Low Residue Diet - Thesurgeons Pte Ltd

What is a Low Residue Diet?

Low residue diet is designed to minimize the amount of faeces in the bowel, with the intention to produce fewer, smaller bowel movements.

A low residue diet may be recommended in the following situation:

To prepare your bowel for investigations, such as colonoscopy. This ensures that the prepartion is clean and an accurate diagnostic test may be performed.
Before and/or after elective surgery on your large intestine.
To help the bowel rest during you recovery from conditions such as acute diverticulitis, colitis or intestinal obstruction.

A low residue diet is usually temporary as it is lacking several vital nutrients. As your digestive system returns to normal function, fibre can be slowly reintroduced into your diet.

Foods Recommended		Foods to Avoid
Vegetable juice, strained	Vegetables	All vegetables Vegetable sauces
Fruit juice, strained Avacado	Fruits	All other fruits Coconut flesh, dessicated coconut
White rice/ porridge/ bread Refined pasta and noodles e.g. beehoon, egg noodles Idli, naan, thosai Plain biscuits Plain refined cereals e.g. cornflakes, rice bubbles	Rice & Alternatives	Brown rice/ porridge Wholemeal pasta and noodles Wholemeal/ wholegrain bread and biscuits, high fibre white bread Bread / biscuits/ cereals containing dried fruits or nuts Chapati, vadai Bran, oats, muesli, granola, quinoa, millets
Fish, meats, poultry and seafood, well cooked and tender Eggs Tofu / taukwa	Meat & Alternatives	Tough/ deep fried fish, meats, poultry and seafood Processed, cured meat e.g. sausage, lap cheong, salami Beans & lentils Nuts & seeds Yoghurt, cheese
Plain jelly / soya bean curd Dessert soups, strained Plain cake Sorbet, ice pops Lollies, toffee, caramels Plain chocolate	Snacks & Desserts	Desserts containing fruits/ nuts e.g. fruit tart / fruit jelly Dessert soups e.g. red / green bean soups, barley soup Chocolate with nuts and fruits Popcorn Potato/ vegetables/ fruits chips Desserts containing dairy* e.g. ice cream, cheesecake, custard Desserts containing coconut milk*
Butter, margarine Smooth jam with no seeds / pulp, Smooth peanut Seasoning sauces e.g. soya sauce, oyster sauce etc Salt, pepper Plain tomato ketchup / chilli sauce / mustard	Miscellaneous	Jam with fruit bits & seeds Crunchy peanut butter Chilli sauce / mustard with seeds Coconut milk / coconut cream Dried herbs, garnish e.g. parsley, spring onions etc
Water Broth	Fluids	Milk, milk shakes, smoothies, yoghurt drinks Soy milk* Malted drinks* e.g. Milo / Horlicks Dark coloured liquids* e.g. coffee, tea, prune/ tomato juice

*Keep in mind that this diet may cause fewer bowel movements and smaller stools. You may need to drink extra fluids to help prevent constipation. Drink plenty of fluid, including oral nutritional supplements, milk, soymilk and juices as mentioned above unless advised otherwise.