by Lorn Allison L.M.T., Doctoral Candidate
Trouble Relieving Constipation is often caused by 1 or more of 4 main causes:
1. Water/fluid loss/dehydration–a major obstacle to relieving constipation
2. Digestive Enzyme deficiency
3. Probiotic bacteria imbalance
4. Lack of Fiber—can be an issue if the diet is highly refined (white flour and sugars) and low on fruits and vegetables then high water content fiber is not present in the diet and it becomes difficult for the colon to move foods through, due to lack of resistance for efficient peristalsis action.
Other additional factors:
1. Anxiety, ADD, ADHD, High Anxiety, stress and depression can many times affect bowel movements. Some people feel so much stress at their Jobs that they actually put off going to the washroom for hours. Yes, I mean hours!
2. Lack of Exercise really can affect the health of the colon negatively
but most people do not get enough, if any at all.
3. Structural blockages, inflammatory intestinal diseases prescription drugs–all of which should be ruled out as
possible auses by your health care provider.
Water dehydration can be a very serious problem.
Water is essential to human life:
It forms the basis for all body fluids, including blood and digestive juices.
Water aids in the transportation and absorption of nutrients; and it helps eliminate waste, thus relieving constipation.
If you’re an average adult, every day you lose more than 10 cups (close to 2.5 liters) of water simply by sweating, breathing and eliminating waste.
You also lose electrolytes — minerals such as sodium, potassium and calcium that maintain the balance of fluids in your body.
Normally, you can replenish what you’ve lost through the foods and liquids you consume, even when you’re active.
Though, when you eliminate more water and salts than you replace, dehydration results — your system literally dries out. Sometimes dehydration occurs for simple reasons:
- You don’t drink enough because you’re sick or busy.
- You lack access to potable water when you’re traveling, hiking or camping.
- Driving long distances.
There is not much talk in the medical community about dehydration and how serious it can be but keep in mind the following:
Functions of water in the body:
-regulates body temperature
-lubricates joints
-lessens kidney and liver burden by flushing out waste products
carries nutrients and oxygen to cells
-moistens tissues in mouth eyes and nose
-helps prevent constipation helps dissolve minerals an other nutrients
making them available to the body
Some of the symptoms can be as follows:
-Dry, sticky mouth
-Sleepiness or tiredness — children are likely to be less active than usual
-Thirst
-Decreased urine output — fewer than six wet diapers a day for infants
and eight hours or more without urination for older children and teens.
-Few or no tears when crying
-Muscle weakness
-Headache
-Dizziness or light-headedness
Severe dehydration, a medical emergency, can cause:
-Extreme thirst
-Extreme fussiness or sleepiness in infants and children; irritability and confusion in adults
-Very dry mouth, skin and mucous membranes
-Lack of sweating
-Little or no urination — any urine that is produced will be dark yellow or amber
-Sunken eyes
-Shriveled and dry skin that lacks elasticity and doesn’t “bounce back” when pinched into a fold
-In infants, sunken fontanels — the soft spots on the top of a baby’s head
-Low blood pressure
-Rapid heartbeat
-Fever
-In the most serious cases, delirium or unconsciousness
When the body is dehydrated the colon has difficulty moving waste matter due to lack of fluid lubrication.
Without adequate water waste begins to get or sticky due to the nature of drying out contents of the diet (sugar, refined fours, oils and hydrogenated oils). Waste starts adhering to the colon walls and begins to make the passageway through the colon smaller, making it more difficult for the foods being eaten to pass through.
At this stage, relieving constipation can become a very difficult task.
As this continues the colon becomes more clogged preventing the natural peristalsis from being able to move in its normal wave like fashion (peristalsis is the intestinal tract’s way of pushing food and waste from one end to the other from the mouth to where it eventually ends up—in the toilet).
Once it gets to this point the colon has no choice to expand its diameter to accommodate the increasing mass of food waste that it is storing.
Why is this a problem?
Because the colon has little pockets in it called diverticuli that may start expanding and become painful or rupture. This is an extremely serious medical condition requiring immediate care, so you can see the importance of water to relieving constipation!
So, what are the best ways to naturally relieve constipation?
Read this…Relieving constipation
