How Does Colonoscopy Prep Work in Korea?
The Korean colonoscopy prep schedule from Severance's checkup center: the three-day diet, white rice porridge the day before, Plenvu or Orafang tablets in two doses, and how to do it from a Seoul hotel room.
Short answer: Three days of low-residue food (no kimchi, greens, seaweed, brown rice or seeded fruit), then plain white rice porridge only the day before, finished by 5 p.m. The laxative comes in two doses, around 7 p.m. and 5 a.m., with at least a liter of water after each. Severance sends either Plenvu, a 500 ml drink per dose, or Orafang, 14 tablets per dose.
The diet is the hard part in Seoul. Half of what's on a Korean table, from kimchi to 나물 (seasoned greens) to 잡곡밥 (mixed-grain rice), is on the banned list.
What can't you eat for three days before?
Anything that leaves fiber or seeds behind. Severance's checkup center lists multigrain and brown rice, kimchi, pork belly, sweet potatoes, seeded fruit, nuts and corn. Samsung's list adds seasoned greens, seaweed and mushrooms.
What's allowed is short and pale:
- White rice and plain rice porridge (흰죽)
- Eggs, tofu, fish
- Clear broth, bread, bananas, potatoes
- Clear juice, milk, coffee, green tea
That rules out most set meals, since the side dishes are the problem. Convenience stores sell plain rice porridge in cups. Don't pick one with grains, walnuts, pine nuts or sesame in it.
Severance also asks every checkup patient to stop alcohol and herbal medicine (한약) three days out.
What happens the day before?
Porridge, three times. Severance says plain white rice porridge with no side dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with dinner finished before 5 p.m. Drink plenty of water. The first laxative dose comes two hours later.
What are Plenvu and Orafang?
The two bowel preps Severance sends. Your kit says which.
| Plenvu (플렌뷰산) | Orafang (오라팡정) | |
|---|---|---|
| Form | Powder, mixed into 500 ml of cold water | Tablets, 14 per dose |
| Evening dose | 7:00–7:30 p.m., sip over 30 minutes | 7:00 p.m., a cup of water, then 2 tablets every 5 minutes |
| Water after | 1 liter or more over the next hour | 1 liter or more over the next hour |
| Morning dose | 5:00 a.m., then 1 liter of water by 6:00 | 5:00 a.m. after 2 cups of water, then 1 liter by 6:00 |
Plenvu users also drink an anti-foaming solution (엔도콜) at 6 a.m. Orafang has a defoamer built in, according to its maker.
These times assume a morning scope. Samsung's kit uses a different two-bottle prep on a similar evening-and-dawn split. Your own hospital's sheet wins.
Which of your medications change?
Severance's sheet gives two clear rules. Skip diabetes pills and insulin on the morning of the exam. Take blood pressure medication at 6 a.m. with a small sip of water.
Blood thinners and antiplatelet drugs need a decision from the doctor, made well before you fly, since a polyp removal means bleeding risk. If you're on a GLP-1 drug like Ozempic or Wegovy, mention it too and ask whether the timing changes.
How do you do bowel prep in a hotel?
Pick the room before you pick the hotel.
- Your own bathroom, close to the bed. The hours after each dose are no time for a long hallway.
- Set two alarms for 4:45 a.m. Jet lag helps here for once. Most North American visitors are wide awake anyway.
- Buy the water the night before. Two liters at least, at room temperature if cold water makes you queasy.
- Book a car for the morning. You'll be tired and, after the scope, sedated.
If you're still landing the day before the scope, the diet days fall during your flight. Our jet lag and first days guide helps with the timing, and the checkup cost guide covers when the prep kit reaches your hotel.
How do we help with prep?
- Free, itemized quotes from 2 or 3 checkup centers, with the prep sheet translated before you book.
- Airport pickup, a hotel near the hospital, and a car on scope morning.
- An interpreter in the room afterward if a polyp needs explaining, and any follow-up booked across hospitals, at no charge.
Ask for free quotes from the form below.
Frequently asked questions
What should you not eat before a colonoscopy in Korea?
For three days: kimchi, seasoned greens, seaweed, mushrooms, brown or multigrain rice, sweet potatoes, corn, nuts and seeded fruit. The day before, only plain white rice porridge.
What bowel prep do Korean hospitals use?
Severance's checkup center sends Plenvu, a 500 ml drink per dose, or Orafang, 14 tablets per dose. Other hospitals use their own products.
When do you take the bowel prep for a morning colonoscopy?
At Severance, the first dose at 7 p.m. the evening before and the second at 5 a.m. on the day, each followed by at least a liter of water.
Can I take my blood pressure medication before a colonoscopy?
Severance says yes, at 6 a.m. with a small sip of water. Diabetes medication and insulin are skipped that morning.
Can I drink alcohol before a Korean checkup?
Severance asks patients to stop alcohol and herbal medicine three days before.
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Keep reading
- Is a Health Checkup Cheaper in Korea Than in the US?
Item by item, a Seoul hospital checkup package against US cash prices for the same scopes and scans, what US insurance already covers for free, and the one scan that isn't cheaper in Seoul.
- Should You Add a Brain MRI to a Korean Checkup?
What a brain MRI and MRA in a Seoul checkup looks at, what it costs as an add-on at Samsung Medical Center, how often it finds an unruptured aneurysm in Korean checkup data, and what happens if it finds something.
This guide is general information for people researching treatment abroad. It is not medical advice and does not establish a patient relationship. Only a licensed surgeon who has examined you can say whether a procedure is appropriate for you.