Natural Fixes For Feeling Backed Up! Let Those Bowels Flow!!

So, there I am at the MVA Express to renew my license (cutting it fine as usual) since its about to expire in 4 days and there are these long lines. Really long lines … about 75 people ahead of me and then after some time about 50 after me which made me feel a wee bit better. My neighbor was commenting on how backed up it was for a weekday and as I was standing in line awaiting my turn, my mind started buzzing and I started to scribble in the notes section of my phone and a post was born!

Bowels moving slowly? We can all relate! For some it’s a regular feeling while for others its environmental. I fall into the latter category and when I go out of town or am off my regular schedule it happens. Not a nice feeling! But I have some natural remedies which help. Of yeah, you could pop a laxative and it will work just fine but remember a laxative can be harsh, strip the stomach of healthy bacteria and after that you could find it hard to relieve your bowels again unless you pop another laxative. In my opinion laxatives are not ideal and I never recommend them for my clients.  Here are some natural tips to help your bowels and move things along.

1. Psyllium Husk: This is available in health food stores and some pharmacies like CVS carry it under names like Metamucil. While I prefer the raw unflavored brand sold in health food stores, the store brands are alright too. Psyllium husk is a natural dietary plant fiber which forms a viscous gel that traps food and gently takes it out of your body. Bonus, this gel also traps some bile acids (made from cholesterol) and removes those as well. When you take this husk make sure you drink at least 2 glasses of water, or the husk will form a tight ball in your stomach instead of serving as a sponge that pulls food out.
2. Fiber: Foods high in insoluble fiber add bulk help the stool pass more easily through your intestine. Foods containing this kind of fiber include dried beans, oat, oat bran, beans, peas, apples, berries, rice bran etc. Make sure you have a healthy dose of these in your diet.
3. Digestive fruits like papaya, pineapple and mango can really help. Papaya has papain which helps digest food, pineapple has bromelain which is a super digestive enzyme and mangoes have gallotannins that fuel the growth of healthy probiotic bacteria in your intestine.
4. Probiotics are helpful in moving food along and a healthy dose of probiotics on a regular basis can go a long way in improving your gut health and helping you stay free flowing. Kombucha, Kefir water, Kimchi, Kefir, Probiotic pills, yogurt, just to name a few, are good sources. I drink Kombucha everyday and it keeps me regular.
5. Magnesium: Magnesium helps your digestive tract by soaking up food and taking it out very gently. Bonus : It also soothes and calms muscles making it an ideal bedtime pill. I myself take 2 capsules (about 400 mg) of magnesium/ day and it soothes my muscles into sweet slumber and helps me empty my bowels first thing in the morning. Don’t overdo the magnesium though or you could have diarrhea
6. Belly Rub: A two to 4-minute belly massage especially with an oil like castor oil eases abdominal bloat and gets stuff moving. It usually takes about 40 – 60 minutes after a belly rub to get the bowels moving so factor that in when you do this.
7. A Potty Stool: The olden day toilets where one squatted helped the body relieve themselves of food matter. Now with the modern-day commode the body is not in the ideal position to evacuate. Using a squatting stool or a step stool in front of the toilet and resting your feet on that, can reduce strain on the bowels and help speed things along. A technique you may want to try.
8. Walking, jogging and any aerobic exercise can help since moving the large muscles in your hips and thighs helps move the bowels.
9. Serotonin: This Happy hormone helps the mind and that can help you get regular. Do what you can to minimize stress in your life, go for walks, eat serotonin rich foods and do whatever you can to increase production of this happy hormone.
10.  Fluids and water: No amount of any of these therapies will work if you deprive your body of water. Hydration is the key to helping those bowels make sure everything is moving along smoothly in your body. You should be drinking at least 8 to 10 glassed of fluid/ day. Unsweetened tea, soups, veggie juice, milk, water can all count as fluids. When I counsel a client with constipation, the very first thing I ask about is fluid intake and oftentimes just drinking more fluids fixes the problem.

On a personal note …… If you want to read whats happening with me go here! If you’re here just for my nutrition tit-bits you can just stay here! Either way thanks for stopping by. Subscribe to my blog or stop by often coz I will be blogging more frequently and I am affectionately calling this post        ” Peace, Love and Poop “

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