Five ways to battle constipation

Constipation is one of the most common complaints brought to doctors. This is especially true for the elderly whose digestive system has slowed down, whose teeth don’t allow chewing adequate fiber and who don’t take in enough water or perhaps don’t exercise adequately.

Having healthy bowel habits for many folks can become an unhealthy preoccupation. Yet, as we all know, eliminating waste and the products of digestion daily is essential to long-term health.

Did you know, for example, that the average person eats more than 30 tons of food in a lifetime? Thirty tons! Think how much you’d weigh if you didn’t have someplace to pass the remains. One wag said, “We are what we eat and don’t excrete.” This is certainly true on several levels.

I don’t really buy the concept that we need to cleanse the colon with enemas, laxatives and colonic therapy to maintain optimal health. Simpler measures can work.

My colleague Don Ardell, noted wellness expert, in his classic book “14 Days to a Wellness Lifestyle,” speaks of how we Americans are being “out-pooped” by Third World countries. The average person in those countries passes more than two pounds of stool in a day, whereas in this country, our stool volume is closer to a pound. (I’m not making this stuff up)

The difference is in the indigestible cellulose and fiber eaten in other societies compared to our low-fiber, highly refined food diet. Interestingly, people in those societies suffer a lower incidence of colon cancer, diverticulosis, irritable bowel syndrome and hemorrhoids.

Fiber content in our diet should be 25 grams or more daily. Fiber rich foods are fruits (raspberries and pears are the kings of fiber in this category), beans, most vegetables and whole grains.

Eating at least five servings daily will help enormously with regular elimination.

One person I know went on a Paleolithic diet with over 50 grams of fiber. Maybe he was overdoing it a bit.

Here are five additional suggestions for improving your bowel habits:

1. Take 1-2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed daily. This is my personal favorite and has helped many patients become regular.

2. Prune juice is an old favorite and though never tested in randomized controlled scientific trials, has an obvious benefit.

3. Psyllium (Metamucil) is another source of fiber, like flaxseed, and can be used if you really can’t handle eating five or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily.

4. Take Milk of Magnesia, 1-2 tablespoons nightly. I also often recommend chelated magnesium tablets as many people are low in this essential mineral. The bonus is softer, more regular stools. Vitamin C at high doses (more than a gram a day) can also stimulate the bowel and is very safe.

5. Drinking lots of water (at least 1 ounce for every 2 pounds of body weight daily) and exercising regularly are good for the whole body.

Have a healthy trip!

Dr. Victor S. Sierpina is the W.D. and Laura Nell Nicholson Family Professor of Integrative Medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch.