The purpose of this diet is to lessen your chances of developing diverticulosis. If you already have diverticulosis, this diet helps prevent symptoms, such as abdominal pain.
Diverticulosis is the condition of having weak areas or outpouchings in the wall of the colon.
The colon is part of the large intestine. The pouches, called diverticula, look somewhat like small thumbs poking out of the side of the intestine. A diverticulosis diet is basically a high-fiber diet. A regular diet should also be high in fiber. However, a typical American diet contains far less fiber than is considered healthy.