stop using refined sugar for a couple of weeks; your body has a hard time processing refined sugar, and the end result will be registered at your rear end 😁
"animal protein"
oh Peter; that old Ancel Keys bogeyman story; we have a carnivore gut; we were never designed to ferment plants;
Our intestines are actually long, and our teeth are primarily flat, like herbivores’ digestive systems. From a Biblical perspective, God gave us only plants to eat in the beginning; only a long time later, after the flood, were we given animals as additional food. From a physical standpoint, the longest-lived people (in the Blue Zones) eat mostly plants. Of course, if eating meat, local, pasture-raised, humanely-treated meat is the healthiest.
"our teeth are primarily flat"
what?
when you say "intestines" Theresa; are you referring to the small bowel, or the large bowel, or neither?
"the longest-lived people (in the Blue Zones" I think you need to know that it is likely there is fraud or data manipulation when folks talk of these mythical and mysterious "Blue Zones": likely invented by vegans. A great narrative though, I concede that.
The large intestine is much longer than the intestines of carnivores (suited for breaking down plants/roughage rather than quickly getting rid of rotting meat).
Sardinia, Ikaria, Okinawa, Costa Rica, and Loma Linda might be considered mysterious, but they’re definitely not mythical. The largest numbers of centenarians live in these areas.
Except for the two canines, all our other teeth have flat surfaces for breaking down plants (rather than being pointed for tearing flesh).
would you be a 7th day adventist Theresa?
It isn't only 'eat your greens' that's beneficial, it's 'strain your mains.' ie. frequent exercise.
"just do it" as some marketing slogan used to say. (yes i know who).
Timely and helpful prophylactic information Doc. Many of the younger folk seem to believe the advertising gimmicks for trail mix and all manufactured snacks readily available to them while they have fun, instead of staying home, growing and learning to prepare good, healthy food to underpin a disease free life. "Vaccines" have been oversold, while nutrition has been snubbed by the medical and educational authorities. Our children are being sickened for profit.
What if you have connective tissue issues?