Clear Liquid vs Liberalized Diet in Preparation for Colonoscopy

Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in both men and women in the United States. The death rate from this disease, however, has been decreasing over the last 20 years. Early detection and removal of pre-malignant polyps is considered to be at the core of this change. At the same time, polyp detection is highly dependent on an adequate bowel preparation. Froehlich, et al., found that poor bowel preparation is associated with longer colonoscopy times, more difficult procedures and a higher rate of incomplete procedures(2). Although a Clear Liquid Diet is usually the prescribed diet in most bowel preparation regimes, several studies have shown similar results with less restrictive diets. Based on the hypothesis that a Full Liquid Diet(FLD) is not inferior to a Clear Liquid Diet(CLD), investigators plan to conduct a prospective, randomized trial, in order to compare these dietary interventions. The investigators and endoscopists will be blinded to patient's diet group. Researchers aim to investigate if diet liberalization to a Full Liquid Diet(FLD) is associated with similar bowel cleansing as compared with a Clear Liquid Diet(CLD). Investigators will compare the performance of these dietary interventions regarding adenoma detection rates(ADR), time to cecal intubation(TCI), and colonoscope withdrawal time. In addition, the investigators want to assess whether patient's Compliance and Satisfaction is similar or superior in the experimental group vs the control group.