Top 10 Food Myths and Facts

For years, people with diverticular disease have avoided eating nuts, corn and popcorn because it was believed that these foods led to complications. There is no evidence to support this. Diverticular disease includes diverticulosis, which is the formation of pouches in the colon, and diverticulitis, which occurs if the pouches become inflamed. Historically, physicians thought that nuts, corn and popcorn were abrasive to the mucosa or could lodge in a small diverticulum or pouch, thus leading to inflammation or bleeding.