5 Natural Ways to Prevent Constipation
/Maybe you have been traveling or just not minding your ahem... business but constipation happens. And when you are not pooping, you are not detoxifying and instead, holding on to hormone-disrupting trash. The best way to support our gut, our hormones, our liver and our mood is to move our bowels at least daily. These strategies can help you keep moving naturally and avoid the gas, bloating and pain that can come with constipation.
While we can all get backed up from time-to-time…in fact, hormone transitions are often accompanied by slower digestion. Chronic constipation can be a sign of a more significant state of affairs such as IBS, SIBO, or hypothyroidism. If you are “always slow,” definitely consider dialing in to what else might be going on in there.
Hydrate: Drinking 6 to 8 glasses of pure, filtered water each day can help soften stools and also help your body absorb the nutrients it needs for healthy digestion. Start your day with 16 oz. of water to get or keep things moving and consider adding in a peppermint tea after meals to help with bloating. Senna tea can be a very powerful and efficient way to help with constipation that is not relieved with other strategies.
Fuel up on fiber: Both soluble (water absorbing) and insoluble (not water absorbing) fiber helps to prevent and address constipation. High-fiber foods include nuts, seeds, legumes, berries, apples, cruciferous veggies like broccoli and cauliflower and whole grains. My favorite way to increase fiber is to enjoy a high-fiber breakfast that includes 1-2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal, berries and almonds. A pure psyllium husk supplement (like Metamucil without the additives) can help you get fiber when adding in is difficult like when traveling or after surgery, for example. Make sure you are drinking a lot of water when you up your fiber intake or you could exacerbate the problem.
Move. Walking and yoga, especially, can help the body relax and move the digestive process along. Certain yoga poses are excellent for better digestion.
Check your position. Squatting is the most natural way for the body to eliminate. Unfortunately, many of today’s toilets are actually now at “comfort level” which inhibits our ability to squat. Check into a stool or Squatty Potty to help your body move things along. Deep belly breathing where you inhale in for 6 counts and exhale for 8 can relax the digestive muscles but also push down on the large intestine to gently encourage movement.
Magnesium. Often women don’t eat enough of this important mineral (magnesium-rich foods include nuts, beans and greens) and chronic stress, too much caffeine and sugar and toxins can often deplete magnesium levels. Supplementing with magnesium citrate or oxide - 200-600 mg daily - up to bowel tolerance (aka loose bowels) may be needed even if you enjoy a lot of high magnesium foods). Other nutrient deficiencies that can contribute to constipation include Vitamin C and essential fatty acids.
Remember sometimes sh*t just doesn’t happen… your constipation may be a signal that your gut is in need of some attention.
Sources:
Jangid, Varsha et al. "Water Intake, Dietary Fibre, Defecatory Habits And Its Association With Chronic Functional Constipation". Current Research In Nutrition And Food Science Journal, vol 4, no. 2, 2016, pp. 90-95. Enviro Research Publishers, https://doi.org/10.12944/crnfsj.4.2.02.
Sumire Mori, Toshihiko Tomita, Kazuki Fujimura, Haruki Asano, Tomohiro Ogawa, Takahisa Yamasaki, Takashi Kondo, Tomoaki Kono, Katsuyuki Tozawa, Tadayuki Oshima, Hirokazu Fukui, Takeshi Kimura, Jiro Watari, Hiroto Miwa. A Randomized Double-blind Placebo-controlled Trial on the Effect of Magnesium Oxide in Patients With Chronic Constipation J Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2019 Oct; 25(4): 563–575. Published online 2019 Oct 30. doi: 10.5056/jnm18194
