Many people may have heard that constipation means having fewer than 3 bowel movements per week. But in fact, constipation does not depend on the number of times or regularity of bowel movements. As long as you can have a comfortable bowel movement, without worrying, without having to strain, and the stool is soft and well formed, even if you only have one bowel movement every 2-3 days, it is not considered abnormal.
However, whenever you feel that having a bowel movement is difficult, many times you have to sit for up to half an hour to strain, sometimes you have to spray water, use your fingers to help, are not completely defecate, feel like something is blocking it, have only a small amount of bowel movement, have hard stools that look like pellets, have rough or dry cracked skin, and feel uncomfortable and full in the stomach, all of these indicate that you are definitely constipated.
What causes constipation?
- Not drinking enough water, eating foods low in fiber such as meat, สมัคร ufabet, protein, milk, cheese.
- Lack of exercise or little movement
- Poor bowel movement habits, such as holding in feces when you feel the urge or not defecating for several days, or improper bowel movements.
- Pregnancy: During pregnancy, the uterus expands and presses on the large intestine, causing the digestive system to not function properly. This makes it more difficult to defecate, leading to constipation.
- Some medications, such as antacids containing calcium or aluminum, pain relievers, diuretics, drugs for Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, etc.
What are the effects of frequent constipation?
- It causes hemorrhoids or cracks around the anus from dry, hard feces scraping the blood vessels and tearing them.
- It increases the pressure in the chest cavity. People with heart disease may develop ischemia and arrhythmias .
- It causes increased pressure in the eye, which is dangerous for people undergoing eye and ear surgery.
- Causing increased pressure in the abdominal cavity, which can cause a hernia.
- Weakens the pelvic muscles, causing inability to hold urine.
- Chronic constipation leading to symptoms of intestinal obstruction, including severe abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, nausea, vomiting, failure to pass gas, and failure to defecate.
Constipation can be relieved with the following methods:
Drink water after waking up. Drinking a glass of water after waking up is a good way to detoxify your intestines because it is when your stomach is empty. Drinking water at this time will cleanse your intestines and stimulate them naturally, which helps stimulate bowel movements in the morning very well.
Drink sour milk or yogurt. Sour milk or yogurt helps stimulate bowel movements very well. But you have to drink it at the right time. The morning is a very suitable time, especially 5:00 – 7:00 AM because this is the time when the large intestine is working. Drinking sour milk or yogurt that has microorganisms will make the digestive system work better, stimulate bowel movements, and solve constipation problems.
Eat foods that are high in fiber. Problems with bowel movements can come from many causes, but most often they come from the food you eat. Because if food doesn’t have enough fiber, it will easily result in constipation. Therefore, we should choose to eat foods that have more fiber, such as vegetables, fruits, grains, brown rice, etc., which will help prevent constipation and make it easier to defecate.
Exercise regularly. Exercises such as walking, running, jumping rope, etc. can help improve the digestive system significantly. In addition to improving the digestive system, regular exercise also helps stimulate the functioning of all parts of the body to work more efficiently.
Sit correctly to defecate. The proper sitting position for defecation should be a squatting position with knees above hips. However, the characteristics of the current toilet make our sitting position become a 90-degree perpendicular. It is recommended to place a chair in front of us so that our knees are above our hips, making a 35-degree angle, and lean forward slightly. This sitting position will make defecation much easier than before.