Preparing for a Colonoscopy to Track Down Polyps May Get Easier

Everyone out there who watched one of us (Dr. Oz) prepare for his colonoscopy on TV, kvetching all the way (read all about it), knows the colonoscopy isn't the tough part. The tough part is the colonoscopy preparation, which happens the day before. First, you can eat only clear liquids and Jell-O, which can make you cranky and lightheaded (well, that and the nervous anticipation). Second, you have to chug quarts of what humorist Dave Barry calls a nuclear laxative. ("You eliminate everything. Then you start eliminating food you haven't eaten yet.")

He's right.

So what good news could there be about this doozy of a process? A new study suggests the clear-liquids-only thing may be gonzo.

Okay, you can't dive into a bowl of chicken, tomatoes, and whole-wheat pasta in a walnut pesto sauce the night before (have it the night after), but how about oatmeal, juice, and coffee for breakfast; pureed carrot soup, custard, and soda for lunch; a milkshake that afternoon; then, Greek yogurt swirled into tomato soup, and eggnog and cocoa that night? (This 60-second habit won't detect colon cancer but it sure could prevent it.)

What difference did the diet make? Zip. The docs' ability to spot polyps was the same. The average colonoscopy time was also the same: 27 minutes.

Here's the thing: If you've got diabetes, eating more normally could help keep your blood sugar steady. Talk to your doc. This isn't a done deal but it also isn't the first study to find this.

As for the nuclear laxative, no change. But we lived. So did Dave Barry. You will, too. And it's way preferable to dying from colon cancer. So sign up now and get 'er done!

Here's why you absolutely, positively need a colon cancer test.