By Alison Hooker, Team Lead Endoscopy Services

When people talk about a colonoscopy, the focus tends to be on the preparation involved. The colonoscopy prep and its effects on one’s body have become somewhat of an urban legend. In truth, the prep just doesn’t live up to all the hype.

The purpose of a colonoscopy is to visualize the lining of the colon. In order for the doctor to do this, your colon needs to be cleaned out completely. It is normal, after taking the prep, to have some liquid left in your colon. We are able to suction this liquid out during the procedure. Having leftover debris in your colon means the doctor can’t see the entire lining. This means we might not see polyps that are hidden under this “debris”. If you are going to have a colonoscopy you want to make sure the doctor has the best possible chance of visualizing everything. The way to do this is to follow the prep instructions, most importantly: Don’t eat solid food the day before your exam and be sure to drink lots of clear fluids the day before your procedure.

A clear liquid is anything you can see through. This means Jello, apple juice, water, Gingerale, soup broth. Your mouth is watering already, isn’t it? Okay, so it’s not exciting to eat, or rather drink, any of this stuff for an entire day. Let’s get a little perspective though – its one day and you still get to drink all the juice you want and eat all the Jello your heart desires. Tip: we consider coffee to be a clear liquid so long as you do not put any milk/dairy in it.

Some people complain of a headache while following the clear liquids prep or after they begin the prep medications. This is not unusual and can be treated with Tylenol. (Tylenol does not contain aspirin so it is okay to use).

The laxatives you need to take (Pico-Salax and Citromag) aren’t going to win any awards for great taste, but the prep has come a long way in the past few years. This particular prep is lemon-flavored. Tip: have some hard Lifesaver candies available. Sucking on the Lifesavers while taking the prep makes it more palatable. Another way to improve the taste? Simply rinse your mouth with mouthwash after drinking the prep. Our instructions indicate you should begin taking the prep medications later in the day (around 4 or 5pm). There is no need to begin the laxatives any earlier than this.

The prep will cause several bouts of diarrhea. We want the ‘results’ of the prep to be liquid which means we don’t want any solid material coming out – it should all be liquid and actually, it looks like urine. (this is because our bodies are always producing bile and this bile will turn the liquid yellow in colour). This is the gift that keeps on giving! It is not unusual to wake up during the night to use the bathroom nor is it unusual to still feel the effects in the morning – this goes away as soon as the test is completed. Repeated trips to the bathroom and repeated wiping can irritate the skin. Tip: This can be relieved by applying Vaseline Petroleum Jelly to the skin to act as a barrier.

A colonoscopy is your initiation into a very elite club. I personally think that you have to find the humor in a colonoscopy and a great place to find that is on YouTube. Robin Williams & Billy Connelly do excellent stand-up routines on the topic and Dave Berry wrote a hilarious article for the Miami Herald on his experience.  

So grab a fabulous cocktail glass, pour yourself a nice big drink of Citromag and toast yourself

 “To a happy, healthy colon!”

If you have any questions about colonoscopies, don’t hesitate to contact us at 416-350-3933 or at alisonhooker@medcan.com