Acute episodes can be triggered by emotional tension and anxiety, poor dietary habits, and certain medications. Increased amounts of fibre in the diet can help relieve symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome and if not treated it may lead to diverticulosis of the colon. It is second only to lung cancer in the number of deaths per year. In countries where grains are unprocessed and retain their fibre, there is lower incidence of colon cancer. Most colon cancer begins as a colon polyp, a benign mushroom shaped growth which in time grows and in some people, becomes a cancer.
Colon cancer is preventable if polyps are removed at an early stage.
It is now known that the tendency to develop colon cancer may be inherited. But, there may be other factors involved as well. A large, bulky stool acts to dilute and diffuse these carcinogens and to move them through the bowel more quickly. Less carcinogen exposure to the colon may mean less colon polyps and cancer. High Fibre Diet and Diverticulosis Colon diverticulosis occurs when pockets or sacks bulge out from the bowel wall.