Advertisement Emptying the contents of the colon — a step called bowel prep — is essential to a successful colonoscopy. But there’s some reason to believe that bowel prep for a colonoscopy is harder for women than for men.
Women are more likely to be constipated, so it may be more difficult to clear the bowel. Women also are more likely than men to have irritable bowel syndrome, which can cause gas, bloating, and abdominal pain or spasm.
Preparing for a colonoscopy may be uncomfortable and time-consuming, but it needn’t be an ordeal. Make sure you receive your colonoscopy prep instructions well before your procedure date, and read them completely as soon as you get them. Clear your schedule, and be at home on time to start your prep.
To make a bad-tasting liquid prep easier to swallow, try the following: add some Crystal Light or Kool-Aid powder (not red, blue, or purple); drink it chilled; drink it through a straw far back on your tongue; or hold a lemon slice under your nose while you drink the prep.
Source: Harvard Women’s Health Watch
