Clear liquid diet for colonoscopy

The colon is the last part of the digestive system. The small intestine takes the nutrients from the meal and then sends whatever is left to the colon. The most important job a colon has is to dry out the waste matter, process it and then destroy it so that it is no longer in the human body. The length of the large intestine is about 4 feet. Colonoscope is the name of the instrument a doctor uses when examining the colon.

Colonoscope has a camera at one end, so that doctors have a clear vision when they are examining the inside of the colon. First of all, the patient is sedated, after that, the instrument is inserted through a patient's rectum and then it goes through the length of the colon. It is necessary to go through the entire length because it is the only way for a doctor gets to see if there are any irregularities. There are a couple of things that need to be done before the procedure. Since the colon must be entirely cleansed, a patient must go on a liquid diet. The day before the colonoscopy, a patient can intake only clear liquids. Only water can be consumed in the final eight hours before the colonoscopy.

Liquid diet is essential because that is the only sure way to ensure that there is no food left in the colon. An enema will be prescribed. The preparation for the procedure starts some 7 days before the test. There are cases where a laxative is prescribed by a doctor in order to flush out the waste matter from the colon. Only those liquids that can be digested without a problem are in the diet. This diet, that lasts for 5 days, will prevent dehydration and make sure that no minerals or salts are lost from the patient's system.

Liquids in the diet

Water, green tea, chicken broth and apple juice are the main ingredients of a liquid diet. Coffee and beef broth are dark colored liquids and considered to be ok in this diet. However, red or purple colored liquids are not allowed. Both red and purple are very similar to the color of blood and that is why they are not allowed. These colors can appear like blood in the colon during the colonoscopy. Honey and ice pops are ok to consume as well.