Constipation: nutritional help
What is constipation?
Constipation means difficulty in moving your bowels and may involve not moving your bowels as often as is considered ‘normal’. It is difficult to say precisely what is normal in terms of bowel habits and what is constipation, as people’s bowel habits vary widely. Doctors often define constipation as moving the bowels less than 3 times a week.
Constipation involves having to strain to pass a bowel movement, often with pain, and the bowel movement is often harder than ‘normal’.
What causes constipation?
Constipation is actually a symptom and may be an indication of a number of problems. There are a number of causes of constipation including:
- changes in diet;
- lack of exercise;
- changes in daily routine (for example, going on holidays);
- certain drugs such as pain medications or some antacids;
- nervous tension;
- dehydration;
- diseases of the bowel;
- overuse of laxatives; or
- older age.
What can you do for constipation?
Sometimes a change of lifestyle is enough. You may find that your bowel motions slow down due to a lack of bulk or fibre in your diet. If you do not have enough roughage in your diet you will need to increase the amount of fibre that you are eating. You should increase your fibre intake gradually so as not to cause abdominal bloating or gas.
The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council says an adequate intake of dietary fibre is 30 grams a day for men and 25 grams for women. A diet high in fibre may also reduce your risk of obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and certain cancers.
The following are good sources of fibre that you can include in your diet.
- Wholegrain cereals, fruits and vegetables, both raw and cooked, are always good ways of adding extra fibre to your diet. This can prevent constipation, producing bulky stools that are easier to pass.
- You can increase the fibre content of many meals by adding unprocessed wheat, oat or rice bran to the foods you are eating.
- Wholegrain bread is a good source of dietary fibre, but you do need to check the nutritional information on the packaging to make sure the bread is actually ‘whole grain’.
- Foods such as peas, beans, dried fruits and nuts are high in fibre and also have the added advantage of being high in protein.
- Bananas, in particular those that are unripe or are only partially ripe, are high in dietary fibre and resistant starch.
- You can also take fibre supplements. However, if you are having ongoing problems with constipation, check with your doctor as it may be an indication of a more serious problem.
It is important to remember that when you increase your fibre intake you need to increase your fluid intake as well. The fibre that you consume absorbs liquid to keep the stools soft and easy to pass.
You should aim to drink 8 to 10 glasses of liquids per day. This liquid can be water, juice, soup or other fluids. Drinks containing caffeine or alcohol are not good sources of fluid, as they tend to dehydrate the body rather than supply it with fluid.
Regular exercise will help keep your system healthy. And try not to ignore your body’s needs when you feel the urge to have a bowel movement — take the time.
Remember, check with your doctor if you have an ongoing problem with constipation, if you notice blood in your bowel motion or have severe pain or fever, or if constipation is associated with weight loss or feeling generally unwell.
Last Reviewed: 12 June 2009
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