How to get rid of constipation

Just getting up and going for a walk about an hour or more after eating can help ease some of your digestive discomfort. Getting up and moving your body is a good idea, even though you probably don't feel like moving much if you're constipated. As a preventive measure, exercise has benefits, too. Try swimming, walking, jogging, running, dance, or yoga, to name a few.

If you do have health problems, consult with your GP before beginning an exercise regimen. Your safety should be your top priority, so make sure that whatever you choose to do, you're not putting your health at risk further in trying to solve your constipation problem.

Castor oil is made from castor plant seeds, and is classified as a vegetable oil.

Castor oil is famous for having many different medicinal properties, including laxatives. Based on studies, ricinoleic acid is the main reason why castor oil works as laxatives.

Please consult with your GP or other doctor and ask if it's safe to use it for your body, especially if you use other medicated treatments. 

Dosage for adults: 1 teaspoon once a day on an empty stomach. 

Dosage for children: 0,5 teaspoon once a day on an empty stomach.

For both adults and children, try to take castor oil the same time every day for a better and more effective result.

Despite your age, gender or other factors, do not take castor oil laxative longer than seven days if your doctor had not prescribed that. 

Castor oil is available in both liquid and capsule forms. You can click here if you want to buy liquid castor oil or click here if you want it in capsules. 

Just be cautious that liquid castor oil has a foul taste, so you may want to mix it in juice before drinking. You should start feeling the effect within 4-6 hours after ingestion.

Many medications can cause constipation as a side effect. If you have recently started taking a new medication, check the packaging and any inserts that are included with the medication for a list of possible side effects. If the side effects persist, see your doctor.

Consuming fiber food can make your stool softer.

Therefore eat more of the follwing:

• cereals
• brown rice
• vegetables like carrots, asparagus, broccoli, potatoes, brussel sprouts, beans.
• fresh fruits like apples, pears, nuts, or dried ones like apricots

Try to consume 20-35g of fiber every day.

Laxatives and stool softeners are an obvious way to combat constipation. Using them long term elevates the risk of dependency, so for most people, lifestyle changes are the best solution to the problem. Changes to diet and activity level are most often required for effective long-term solution, but these over the counter remedies can be very effective in a pinch.

Different types of laxatives work in different ways. Stimulant laxatives such as Dulcolax, Bisacodyl, and Senokot, work by stimulating the muscles of the intestine to push waste through and out of the body. Their side effects include severe cramping, nausea, and diarrhea. Stool softeners like Colace and Miralax work by pulling water into the stool. Adding moisture helps make it easier to pass waste through the intestines and out of the body through the rectum without straining. The primary risk associated with these products is electrolyte imbalance. When electrolytes are imbalanced in the body, muscle contractions and other electrical processes in the body don't work the way they're supposed to. This can cause some obvious problems, given that the heart is made up of muscle and has to be working effectively all the time.

A lesser known type of laxative that can be taken orally is epsom salt. Otherwise known as magnesium sulfate, it can be purchased at most pharmacies and is often used in a variety of other applications. It can be added to warm water to create a bath for sore muscles, or it can be used as a gardening aid, but ingesting a mix of water and epsom salt can be an effective laxative. Be careful to follow packaging or doctor's instructions if you choose epsom salt to relieve your constipation, since too much of the stuff can have unpleasant health effects.

Suppose that you break your arm or get a tooth pulled, and you have to go on opiod painkillers. Those types of drugs and others on the market are known to cause constipation. The problem will go away if and when you stop taking those prescriptions. If it's temporary, an over the counter stimulant laxative or stool softener may be the perfect fit for you. If it's not temporary, you should investigate other alternatives.

Probiotics help with all sorts of digestive issues, including constipation. The so-called "good bacteria" is believed to facilitate digestion, and often when one consumes live active cultures, found in many yogurts and fermented products, a bowel movement occurs afterwards, either within a few hours or a day, depending on the person.

Probiotic supplements, for example this one have been almost trendy over the last few years. There is some evidence to support the idea that, at the very least, probiotics are probably a good idea after taking antibiotics, since those drugs attack and kill both harmful and beneficial bacteria indiscriminately. Imbalances in the bacteria of the gut can lead to constipation, gas, bloating, and other digestive problems, so getting such imbalances resolved is definitely a good thing, but there are different types of probiotics, and they do different things.

You can eat yogurt (plant-based alternatives are available) or unpasteurized fermented foods such as kefir, sauerkraut, pickles, kimchi, or kombucha, and you can even get probiotic teas, which actually taste rather good. These options will be available at grocery stores. Another option is an over the counter probiotic pill, mentioned above, and those can be found in the multivitamin section of drug stores and supermarkets.

People get constipated for different sorts of reasons, and usually, it's temporary. However, chronic and/or recurring constipation could be a sign of a bigger problem. If you have constipation that won't go away, especially if you also don't feel well besides that, see your doctor. 

If you feel the urge to move your bowels and do not do so, this can cause digestive upsets, including constipation. Some people are averse to using public restrooms or may not have access to such facilities for lengthy periods throughout the day, so they are forced to ignore the urge to go and put it off. Doing so can result in constipation.

Eat prunes or drink prune juice, or find something else that contains sorbitol. Sorbitol is a naturally occurring variety of a type of laxative known as an osmotic. Osmotic laxatives include the over the counter brand Miralax, and they work by helping fluids move through the intestines. Sorbitol can be bought in powdered form, but the stuff in prunes and prune juice may be more readily available.

Sorbitol can't be digested effectively by the body. Prunes contain a great deal of potassium and fiber, but the sorbitol itself has essentially no nutritive value whatsoever. So, your body wants to expel the stuff as soon as it can, and when you combine that with the fiber already present in prunes, it's quite effective when it comes to encourages your bowels to move.

Eat five or six prunes, or about four ounces of prune juice, in order to benefit. Depending on the degree of your constipation, more or less may be needed. You may need to take a two or three doses over a couple of days, if your constipation is extremely bad, but try to be patient, and remember to drink plenty of fluids. If you're constipated for no known reason for over seven to ten days, you need to see your GP to figure out why. 

Hint for babies and children: you can also release the bowel movements with the prunes or prune juice by giving them to your baby or a kid.

Use a small step stool [about 6 in. (15 cm)] to support your feet while sitting on the toilet. This will help flex your hips and place your pelvis in a more normal "squatting" position for having a bowel movement.

If you want to make yourself a home remedy for a constipation, you should try the following remedies: mix 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of olive oil and drink on an empty stomach.  

The results should come quickly. Another home remedy contains a mixture of 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 1/4 cup of warm water. This mixture should be drank as sooner as you can so the results should be remarkable. 

Drinking at least 8 glasses of water a day would make your body hydrated and can cause easier to urinate. Coffee contains caffeine that could also make your digestive system work properly. In addition, you should consume plain yogurt as well. A cup with your daily meal will do the trick.

Hint for constipation in children: if your kid suffers from constipation, you can also add more water to his diet. Do not ask him to drink the same amount as it is recommended for an adult, but try to ask him to drink more fluids.

Hint for constipation in babies: Regardless of your baby is bottle or breast fed, try giving her an additional 2-4 ounces of water after each "snack" to help bowels work properly.

A stool softener is a good treatment to free the bowels. These are children-safe, but anyway should be used only under the supervision of pediatrician.

Please get advice from your doctor about the dosage for your child. There are many examples when parents are scared to give large enough doses of stool softener for their kids or stopping giving it too soon and it doesn't work efficiently on constipation.

 Giving your kid plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits, whole grain breads, chickpeas, lentils and other high-fiber food (at least 3-5 grams of fiber per one serving) can act an important role in maintaining good digestive health. Also, foods with probiotics can also help in this kind of situations.

Encourage your child to use the toilet first thing in the morning and after every meal or snack. Particularly for a younger child, you may get better results by telling, not asking. Instead of suggesting, “Do you need to go to the bathroom?” simply say, “Time to go to the bathroom now.”

Teach your child to have a regular toilet time by encouraging him to use the toilet just after waking up from bed in the morning, and after every meal or snack. 

Tip for a younger child: try to tell the kid he has to go, not ask him if he wants to the toilet.

Blackstrap molasses can be a serious gun while fighting against constipation. Take two tablespoons of blackstrap molasses just before the bed to relieve constipation. Do not use it as a daily prevention because it's too high in calories. Molasses has a strong taste, so there is no problem to add it to milk, fruit juice, or even to prune juice, if you want to make the effect stronger.

Honey can also work as a laxative. Try to eat one tablespoon three times a day. If it does not help - you can strengthen the effect by mixing honey with blackstrap molasses in equal proportions. There is also possible to mix 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon of honey into the glass of water. That may help as well.

Reminder: do not use either of these home remedies on a daily basis, they are too high in calories for daily use.