A Healthy Diet in Constipation

It is essential, not only to your overall health, but also in the prevention of constipation that you eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. A healthy diet consists of fresh fruits and vegetable, foods high in fiber, and foods that provide Omega-3 fatty acids. Your healthy lifestyle should also include planning your meals and maintaining a daily schedule for eating. Eating on a schedule will help your digestive system to stay on a regular schedule, which will aid in the prevention of constipation.

Foods to Avoid in Constipation

There are many types of foods that cause constipation. You should limit or eliminate your intake of these foods in order to prevent the onset of constipation symptoms. While constipation can occur in anyone and is not a serious illness, repeated bouts of constipation can lead to more serious illnesses. Sometimes constipation is a side effect of a medication or illness. If you are taking the medication or suffer from an illness that may involve constipation as a symptom of the illness, you should try to avoid foods that make the risk of constipation higher. Here are some common foods that cause constipation:

* Milk
* Cheese
* Ice Cream
* Chips
* Pizza
* Instant mashed potatoes
* Pastries
* Cakes
* Cookies
* Fried Foods
* Processed Foods
* Wheat-based Foods
* Red Meat
* Dried Beans

In order to help prevent constipation you should avoid or limit your intake of dairy products, foods that are high in fat content, foods that are high in cholesterol content, and processed foods. Prepared meals that come in boxes is one type of food that causes constipation.

Overall Health

It is important for your overall health to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. Avoiding constipation should be a part of your healthy lifestyle. You should learn what foods cause constipation and try to avoid them altogether – or limit your intake of these foods.

Maintaining a regular exercise regimen will help build the muscles in your intestines and will allow these muscles to work properly in the digestion of food. Chewing your food slowly and sufficiently will also help in the digestive process. Leading a healthy lifestyle and aiding your digestive system in the natural process of eliminating waste from your body not only helps you to feel better, but can also aid in preventing more serious illnesses that can be caused by repeated bouts of constipation.

You should be very careful when it comes to laxatives. Before you begin taking laxatives, you should know the difference between constipation and your body’s natural digestive schedule. Constipation occurs when you have less than 3 bowel movements per week. Remember that not everyone has a bowel movement each day, and in many cases, this is normal. Each person’s body has it’s own individual schedule.

If you start taking laxatives in order to make your digestive system perform according to what is normal for other people, you are increasing the chance that your digestive system will become dependent on laxatives in order to process waste from your body. Upsetting the natural process of your digestive system can cause more frequent bouts of constipation, which could lead to more serious illnesses. Being aware of your own body’s natural schedule and learning what foods cause constipation so that you can limit your intake can help in allowing your body to naturally process waste and improve your overall health.

I’m also a strong believer in principle #6 which has to do with getting off your butt and exercising. Now I go to the gym 3-4 times a week for two reasons. First off, it’s good for me and I enjoy staying fit and secondly and more importantly it reduces stress so I’m less likely to have an IBS stomach issue.

Here’s the full list tummyblogger has put together on the blog:

Principle 1 - Never eat on an empty stomach
Principle 2 - Get actively involved in food shopping
Principle 3 - Read all food labels in the store
Principle 4 - Start with an elimination diet
Principle 5 - Emphasize fruits and vegetables for added foods
Principle 6 - Move and grow
Principle 7 - Add these to your new diet

If you haven’t tried exercise and/or a strong fiber diet, I highly recommend you start there first. It will take a week before you really notice a difference but you’ll be glad you did. I also drink green tea which has helped as well. Soda and coffee don’t get along well with my stomach which I figured out by doing an elimination diet (principle #4).

1. One common mistake that most people make is that of serving all kinds of foods in a dinner. This is really a big mistake. As an example, if your dinner consists of meat, you should not eat starchy foods or grains with it. The reason behind this is that the enzyme used by our body to break fat is different than the one used to break grains and starch. As you can see, if you eat meat along with starch, your body really gets confused as to which type of enzyme to use in order to break down the food. In short, your body experiences grave uneasiness. This in turn causes ibs. As a rule of thumb, you should eat meat only with a vegetable or a vegetarian meal. This is the easiest way to cure ibs fast.

2. Another mistake that people make is that they eat fruits immediately after having a meal. Fruit must never be served after a meal, because fruits, as a rule, digest faster than all other types of foods. So, if you eat fruits immediately after having your meal, they are all mixed up together in one place which in turn slows down the digestion process. If you want to eat fruits, I would suggest that you eat fruits at least half-an-hour before having a meal or as a snack in between meals.

3. Many people make the mistake of drinking beverages along with meal. Drinking liquids with meal is a bad idea because it creates confusion for the body. Just think about it: when you eat food your body gets the signal that the food is coming and it gets ready with all the enzymes to digest that food. Now say, you drink a beverage in the middle of having your meal. Now, your body gets confused because instead of food, it is now receiving liquids. This confusion can negatively affect your digestion process. I would suggest that you don’t drink beverages during meal time. If you really want to have beverages, try a digestive enzyme supplement instead.