When a person is constipated, her bowel movements become infrequent: fewer than three times a week.
She also experiences other symptoms like straining when moving her bowel, passing hard and dry stool and bloating.
The causes of constipation vary from person to person.
There are five common causes of constipation though and knowing if any of these is the root of your symptom helps greatly in treating and preventing the problem.
• The most common reason for infrequent bowel movement is fiber deficiency.
Fiber is found naturally in many types of foods but these foods are almost always ignored and excluded from the average person's daily diet.
Fiber is essential simply because it helps in the digestion process and it makes stool softer and easier to eliminate.
Fiber-rich foods include: most vegetables, fruits like apple, banana and raspberries, beans, nuts, seeds, bran cereal and whole wheat bread.
• As with the lack of fiber, another cause of constipation is poor eating habits.
These days, it is easier to eat in fast food restaurants than to cook your own food.
If you do cook though, you'd most likely prepare processed foods.
Many people also prefer meats to vegetables and fruit juices to real fruits.
Eating a healthy and balanced diet treats and prevents constipation.
• Among the causes of constipation is also dehydration.
Not drinking enough water causes the body to absorb and re-absorb liquid from other parts of the body as well as from the stools that are intended to be defecated.
Drink at least 8 glasses of water every day to maintain regular bowel movements and improve digestion.
This also benefits the rest of your body which relies on fluids for overall functionality.
• Not having enough exercise is another cause of constipation.
Without exercise, the body's metabolism slows down which also makes the digestive system slow down which is why bowel movement becomes less frequent.
Engaging in any physical activity is a good equivalent of exercising.
Now that you know the most common causes of constipation, you now have an idea on how to prevent it.
Basically, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is the ultimate solution to the issue of infrequent and difficult bowel movements.
She also experiences other symptoms like straining when moving her bowel, passing hard and dry stool and bloating.
The causes of constipation vary from person to person.
There are five common causes of constipation though and knowing if any of these is the root of your symptom helps greatly in treating and preventing the problem.
• The most common reason for infrequent bowel movement is fiber deficiency.
Fiber is found naturally in many types of foods but these foods are almost always ignored and excluded from the average person's daily diet.
Fiber is essential simply because it helps in the digestion process and it makes stool softer and easier to eliminate.
Fiber-rich foods include: most vegetables, fruits like apple, banana and raspberries, beans, nuts, seeds, bran cereal and whole wheat bread.
• As with the lack of fiber, another cause of constipation is poor eating habits.
These days, it is easier to eat in fast food restaurants than to cook your own food.
If you do cook though, you'd most likely prepare processed foods.
Many people also prefer meats to vegetables and fruit juices to real fruits.
Eating a healthy and balanced diet treats and prevents constipation.
• Among the causes of constipation is also dehydration.
Not drinking enough water causes the body to absorb and re-absorb liquid from other parts of the body as well as from the stools that are intended to be defecated.
Drink at least 8 glasses of water every day to maintain regular bowel movements and improve digestion.
This also benefits the rest of your body which relies on fluids for overall functionality.
• Not having enough exercise is another cause of constipation.
Without exercise, the body's metabolism slows down which also makes the digestive system slow down which is why bowel movement becomes less frequent.
Engaging in any physical activity is a good equivalent of exercising.
Now that you know the most common causes of constipation, you now have an idea on how to prevent it.
Basically, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is the ultimate solution to the issue of infrequent and difficult bowel movements.