How to Prepare for a Colonoscopy
Step 1: Plan Your Prep
Your doctor is your best
source of information about how to get ready. When you schedule the procedure,
you’ll get instructions. Read them over well before your appointment, and call
your doctor if you have any questions.
Clear your schedule for the
evening before and the day of your colonoscopy, and make plans for
someone to go with you the day of the colonoscopy.
Shop for some key supplies
several days ahead, too. Your list may include:
- A prescription or
over-the-counter laxative specified by your doctor
- Low-fiber food
- Sports drinks, juices, and
broths
- Moist wipes
Step 2: Tweak Your Diet
You can help the cleansing
process by eating light 3 or 4 days before the procedure. Doctors recommend
low-fiber foods that are easy to digest and leave your system quickly.
You can have:
- White bread, pasta, and rice
- Well-cooked vegetables
without skin
- Fruit without skin or seeds
- Lean meat, chicken, or fish
- Eggs
Don’t eat:
- Seeds, nuts, or popcorn
- Fatty foods
- Tough meat
- Whole grains
- Raw vegetables
- Fruit with seeds or peel
- Corn, broccoli, cabbage, beans,
or peas
Step 3: The Fast
The day before your
procedure you can’t eat anything solid. you can only consume clear
(see-through) liquids. It is important to stay hydrated by drinking lots
of clear liquids, such as sports drinks, clear juice like apple and white
grape, and clear broth. Soda is OK, and so are coffee and tea, but without
cream.
Step 4: The Purge
The night before your colonoscopy
you’ll take strong laxatives to clear your digestive tract. The method
recommended for most people is called split dosing. You’ll drink a half-gallon
of liquid laxative in the evening. Then you’ll get up about 6 hours before your
appointment to drink another half-gallon.
You probably won’t enjoy the taste of the solution, but
there are tricks to help get it down:
- Mix it with something flavored, like a sports drink
or powdered drink mix.
- Keep it well chilled.
- Drink it through a straw placed far back on your tongue.
- Follow it with a sip of something good tasting.
- Suck on a lemon slice or piece of hard candy after
drinking.
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