# Can someone with diverticulosis eat peanuts?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 16, 2004, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549 "2004-03-16T00:52:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549/1 "2004-03-16T00:52:58Z")

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My mom has been diagnosed with diverticulosis. As such, she’s been told not to eat seeds, nuts, corn or popcorn. No huge deal to her, except for one thing. Do peanuts count? They’re actually legumes, and she really likes dry-roasted peanuts.

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**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549/2 "2004-03-16T01:27:00Z")

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For years, docs told patients with diverticulosis not to eat popcorn, peanuts, and other types of seeds. The presumption was that these particles could get trapped in a diverticulum and cause infection, or acute diverticulitis.

However, I believe the lack of actual evidence for this happening has caused many GI specialists to recant, and retract the warnings. Let’s face it, lots of things we eat get broken into seed-sized pellets, and could get trapped just as easily.

Nowadays most docs just recommend a high-fiber diet.

> [@](#):
>
> Okay to Eat Seeds and Nuts  
> The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse clearly states: “Until recently, many doctors suggested avoiding foods with small seeds such as tomatoes or strawberries because they believed that particles could lodge in the diverticula and cause inflammation. However, this now a controversial point and no evidence supports this recommendation.”

[http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1013634026.html](http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1013634026.html)

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**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549/3 "2004-03-16T01:30:04Z")

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Hey! I just noticed that the GI doc in that article is a med school classmate of mine! Small world.

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**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549/4 "2004-03-16T01:31:26Z")

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Hm. All right, I’ll send her the link. Thank you!

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**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549/5 "2004-03-16T01:32:18Z")

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The issue with diverticulitis is seeds and nuts getting caught in little pockets in the lining of the intestine and making them irritated. My grandmother had to give up sunflower seeds.

I am not a doctor, but I’d say anything but peanut butter is out.

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**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-with-diverticulosis-eat-peanuts/234549/6 "2004-03-16T01:43:18Z")

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> [@FilmGeek](#):
>
> The issue with diverticulitis is seeds and nuts getting caught in little pockets in the lining of the intestine and making them irritated. My grandmother had to give up sunflower seeds.
> 
> I am not a doctor, but I’d say anything but peanut butter is out.

Sorry, that’s incorrect. See my posts above.

QtM, MD