Updated: Jul 9, 2020
Constipation is one of the most common problems around the world. It can be a result of unhealthy eating, wrong lifestyle choices, medications, or other diseases.
For many people, the cause is unknown and that is why it is referred to as chronic idiopathic constipation. You can identify by condition by monitoring your bowel movements. If you are having less than 3 bowel movements per week, then you are constipated.
Other symptoms include discomfort while going to the washroom, pain in stool, hard and dry stool, and abdominal bloating.
1. Natural Foods
Water
Dehydration is a common cause of many health problems in both winters and summers. It can especially trigger constipation. This is why it is important to drink a large amount of water to keep your body healthy.
When your body is dehydrated, the intestines cannot mix water with the stool, which ends up in dry, hard, and lumpy bowel movements.
Pulses
Pulses, such as beans, lentils, peas, and chickpeas have high fiber content, which enables good and faster digestion and keeps constipation at bay.
Clear Soups
Clear soups are your best friend for any stomach problems, they are full of nutrition and makes food easy to digest. They add the much-needed moisture to the hard stool, which makes it easier to pass. Also it is better to have them warm than cold, as it makes them easy to digest.
Wheat Bran
The wheat barn is high in fiber, which is again an excellent constipation remedy. The fiber present in the wheat bran is soluble, which speeds up the flow of materials in large intestines.
2. Exercise regularly
We cannot emphasize enough on the benefits of exercise. When you eat too much, you might feel like skipping the gym, but it is extremely unhealthy to keep your body devoid of workouts.
Keeping your body active should be a lifestyle. Try incorporating an hour of walking, cycling, general cardio, dancing, or Zumba in your day to day life. All these actives stimulate the muscles in your intestines and colon. These physical movements keep the bowel healthy and working.
Making exercise a regular part of your day helps you relieve pain and prevent constipation. You should aim for a high-intensity workout of 150 minutes per week, this roughly translates to 30 minutes of exercise for 5 days a week.
If you are a beginner, try setting smaller goals. Build up a tolerance and then slowly increase your workout timings. Try to get some small moving activity in your life to stay healthy.
3. Magnesium supplements
Before taking any supplements, one must always consult a doctor. That being said, a lack of magnesium in the body can lead to severe constipation. Therefore, getting the right amount of magnesium is very important to get rid of constipation.
Oral magnesium tablets act as an osmotic laxative, they push water in the intestines, making your stool soft and easier to pass.
You can purchase over the counter magnesium supplements at any health mart or pharmacy. You can also incorporate magnesium-rich food into your diet.
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