The Colonoscopy Diet
Your bowel should be as empty as possible for the examination. For this reason, your doctor may recommend a low-fiber diet beginning several days before a colonoscopy to help prepare your colon. Foods like grains, fruits, and vegetables all include fiber, which the body does not digest.
Oatmeal, grits and plain corn flakes are types of cereals that are okay, along with cooked fruits, bananas and applesauce.
However, in general, in the days leading up to your colonoscopy you are allowed to eat: Eggs. Fruit with the skin and seeds removed. Lean meat, chicken and/or fish.
About a week before your exam, begin a low-fiber diet (don't eat raw fruits or veggies, whole corn kernels, nuts, or seeds). This will help you empty your bowel during your prep. If needed, request time off from work and/or line up childcare.
1 Day Before Your Colonoscopy (Prep Day)
Before 10:00 am, you may have a small, light breakfast. Examples of a light breakfast are: eggs, soup or broth with noodles (no meat or vegetables), white crackers, white rice, white potatoes, white bread, Boost® or Ensure®. At 10:00 am, begin a clear liquid diet.
OK to eat:
Buttermilk. Cheese, including cottage cheese. Yogurt. Sour cream.
Colonoscopy is a procedure used to detect abnormalities in the large intestine (colon). One day before the procedure, it is advised not to eat any solid or semi-solid food, such as mashed potatoes, applesauce, oatmeal, etc. A clear liquid diet must be taken 24 to 72 hours before the procedure.
Foods that you may eat include:
Bananas, soft cantaloupe, honeydew, avocado. Chicken, fish, beef, pork, tofu, eggs. Margarine, butters/oils, smooth sauces and dressings.
Low residue breakfast foods include eggs, white bread, cottage cheese, yogurt, grits, coffee, and tea. You may have clear liquids. Do not drink milk or eat or drink anything colored red or purple.
Two Days Before Your Appointment
STOP eating high-fiber foods such as vegetables and beans until after your colonoscopy. You can eat all other types of foods today.
Foods like yogurt, ice cream, and cereal may have added fiber that you don't expect which can make them harder to purge. Unfortunately, when foods aren't properly digested, they can get in the way of the camera during your colonoscopy. This could cause inaccuracies in the test.
After the exam, it takes about an hour to begin to recover from the sedative. You'll need someone to take you home because it can take up to a day for the full effects of the sedative to wear off. Don't drive or make important decisions or go back to work for the rest of the day.
In order to have a successful colonoscopy, it is recommended to avoid smoothies for three days before your colonoscopy. You also should avoid fruits and vegetables with seeds or indigestible fiber since they are difficult to digest and may interfere with your doctor's ability to examine your colon.
For Breakfast You may have a light breakfast consisting of plain or vanilla yogurt, 2 slices of dry or buttered toast, coffee or tea (with a little cream or milk) and clear liquids. After Breakfast Start on a clear liquid diet. Clear liquids are those you can “see through”.
You can include the following foods in your low-fiber diet when preparing for a colonoscopy. Dairy: Low-fat or skim milk, powdered milk, buttermilk, sour cream, custard, low-fat ice cream, sherbets, and low-fat yogurt without seeds, nuts, rinds, or berries.
You can switch to a soft-food diet of scrambled eggs, smoothies, white bread, fruit without skin or seeds, and well-cooked vegetables 2-3 days before the procedure to get used to the liquid-only diet the day before the colonoscopy.
Low Residue Diet prior to Colonoscopy
Tender lean meat-not stringy Beef, Lamb, Lean Pork, Fillet Of Chicken, Fillet of Fish, Shellfish-Oysters, Calamari Scallops, Crab. Canned fish in brine, not oil.
What if I've taken all my preparation and am still passing solid stool on the day of my exam? In this case, your procedure will need to be rescheduled. You may be prescribed a different preparation for your next procedure. Please call the triage nurse to reschedule your procedure with a different preparation.
Studies have indicated that colonoscopies done during the morning hours have actually contributed to more accurate findings due to a number of varying factors. Although it might not be a thrill to wake up earlier than usual, it could just help your overall health.
You can still have smooth soups with no bits (e.g. tomato, vegetable Bouillon), jelly, ice cream, Ambrosia custard, Complan drinks, Bovril and Oxo drinks, and water, clear juices, fizzy drinks, coffee and tea.