Ask Dr Miriam

Q I’ve been diagnosed with diverticulitis and my doctor tells me there’s no cure but to change my diet. I can’t believe there is still no cure for this condition.

Surely more should be done?

A I’m afraid your doctor’s right. There isn’t a cure and I doubt there ever will be. This is because of the nature of the condition. Small pockets of the lining of the gut balloon into its muscular wall. Fermentation of food takes place in these pockets and produces a lot of gas, abdominal discomfort, and alternating diarrhoea and constipation.

There could be hundreds of these pockets up and down the large intestine so, as they can’t be removed, the only way to deal with it is to manage it. No one knows why it occurs but it’s thought to be because we don’t eat enough fibre.

One of the things you can do is to eat more in the form of wholegrains, fruit and vegetables.