Sara Landon - Diverticulitis Cookbook: Easy and Delicious Recipes for Clear Liquid, Full Liquid, Low Fiber and Maintenance Stage for the Diverticulitis Diet

Diverticulitis Cookbook

Easy and Delicious Recipes for Clear Liquid, Full Liquid, Low Fiber and Maintenance Stage for the Diverticulitis Diet

By Sara Landon

Copyright 2018 by Sara Landon

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This book is not intended as a substitute for the medical advice of physicians. The reader should regularly consult a physician in matters relating to his/her health and particularly with respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.

No warranties are given in relation to the medical information presented in this Book. No liability will accrue to the writer and/or Book publisher in the event that the reader and/or user suffers any loss as a result of reliance, in part or in full, upon the information presented in this Book.

Part I - Introduction to the Diverticulitis Diet

T he diverticulitis diet consists of four stages: the clear liquid stage, the full liquid stage, the low-fiber stage, and the maintenance stage. Each of these plays their own separate role in the facilitation of recovery from diverticulitis flare-ups, as well as the future prevention of flare-ups in the future.

The Clear Liquid Stage

T his stage of the diverticulitis focuses on the consumption of nothing other than what is considered clear liquids. These are essentially nutritious drinks, that are liquid and translucent at room temperature, and that do not contain anything solid. This may sound as though it doesnt provide enough nutrients, but the truth is on the contrary: broths, juices, teas, and gelatin can provide enough nutrients to get you through the day. This stage lasts an average of two to three days, depending on when it is that you feel your symptoms have been significantly alleviated.

Clear liquids are usually fluids when at room temperature, with a few exceptions. They are normally light in nutrients. Most of the time, they are translucent. Examples of clear liquids include chicken broth, bone broth, vegetable broth, most teas (without additional milk or cream), water, and plain gelatin. The main idea when determining whether or not something is a clear liquid is to ensure that the product does not contain any kind of milk or cream. It is not generally considered a heavy liquid and does not have any kind of solid mass floating about within the mixture. As long as it passes these criterias, it should be a clear liquid.

If something violates any of the criteria listed above, it is crucial that you do not eat or drink it during the clear liquid diet. This will reverse the effects of the diet, and you will need to start back at square one. Things that you should not eat include anything solid, or anything that contains milk or cream (or any kind of heavy dairy products like cheese and yogurt).

The purpose of resorting to clear liquids is to give your digestive tract an opportunity to take a break, and to let the symptoms of your diverticulitis lessen in intensity. This step is important to the recovery and prevention of diverticulitis flare-ups, as its the first step in the process. This is the step by which all other steps are possible, and by extension, the step that most will find the most difficult to stick to. However, this step only lasts a couple of days (or until symptoms subside), so as long as youre able to stick with it for the short time that it lasts, youll be able to achieve results.

A day on the clear liquid diet is fairly simple. For example, for breakfast, one might prepare some chicken broth with iced tea; perhaps some gelatin on the side. For lunch, some tomato consomm with fruit punch. Though the clear liquid sounds unsatisfying, you may be rest assured that it is not as scary as it sounds. Even if it proves itself to be difficult, it only lasts for a couple of days.

The full liquid stage

T he full liquid stage , as the name would suggest, involves consuming full liquids. This is a step-up from the clear liquid stage. During the full liquid stage, its important to keep in mind that you can consume everything that was previously mentioned in the clear liquid stage. You wont be limited to consuming only full liquids, just not anything heavier than full liquids (or anything solid, for that matter). The full liquid stage consists of slowly warming your bowels back up to the idea of digesting food without worsening the symptoms of your diverticulitis. This was a process started by the clear liquid stage, and the full liquid stage is going to continue it.

Youre probably wondering, as would any normal person, what exactly full liquids are. Like the clear liquids, full liquids are normally liquid at room temperature (or at least, melt into liquids at room temperature). However, they include most dairy products (with the exception of cheese, of course). For instance, thin creamy soups, milk, ice cream, milkshakes, various puddings and custards, and Jello are all permitted on a full liquid diet. It is important that you do not eat anything heavier than full liquids during this stage, as doing so would negate the purpose of the full liquid stage. If you are unsure of whether or not something is a full liquid, its best to consult the internet before going ahead with eating it.

Things that are not allowed during the full liquid stage are easy to spot in a general sense. Any food that is solid and does not melt is obviously not a good decision. One would assume that cheese is permissible on a full liquid diet, as the inclusion of dairy products seems to be a prominent theme, but this is not the case. Cheese qualifies as a solid food, and thus, is prohibited. Similar to the clear liquid diet, soups with chunks of solid foods like potatoes or meat are also off limits. Eggs are okay on a full liquid diet, as long as they are thoroughly pasteurized. If this sounds like its going to suck, dont worry. Ive got you covered. One thing you can consume on a full liquid diet is eggnog, for which a recipe is included in this book.

Again, the purpose of the full liquid stage is similar to that of the clear liquid stage. More specifically, its a continuation of the clear liquid stage. The main idea with both of these is to give your digestive system a break, priming it for the two prevention stages of the diverticulitis diet. Youve already given it a break by limiting yourself to nothing but clear liquids, so now its time to introduce some more digestively intensive substances. This allows for your bowels to warm up to progressively more difficult-to-digest foods, leading to the prevention stages (low-fiber and maintenance) that will prevent your diverticulitis from flaring up again in the future.