The term residue describes any food that remains undigested in your digestive tract and contributes to your stool. A low-residue diet limits residue foods, like fiber, in an effort to reduce size and frequency of stools or reduce uncomfortable digestive symptoms, like abdominal pain and diarrhea.
Reasons for a Low-Residue Diet
A low-residue diet is often prescribed after abdominal surgery to reduce stress on the digestive tract and promote proper healing. Your doctor may also prescribe a low-residue diet if you're experiencing a flare-up of symptoms from chronic digestive diseases, like Crohn's disease, diverticulitis or inflammatory bowel disease.
Restricted Foods
When following a low-residue diet, your fiber intake should fall between 10 and 15 g per day. Avoid whole-grain breads, whole-grain cereals, whole-grain crackers, whole-grain pasta and breads, crackers or cereals that contain nuts or seeds. You must also avoid raw fruits, dried fruits, prune juice, canned pineapple, raw vegetables and gas-forming vegetables, such as broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, corn, baked beans and onions. Restrict nuts, seeds, coconut and peanut butter on the low-residue diet.
Recommended Foods
A low-residue diet allows refined cereals, breads, crackers and pasta. MayoClinic.com notes that these foods should contain less than 1 g of fiber per serving. You may also consume white rice, tender meats, poultry, fish, eggs, broth-based soups, cooked vegetables, cooked fruits, butter, oils, margarine, fruit juice, milk, ice cream, pudding and strained cream-based soups.
While you may consume some dairy products, a standard low-residue diet limits dairy products, like milk, ice cream, pudding and cream-based soups, to no more than 2 cups per day.
Considerations
Although the terms low-residue and low-fiber diet are often used interchangeably, there are not the same diet plan. A low-residue diet is more restrictive than a low-fiber diet and does not provide all of the nutrients that your body needs to stay healthy. Because of this, you should only follow a low-residue diet for a short period. The specific duration depends on your condition and how well your body responds to the diet. Work with your doctor or a dietitian to monitor your condition and determine if you need a vitamin or mineral supplement.
