Best Constipation Treatment Options That Work

Once you’ve identified that you have constipation, your next step is to explore the different treatment options.  You may be able to treat constipation by making simple lifestyle changes.  But you may also decide that you need to use more aggressive natural methods or medical intervention.

Positive Lifestyle Improvements

Often the best form of treatment is to make healthy lifestyle choices.  These are basically the same choices you’d make to improve your heart health, reduce your risk of cancer, or maintain a healthy weight.

Increase fiber intake

First, you want to make sure you’re eating plenty of fiber.  You can eat fiber in your diet by adding fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains to your diet.  Eating a tablespoon of ground flaxseeds to your diet can also work to improve your fiber intake and can be an effective treatment of constipation.

You need to eat at least 20-25 grams of fiber each day.  If you find that you’re not able to get the fiber from your natural diet, you might want to consider adding a fiber supplement to your diet such as psyllium husk.

Drink lots of water

It is also important that you drink plenty of water.  Eight to ten glasses of water each day is an essential gift to your body.  It keeps your stool soft, making it easier to pass. It also helps you to absorb nutrients and it helps to lubricate your digestive tract and prevent constipation problems.

Exercise regularly

In addition, regular exercise is also a constipation treatment.  This is because when you exercise, you effectively decrease the time taken for the food to move through the large intestine, reducing the amount of water being taken away from the stool, and thus keeping your stool from being dry and hard.

Exercises can also increase your breathing and heart rate which can help the intestinal muscle to contract more efficiently, as a result your stool can be passed more easily. You don’t have to spend all your time at the gym. It’s often enough to take a daily walk for about 30 minutes.

If you want more, you can always go for jogging, swimming, or  aerobic classes. This helps to improve circulation to your digestive system and physically move the waste.

Reduce stress

If you experience a lot of stress through your work or home life, you can also address that as part of a constipation treatments plan.  Practicing deep breathing or meditation can help you to experience fewer symptoms from stress.

You may also want to look at your life and time management to see if there are things you can remove from your life that instantly relieve stress. It also helps to have a routine when you’re seeking regular digestion.  Try to eat meals and go to the bathroom at the same time each day to promote healthy bowel movements.

Just go if you need to

And one more important step you can take to treat constipation is to go to the bathroom as soon as you feel the urge to go.  If possible, take the time to find a toilet, stop what you’re doing, and go to the bathroom.  Some people avoid going to the bathroom when they have the urge and this can actually contribute to constipation.

Natural Treatment for Constipation

When you experience constipation, you may want to apply some natural remedies to help you get relief.  There are several options that can help you to get back on track with your bowel movements in natural ways.

For example, introducing healthy bacteria to your digestive system is a common treatment that’s very effective. You can try supplements that contain probiotic nutrients or focus on adding foods such as yogurt to naturally restore healthy bacteria levels.

Some people find that acupuncture or acupressure can bring relief for constipation and other problems. There are several points that can help you to get your bowels moving at a healthy pace so that you can have relief.

You may also want to add natural laxatives to your regimen such as mineral oil or corn syrup that can relieve constipation.  There are also many herbal formulas available that can help you to get rid of constipation.

Some people prefer to use water as a natural solution by using it for enemas or colonics.  This is basically a medical procedure where water is inserted into the rectum to allow for the removal of waste products.

Medical Treatments for Constipation

If natural remedies aren’t working for you or you just want to try another route, you can also look at using laxative medications. Laxatives can work by stimulating your intestines to move and softening your stools.

It’s important to be careful, though, because using laxatives too often can actually cause you to have more problems with constipation.  Use them sparingly and only for acute situations when you’re experiencing constipation symptoms.

If over the counter medications and natural remedies aren’t helping you, you may want to see your healthcare provider about prescription medications that can bring relief.  These usually help to change the fluid content of your intestines to make bowel movements possible.

And in severe cases where you have structural problems with your bowels, you may need to have a surgical procedure that can help bring long-term cure for constipation.  It’s also important to make sure you don’t have an underlying health condition that’s the true cause for your constipation.

For example, some illnesses can cause constipation as a symptom.  By treating the underlying disease, you also provide a cure for constipation.

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