diverticulitis???

[iamclose]

Does anyone have any suggestions for natural remedies or cures for diverticulitis???

[Homemaker]

Do some googling on fasting.

 

I am currently on a healing fast for an intestinal issue and I have read about how that cleans you out and helps with that problem.

 

Fasting is not as horrible as everyone thinks. Once you get through the first 3 days it gets so much easier.

 

I am doing water fasting, but you should consider doing a juiceing fast to start off with.

 

My grandmother, who died of colon cancer suffered from diverticulitis, and my mother and now my brother who is 4 years older than me have it. I refuse to be next in line, so I'm doing something about it now.

[Crazy4Canning]

Diverticulitis is an inflammation of the colon due to any number of factors.

 

I've been known to have flare-ups from time to time. A good regular gentle fiber regimen and colon cleanse is quite beneficial. Also, elimination of all refined sugars and starches from the diet is essential to balance the intestinal flora. You might also be interested in doing a parasite cleanse.

 

I've got a friend who is a colon hydrotherapist and she recommends all these things.

 

I know that when I'm on a regular fiber regiment (a tablespoon or two in juice at least twice a day) I'm doing SO much better.

 

Do you or your brother have anything like Chron's (sp?) Disease or Celiac Disease?

 

I've found a very effective fiber to be from Dr Natura www.drnatura.com (No, I don't own or sell products, I've just been helped by them), and the product line Garden of Life is superb for vitamins and probiotics.

[Mother]

Adding fiber to the diet is an excellent way to PREVENT diverticulitis.....BUT if there is an active problem with it, with pain and perhaps fever, then do not add fiber at this point. The main thing is to keep the fluids up.

 

While it's true that a fast will help the colon to heal as it gives it a break from working for a while, it's also true that if there are serious problems and the person (you?) isn't able to rest during the time of healing, they should choose more than just water as Homemaker said. Sometimes fruit juice will irritate an already inflamed colon so they might want to try vegetable broths. Meat broths will work if they are very low in fat but they are a bit harder for the intestine to handle.

 

Try using soothing herbal teas such as Marshmallow root or Slippery Elm bark. Chamomile (if not allergic to it) and ginger root teas will help with the gas that sometimes accompanies diverticulitis. (called diverticulosis if it has produced bulges or pockets in the intestines)

 

What C4C suggested about the Crohns and Celiac are viable possibilities with Diverticuli. If it does not heal easily you might want to have those things checked out. In the mean time, a trial diet with all gluten excluded (wheat, rye, barley and some believe oats as well) would give you an idea if it was Celiac related. You have to remove ALL gluten containing products though. You would have to read labels very carefully as it can be found by various names such as spelt, Kamut, and as food starch, among other things. It isn't an easy diet but well worth it if you are reacting to gluten.

 

I might point out that you do not have to have Celiac disease to be intollerent of gluten. I have all the symptoms and also the DNA marker for Celiac Disease but as of yet test negative for the actual disease itself. I do, however, test positive for intollerence to and allergies to vaious grains and gluten AND gliadin (another grain protein). My gluten diet will be life long and it's really not all that bad as there are alternative flours to use instead and many gluten free products on the market.

 

There are other things that can cause diverticulitis. One of the main ones is thought to be low fiber diets with an abundance of processed white foods. When you get the inflamation under control and start to heal, then is the time to start rethinking your original diet. It might need a lot of tweaking.

 

Please keep us up to date on how it's going.