Constipation

[Audrey]

Hi everyone,

OK I need some input... I have been dealing wtih constipation off and on for a couple of years. About a year ago I finally linked it to dairy, and once I eliminated that, it was like "aaaahhhh the heavens have shone their light upon me hallelujah!" LOL But then in the last... I dunno, at least 3-4 months, it is back, off and on. I'm still off dairy (other than the occasional 1 tbsp of goat cheese in a salad, and 2 tbsp of half and half in my coffee no more than 1x per day, which didn't cause me problems when i first took dairy out of my diet, I still had those small amounts and had no problem).

At this point, I'm going only every 3rd day, and it's only small amount, and sometimes on the "thin" side, and I have to force it. You'd think I'd be in pain but I don't even experience the urge to go. There's no gassiness either. It's as if I dont need to, except I do feel a bit heavy down there. It's just sort of stagnant.

I'll share what I've been doing most recently to try to get things moving:
*been taking aloe vera in my morning smoothie
*started on metamucil about 6 days ago 1-2x a day
*ground flax in my morning smoothie
*prune juice occasionally

Here's what I've eaten in the past 2 days as an example of my daily diet:
*breakfast smoothies with the above, plus vega whole meal replacement, almond milk, 1/3 banana, 1/2 cup mixed berries, 1 tsp natural peanut butter
*morning "snack" - coffee with 2 tbsp half & half cream, 1/2 to 1 tsp sugar
*lunch yesterday - salmon with spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, and a salad with asparagus (same thing for dinner the night before but with broccoli & cauliflower in the salad)
*afternoon snack - apple with 2 tbsp roasted almonds
*dinner last night - whole grain pancakes made with quinoa flour, ground flax, hemp protein, blueberries and followed by a cup of prune juice
*lunch right now - salad with lettuce, 1 cup of brown rice, 1/2 cup chickpeas, 1/2 cup broccoli&cauliflower, carrot, 1/3 avocado, 2 tbsp annie's roasted red pepper dressing

I drink on average between 8 and 12 cups of water a day, and work out 4-6x a week.

I'm also taking a bunch of supplements - maybe one of these is known to trigger constipation and I'm not aware?
*EFA (3x/day)
*CLA (3x/day)
*L-arginine (2x/day)
*Vit D (1000mg 1x/day)
*B complex 75mg 1x/day
*Folic acid 1mg 1x/day
*probiotics (30billion 3x/day)
*just started wtih Vit C (1200mg 3x/day)

*I cut out my multi and Calcium for the time being to see if it was those, been off them for 2-4 weeks... minimal difference...

I've also started a liver cleanse about 5 or 6 days ago.

Does anyone have any ideas? Do you think I should see a doctor? I'm thinking I might need to do a good colon cleanse after the liver cleanse (or even during) but I want to figure out what the cause of this is, not just have to use stuff to make me go for the rest of my life.

Thanks in advance!

[Cindy Kelly]

It's very possible that anything in your diet could be causing the constipation. It is difficult for me to help pinpoint the cause without doing a full work-up unfortunately. I suggest before making things any more complicated (the cause could be many things), revisit your eating mechanics and make sure you are eating slowly and chewing very, very thoroughly. Also, do not drink with or near meals. It could be a simple case of improper digestion. It could also be any number of other things ie. a newly developed food sensitivity, a reaction to a supplement, a lack of particular enzymes, bile or stomach acid etc......but I would suggest starting by ruling out the simple, most obvious causes of constipation. It seems that you are getting ample fiber so it is likely not the cause.

Something to think about: Balance.
Whenever we do drastic things with our diets it can cause much imbalance that is difficult to correct. Cleanses can be very helpful in many circumstances, but if a person is going from one eating extreme to the next, the body becomes stressed and confused. In cases like this cleanses can do more harm than good, and the body can protest in many different ways. I don't know if this is true in your case, but if it is, it will be important for you to find balance, be moderate and find a sustainable, healthy way of eating. When we find that balance, the functioning of our internal organs can also normalize.

[Audrey]

Cindy thanks for taking the time to offer your thoughts! I appreciate it.

The cleanse I'm doing actually requires no modification to my diet, other than continuing to eat healthfully... it's just some supplementation... and the constipation existed well before starting on the cleanse...

Re: steps to good digestion... I'm practicing those as much as possible (avoiding starches & proteins at the same meal in particular... occasionally using ACV in a 1/2 cup of water before a meal...) but one thing that is a challenge is, with the vitamins/supplements I'm taking, I need to take them with a meal. The only way to do that is to drink water, and typically I have to drink 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup of water to get them all down! Not sure what I can do about that. Maybe I should get off all supplements for a while and see how I do.

Interestingly, I ate 5 chicken wings last night, and a brownie, and bingo, I finally had a good solid movement. Seems like whenever I eat something not so healthy, it helps me go, but when I eat really clean, I get all bunged up. Kind of opposite of what you'd expect given all the fibre I'm taking in.

I made an appt with my doc... Just want to be sure I dont' have some underlying condition. Maybe even I have a slow thyroid (I AM also having trouble losing weight so maaaybe....).

[Lynn]

Hi Audrey,

It is possible you are getting too much fiber and you need to incorporate some different foods once and a while (such as, chicken wings and brownies). I have IBS with slow transit constipation, so I understand what you may be going through. I've noticed that when I eat a lot of fiber (for example, salads as a meal for a few days in a row, whole grains and sautéed vegetable for another meal, no meat, only a few grain servings a day, etc..) that my constipation gets worse instead of better. For me, any many other people, my bowels work the best in the morning; with my IBS it is pretty much impossible for me to have a movement any other time of the day (I have tried countless things and they all have been unsuccessful). Since I have discovered this, I devote a little extra time in the morning to making things work and have a routine; every morning I have a cup of a hot beverage (usually coffee, but hot tea or hot lemon water work well also) and just sit and relax (read a book, read the newspaper, check e-mails, etc...). Around the same times every morning, I have a movement. However, after I eat, I am unable to have a movement again, so I wait to have breakfast. While this may not work perfect for you, I suggest you just listen to your body and try to see what it likes and what it doesn't like. I also have noticed that when I stopped worrying about the fact I wasn't going, which was quite difficult to do, things got better. This may be due to my IBS, since worrying and stress makes it worse.

Also, as for your weight loss concern...it could be possible that you are at the weight your body prefers right now. I know this is something most people hate to hear, but we are all made differently and our bodies are way smarter than we are; they know how much we need to eat, and what our body composition should be. I really believe the reason why this gets out-of-sync is because people stop listening to their body and try to control their food intake. For example, eating when they aren't hungry, dieting, eating too fast and eating everything on their plate without stopping to listen to their bodies, eating unhealthful foods all the time (once in awhile is okay...everything in moderation is my motto!). Looking at your diet, I personally would not suggest cutting any calories out. You are getting a lot of physical activity as well, so if it is not a thyroid problem it could be you are already at your bodies ideal weight (even if it is not your personal ideal weight). Looking at your picture you look quite healthy :).

I hope that helps...let me know if you have any questions about anything and good luck!!

[Norm Marple]

This is from Kevin Trudeau's website www.naturalcures.com. He is the man that wrote the book "Natural Cures "THEY" Don't Want You To Know About".

If you are not having 2 to 3 bowel movements everyday, you are constipated! Stop. Read that again! The human body is designed to have 2 to 3 bowel movements every day. Over 90 % of people in America are constipated.
Constipation leads to all types of disease, stress, anxiety, obesity, gas, insomnia, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, acid reflux, bad breath, body order, bad hair, skin and nails, and more.

As always, if you have constipation, go to a licensed health care practitioner who does not use drugs and surgery.
It is important to know that the cause of constipation could be any number of a dozen reasons.
The best way to handle your constipation needs to be addressed and will vary based on your circumstances.
Everyone is different, but I'm going to give you some very basic things here that will work in virtually all cases anyway.
Why do you need 2 or 3 bowel movements each day ? What is suppose to happen is this,..when you eat food, it goes into the stomach, gets digested, goes into the small intestine,
goes into the large intestine, and out thru the colon in the form of a bowel movement.
That whole process should take no more than 1 to 4 hours. This is important.

If that process happens in 1 to 4 hours, food cannot convert to fat very easily, food does not stay in the body long enough to become rancid and turn into toxins, nutrients are allowed to get into the bloodstream quicker, and the whole system works as it is designed.

But here is what happens to most people. You eat food,...it goes into your stomach. As in Acid Reflux, most people don't have enough digestive enzymes in their stomach,...therefore, the food goes into the stomach and sits and doesn't digest properly. Already, a problem is occurring.
Gas starts to develop; the food doesn't digest properly, starts getting stuck in the stomach, and starts moving through the rest of the small intestine and large intestine in a very slow manner.
When the food isn't digested in the stomach first, it then cannot be digested in the small and large intestine. It then begins to get stuck and stay there longer than it should.
When it gets to stay there longer than it should, it begins to attach itself to to the walls of the intestines and colon. It gets stuck there; it begins to putrefy and turn rancid; it begins to put out poisonous gas. Other food comes in and gets stuck with that food. The same process occurs.
This makes the small and large intestine actually expand, in some cases five to ten times their correct size. This is one of the reasons people have a big gut, or women have a pouch.

The food that gets stuck and turns rancid and toxic start putting these toxins into the bloodstream. When it gets stuck on the inside of the intestine and colon, the nutrients from additional food that comes in that you eat is not assimilated into the bloodstream, so you have several problems occurring. You are having excess gas, toxins being put into the system overloading the kidneys and the liver, you have nutritional deficiencies starting right away.
You then have allergies to get developed because food that is in the body longer than it should begins to turn into a toxin and the body reads all food that comes in like that as a toxin-thus you have an allergic reaction.

This also creates a prime breeding ground for Candida yeast as well as parasites.
Candida yeast and parasites cause a whole host of other problems- more than you can imagine.

When this clogging up of the intestines and colon continues to occur, all the digestive systems begin to slow down, which means your metabolism begins to slow down, which means you begin to gain weight easier and easier and easier.
You also begin tom crave more carbohydrates and sweets and sugars. Interesting enough, the food that gets stuck there and turns very rancid and toxic, which you become allergic to, are the ones you crave!
So when you eat food that you are allergic to, your whole body starts to spiral downward.
All the internal organs, the glands, the hormone levels get thrown out of balance. You are no longer in a state of "homeostasis" or balance, and everything spirals downward,...your health, your energy levels, go down,...stress goes up; depression and moodiness go up; spaciness goes up;ability to think clearly, or make decisions or concentrate goes down; food craving goes up; gas, flatulence, burping,acid reflux goes up; ciculation goes down;diabetes goes up; pain increases; arthritis becomes more prevalent; insomnia, back pain, all go up. I could go on and on and on.

What's the cure ? The cure is not taking a drug ! This is another perfect example of how the drug companies have totally brainwashed us and taken over a whole industry all for profit.

For years and years and years ago there was a cure for constipation,...can you think of what it was ?
Well, maybe you remember...prunes ! Oh my God! Is it as simple as eating prunes or drinking fresh prune juice? Yes ! For centuries , one of the most common ways to cure constipation.
Today , you never hear about prunes, you hear about all the drugs and potions and laxitives,powders, that you can buy from the drug companies.
By the way,one of the other most common reasons your digestive systems slow down, become sluggish, and constipation occurs is because of non-prescription and prescription drugs.
The main reason for this is that they are so poisonous and toxic, that when you take them the body needs to hold on to more fluid to try and dilute the poisons , otherwise you woulds die, and one of the ways it does this is to shut down the digestive system and hold onto more fluid.

Here are some other ways to cure constipation.......

1. Prunes and prune juice
2. Aloe Vera Gel, juice, or leaf capsules.
3. Flax seeds, flax seed oil.
4. Castor Oil.
5. Various Herbs such as Senna and Cascara sagrada, ( there are a host of all natural "laxatives" that are great for temporarily relieving constipation.
6. Walking.
7. Rebounding.
8. Drinking more water.
9.Psylliun.
10. Any high fiber grain ir cereal.
11. Yoga.
12. Enemas.
13. Colonics.
14. Parasite Cleanse.
15. Candida Cleanse;and Liver/gallbladder cleanse.

Castor Oil and Prunes have been the most common cures for constipation for aeons.
And still the best way. A couple of spoonfuls of Castor Oil work absolute wonders.

If you really want to clean yourself right out, you may want to have a watchful eye of a licensed health practitoner , and stay by the bath room for four to five hours, and do not do this before going to bed lol.

1. One third cup of Castor Oil with one third cup of beer ,..stir and drink. Then drink the rest of the beer over the next 1/2 hour. Believe me your constipation will be healed. Watch out kids!! lol

2. A couple of spoonfuls of Epsom Salts in some warm water. Drink and lie on your left side for half an hour and get ready for an awakening experience.
Well , there you have it! It's constipation is creating further health probs for you !

You appear to be eating very healthy,....would like to point out that white sugar is a poison, and do not take Aspartame or other similar "rat poison" substitutes (there's healthy natural alternatives),.....also about coffee ,....the list of the harmful effects of caffeine is overwhelming,...,
According to cancer researcher Dr. Bruce Ames, coffee is the number 2 cause of cancer today. It is a mind altering stimulant that produces a surge of nervous energy, only to leave it's victims exhausted,irritable,short-tempered, depressed and depleted. Caffeine, is converted to uric acid helping to turn the body into an "acid bag" (low PH level), which is the cause of painful gout, a form of arthritis. It stimulates the brain cortex, which cause poor balance, racing heart, poor memory,fatigue, hand tremors, anxiety, hostility,headaches, dehydration and many other disorders. The link between coffee and osteoporosis, high blood pressure, poor circulation, miscarriages, breast cancer and raised blood sugar is irrefutable. But these are only the short-term effects.
Another coffee chemical Methylxanthines- actually alters the protoplasm of cells in concentrated amounts, and may remain there for life. They cause gene-altering changes which can be seen in offspring. Dr.Agatha Thrash comments in "Poison With A Capitol C" thus : "It is frightening to contemplate that such a widespread habit is most surely weakening the entire race and causing permenant loss of certain facilities of the mind, or resistance to disease through mutation damage of chromosomes!". How about Decaffeinated coffee? Coffee has at least 100 potentially harmfully chemical components which are still present in decaffeinated coffee.

Organic Herbal Teas are a much better option, and are easy to adjust to, and you may wish to add some lemon or honey,....no sugar ,no "cows" milk. try www.nonotmilk.com.

[Audrey]

Wow thanks for that info Norm. From that list at the end it looks like i'm doing a lot of the things suggested. I went to my doc yesterday, and she is going to get some bloodswork done for me, to rule out thyroid. Meantime, she's recommended that I get off all the supplements I'm taking (except probiotics) since i'm taking quite a lot, and if that helps me get regular, then I can add them back one at a time to see if it's one of those, or maybe the whole combination or something. If that doesn't do it, then I will start taking some digestive enzymes (although I've been taking them off and on anyway but maybe I need a different type). I'm practicing food combining about 75% of the time as it is to help digestion, and often do the lemon & water thing first thing in the morning as well... So, I will try this supplement elimination first and see how that goes!
Thanks so much for the great info!

[Ivygrrl]

You could try a colonic for sure, that will definitely get out the waste that's been in there a little too long. Alternately, you could buy a enema bag and do smaller cleanses yourself, as colonics can get expensive, especially if you need a few to start feeling better. I also suffer from constipation and found that gluten (especially wheat) will really constipate me if I eat too much of it, so I've pretty much gone gluten-free and it is helping for sure. I also drink a big glass of Greens+ detox every day and that definitely helps as well. I sprinkle some high quality lecithin granules (non-gmo) on my meals and into my shakes too - this will surely get things moving in the right direction! Probiotics are always a good idea, as are good quality digestive enzymes, and you may want to check into getting more magnesium in your diet (I add some magnesium water to my regular water once a day - too much will give you just the opposite effect!) Iron can cause some constipation. I know I feel awful when I'm fighting constipation, so I'm really hoping you find a solution(s) so you can feel your best soon! Take care!

[Mark DJ]

Sounds like you're eating right and using the right supplements.

Do you exercise regularly? Are you stressed?

[Audrey]

Hi Mark - Yep I work out 3-6 days a week (usually 4-5) and nope, not really stressed (except that I can't poo haha)

[Mark DJ]

LOL! You should avoid buffets then too :-S

Are you properly hydrated?

I guess the doctor will know best at this point. When are you going for your bloodwork?

[Audrey]

Yep - I drink 8 to 12 cups of water a day!

Bloodwork - tomorrow morning, and doc is on vacation for 2 weeks so I will hear results in a couple weeks... Meantime, I'm off the supplements and keeping my fingers crossed that that's all it was. Otherwise I think next step if nothign comes up in the bloodwork (which it probably won't) is elimination diet. Argh.

[Audrey]

Hi Everyone,
Question for you all - has anyone ever heard of carbonated water (sparkling mineral water like Perrier in particular) causing constipation? It does have Calcium which can bung some people up (although pretty small amounts so I doubt that would do it)... but can the carbonation itself cause constipation? I would think the pressure of the gas might in fact do the opposite. BUT, the reason I ask is, I was drinking a LOT of it, and in the last few days I've not had any, and lo and behold, I'm moving again! It's the only major difference in my diet (other than eating smaller portions... or the fact that I've eaten LESS fibre than usual which maybe speaks to what Lynne posted here... maybe I had too much fibre and it caused things to slow down? I dunno).

Guess only an experiment will really answer this, so perhaps I'll try having some Perrier in the next few days and see what happens. But wondering if anyone here has heard of it causing constipation?

Thanks! Happy and lighter, Audrey

[Sally Wise]

Hey Audrey,

I was wondering if you tried not drinking caffeine. I know it is one of the major causes for constipation--and I noticed you still do coffee. Thought I'd point it out.