Help!! Constipation :-(

It sucks.. and I don't want to take any laxatives because of the side effects, so I was wondering, how much fiber should I be taking every day?

And what should I eat to induce my bowel movements?

Stats: Female, 18, 5"2

CW: 119

GW: 110

what works for me: eggs, high fiber tortilla wraps, apples, bananas, coffee, lots of water. i'm sure someone will tell you prunes or prune juice. give that a shot, dried prunes are great.

whenever i eat high fiber cereal with ground flaxseed, i practically gotta go before i finish the bowl.

I've already tried most of what you listed, but it's not working.. :(

I had an apple, a mandarin, 1/2 an orange, some bran cereal and believe me I drink LOTS of water.. I don't have prune at home though.. maybe I should give it a shot, but I want to get my bowels moving tonight or by tomorrow morning before I go to school..

coffee? i had a friend who had the same problem recently, a latte with two or three espresso shots set him straight...

 

Umm, well, I can't have that before tomorrow then.. but thanks so much anyway for the advice..

Any idea how much fiber I should be taking? Anyone?

You should get 25-30g of fiber a day.

Reasons for your constipation could be 1.) not drinking enough water/fluids, or 2.) not eating enough fats.

Be sure to drink plenty of water. Also, the more fiber you eat, the more water you should drink in order to help "pass" that fiber. As for fats, at least 20-30% of your daily calories should come from fats. I used to wonder why when I would get over 50g of fiber each day and drink lots of fluids that I was still having trouble. Once I included nuts and peanut butter into my diet, I started going very regularly. Good luck! :)

Eat more fat.  I had horrible constipation problems for months until I increased my fat intake.  I always eat tons of fiber (all types-fruits, veggies, & grains) and drink about 8 bottles of water a day.  It was all because I wasn't getting enough fat.

Yep I have to agree with mutlover and minie13 i think its the fats.

Before i started my 'diet' i was eating very badly, plenty of processed food and fried food and lots of chocolate and biscuits and i was 'going' everyday.

Changed my diet lots of fresh fruit and veg. 2.4 litres of water. Fibre cereal. And now i cant "go" for days. I think my diet is too low in fat and im still trying to adjust that. It can be hard to get your head around adding fat.

Thank you all very much for the useful information.. I don't think it's the fat.. After looking at my "Analysis" I found out that I have 25 % fat in my "pie chart".. And it's not the water, because I drink LOTS of it.. so, it's probably the fiber because it says that I have about 17g of it a day..

Well, I'll work on that from now on. Thank you all again for the info! :-)

LOL, wish me luck..

Original Post by alisons:

Yep I have to agree with mutlover and minie13 i think its the fats.

Before i started my 'diet' i was eating very badly, plenty of processed food and fried food and lots of chocolate and biscuits and i was 'going' everyday.

Changed my diet lots of fresh fruit and veg. 2.4 litres of water. Fibre cereal. And now i cant "go" for days. I think my diet is too low in fat and im still trying to adjust that. It can be hard to get your head around adding fat.

 i find an easy way to put fat in your diet is peanut butterr. because its actually really good for you so you feel like your eating something healthy, and getting the fat you need. plus just a few spoonfulls gives you your daily value so you can eat it once a day and then not worry about it :)

Two words: Fiber one

I eat one cup every morning and it does it's job. Just drink plenty of water during the day. Kellog's Fiber One with extra fiber.

I do put 1 tsp. sugar to give it some flavor because it really tastes like cardboard. Oh, and I use Light soy milk too.

Try taking up running.  I don't know if treadmills work as well, but running outside really keeps me regular.  I'm not sure what the minimum time would be for the effect - i run for 45 minutes to an hour, three or more times a week.  I think it's the impact that does it, since elliptical trainers have no effect.

Someone already suggested this, but coffee, too much of it, actually hardens feacel matter even more because of its dehydrating qualities. Constipation can also be caused by uncontrolled stress and anxiety too.

What ever you do, don't take laxatives or over the counter medications to relieve this. It will work itself out if you eat the right foods. If your taking medications for other problems, they may be the cause.

Iron intake can affect it also. ALOT of women are low in iron and folic acid. These aid in digestion.

Foods that help

- Beans, legumes, grains

- fruits, dried and fresh

- whole grain cereals and bread

- psyllium husk or ground flax works great

And like others have suggested, healthy fats and oils or prune juice.

Get some light exercise and sunshine too.

If all else fails, give yourself a stomach massage, lying on your back and rub in a circular motion.

Hope this helps!