You may be familiar with the fact that maintaining a healthy weight and staying physically active helps keep your heart in great shape. However, you may not know that constipation can actually contribute to chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, arthritis, and diabetes. Understanding the causes of constipation can help you prevent it and keep your health in check.
Contributors to Constipation
Factors that contribute to slower stool transit which leads to constipation include:
- A diet low in fiber: stool becomes compacted, hard, and larger over time
- Certain medications such as narcotic pain relievers, antacids, and calcium channel blockers, among others
- Lack of physical activity, travel, and prolonged bed rest
- Ignoring your urge for a bowel movement or bad posture while on the toilet
- Low thyroid function and diseases such as Parkinson’s and Diabetes
- Intestinal tract problems such as celiac disease, tumors, polyps, diverticulosis, or irritable bowel syndrome
- Previous pregnancies, pelvic surgery, or environmental toxins
Dietary Treatment for Constipation
From 2004, it was reported that 5.3 million prescriptions were written by doctors for constipation. But, there are various natural ways to treat constipation before resorting to medications. Implementing these changes in your diet can help provide relief from constipation and maintain overall good health:
- Increase your dietary fiber intake: Consume at least 75 grams of fiber per day. For example, eat 9 servings of vegetables and fruits daily.
- Add foods rich in fiber to your meals such as beans, artichokes, pear, green peas, almonds, and broccoli, among others.
- Incorporate fermented milk (kefir) or plain yogurt and a probiotic supplement in your diet to establish healthy intestinal bacteria.
- Remove all grains that contain gluten protein from your diet for 3 weeks to see if it helps.
- Avoid refined sugars, processed foods, artificial sweeteners, and other additives or preservatives.
Natural Supplements to Treat Constipation
Psyllium fiber supplements, cascara sagrada, and senna are all good for maintaining normal stool patterns and softening the stool. Herbal laxatives like cayenne, ginger, fennel, dandelion root, and chickweed are also beneficial. However, try to avoid prolonged use of laxatives as they may weaken your colon smooth muscle contractions over time.
Medications for Constipation
If you’ve tried the above methods and are still experiencing constipation, you may want to consider over-the-counter medications such as the Fleet enema, Milk of Magnesia, or Miralax. These medications can help provide quick relief while you continue to implement longer-term methods to improve your bowel health.
Prescription medications for constipation include stool softeners like Colace, stimulants like Dulcolax, and bowel stimulant medications like Amitiza.
Maintaining regular bowel movements is essential for overall good health. By incorporating dietary changes, natural supplements, and medications when necessary, you can help prevent and treat constipation.
