Diet Elimination Ibs Article
Dealing With Constipation Caused by IBS
It seems that in today’s society, both IBS and colon cancer are on the rise. For many, these painful diseases begin with constipation. If you have bowel problems, such as constipation, you should see your doctor immediately to try and rule out these two causes, and take care of the problem before it turns into either IBS or cancer. If you don’t have soft bowel movements at least one time a day, then you may very well be constipated. There are many ways that you can effectively put an end to constipation, and eliminate a lot of future problems for yourself. You can control constipation through proper diet and exercise, which includes increasing your intake of high fiber foods, drinking more water, and only using laxative medicines when absolutely necessary.
To fully understand how to treat your IBS constipation, you should understand what causes it. Constipation is a common symptom that IBS sufferers have to deal with, and may be caused or made worse by not drinking enough water to keep your system flushed out, pent up stress, not including enough fiber in your daily diet, and lack of exercise. You may also suffer from increased IBS constipation when you change your daily routine, or when you hold your bowel movements in, rather than going to the bathroom like you should. Your constipation may also be worsened by stress, pregnancy, and by some of the medications you may take for other conditions. You should make your physician aware of the increased constipation at your next appointment, and if it is a side effect caused by some of your medicine, it may be possible to change your prescription.
The best way to treat constipation, IBS related or not, is by increasing your intake of high-fiber foods. When you first make these dietary changes, don’t be alarmed if you have more bloating and gas at first, but over time, these symptoms will go away as your body adjusts. If you are unable to eat enough high-fiber foods to make a difference, you may also want to try taking a fiber supplement. No matter how you do it, it is crucial to get enough fiber in your diet, especially for those people who suffer from IBS and related symptoms
Not consuming enough water can also lead to constipation problems. Rather than drinking sodas or coffee, you should drink at least eight-eight ounce glasses of water each day, and it probably wouldn’t hurt to throw in an extra now and then, just to be certain. You should make sure that when you exercise, you drink water before and after as well, to replace fluids that will be lost due to sweating, much like you would if you were working outside on a hot summer day. Try to limit yourself to one soda or one cup of coffee a day, and then just drink water the rest of the time. This should help tremendously with your IBS constipation, as well as the other symptoms you may experience, plus it is just a much healthier choice.
If you don’t make time in your busy day to exercise, you really should. It not only will boost your metabolism and help you maintain your ideal body weight, but it can also help keep you from suffering from IBS constipation. If you could just fit in thirty minutes of exercise everyday, you would really start to see a difference. One reason that so many elderly people suffer from constipation is the fact that they no longer get out and get the exercise that they once did, and that inactivity makes the entire body sluggish, the digestive/intestinal system included.
If you have been suffering with the symptoms of constipation, and just can’t seem to shake it no matter what you do, it may be very hard for you to resist the temptation to reach for the laxative box, but you really shouldn’t until you have tried everything else and been unsuccessful. Laxatives can actually cause irreversible colon damage if used too often or incorrectly, which will only worsen your intestinal problems. You should also avoid enemas for the same reason. What you can do, however, is look up some information of foods that have natural laxative qualities, and try eating those and see what happens. You will likely get the desired result, but without doing any further damage to your system, which is always a better choice!
Some high fiber foods that might help prevent you from suffering from IBS related constipation are: soy, barley, rice, dried beans, prunes, bran, raisins, oatmeal, and pasta. Try eating more of these foods, drinking more water, and getting more exercise, and you should see results within about a week! Plus, you will be making much healthier food choices as well, so that is an added bonus!
