If your stool or poop is irregular (i.e., it doesn’t come when you’re expecting it), you have to force out your stooling, or your stooling is outrightly hard and painful, then you’re suffering from constipation.
By this, there’s no clear-cut definition of constipation, although it is suggested a healthy person (adult and children) stools at least once a day, and in extreme cases, no more than 3 times daily.
If you’re not feeling bloated, and your poop comes nice and easy, and you do not have to dread poop time, then you’re fine even if your stool comes once in three days or thrice weekly.
Constipation is a serious concern.
If you’re suffering from constipation, it implies that your colon muscles cannot move the stool into the rectum; hence it results in delayed stooling.
If stool remains in your colon, it acts as a breeding ground for harmful bacteria, producing gasses that cause bloating in your stomach.
Due to the delayed bowel movement, toxic substances can recirculate back into your body, causing more harm, and more water is reabsorbed back into your system, making your stool hard and painful.
You can compare the effect of constipation to bad or damaged plumbing work resulting in poor sewage movement, which pollutes the environment with bad smell, and increase your chances of getting cholera, typhoid, or other sewage borne infections due to the likelihood of your food and water becoming contaminated with sewage.
For this reason, you shouldn’t ignore your body when you feel you’re having constipation; you could be causing more damage to your health.
What Causes Constipation?
- Consuming processed foods results in constipation due to their low fiber content. Such categories of food make bowel movement difficult.
- Consuming an excessive amount of red meat
- Not drinking enough water daily. Water helps to soften your stool, and fiber improves bowel movement. Therefore, in addition to consuming foods rich in fiber, you should drink up to 5 liters of water daily for good bowel movement.
- A sedentary lifestyle: A sedentary lifestyle lowers your body metabolism significantly, resulting in slow digestion and reduced bowel movement.
- Medical conditions like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), diabetes, cancer, and hypothyroidism can cause constipation.
- Medications such as NSAIDs (Motrin and Aleve), Antihistamines such as Benadryl and Zyrtec, Tricyclic antidepressants such as Elavil and Pamelor, etc.
- Artificial sweeteners, etc.
How to Get Rid Of Constipation Fast At Home Using Natural Remedies
The natural remedies we will be discussing are the best means of getting rid of constipation fast without any side effects.
Unlike OTC laxatives, the natural remedies discussed here do not cause damage to the large intestine and colon; they don’t cause electrolyte imbalance, nor do they interfere with your body’s ability to absorb some nutrients and medications.
Here are 9 of the best natural remedies to get rid of constipation fast at home.
1. A Mixture of Salt and Lemon Juice
Salt helps to draw water into your colon to soften your stool as well as flush out your colon. Lemon juice is a rich source of natural laxative that increases bowel movement and eliminate toxins and harmful bacteria in the colon.
This home remedy works well; therefore, you should not wander far from home but stay close to your toilet because this mixture will literally flush out your stool.
How to treat constipation with a mixture of salt and lemon juice
- Mix two teaspoons of sea salt into a cup of warm water (for kids, it should be no more than a teaspoon of salt)
- Cut a lemon into two parts and squeeze one part into the warm salt water.
- Drink the mixture in the morning before food; make sure you’re near the toilet
- If you’re suffering from chronic constipation, you should take another cup of saltwater mixed with lemon juice at 3 hours intervals.
- Alternatively, you can drink a liter of sea saltwater
2. Pawpaw
Pawpaw is a fast remedy for constipation because it is rich in fiber which increases bowel movement; Chymopapain and papain, which are digestive enzymes that speed up protein digestion.
How to treat constipation with pawpaw
- Option 1: Slice ripened pawpaw into small-sized chunks and consume daily in the morning before meal
- Option 2: Boil slices of pawpaw, and consume daily with your meals
- Option 3: cut unripened pawpaw into small sizes, soak in water with its seeds, drink a cupful daily before breakfast.
Read Also: 10 Effective Home Remedies to Get Rid Of Abdominal Bloating
3. Castor Oil
If you’re going to try this option, I will advise you to stay close to your toilet and not stray out of your house; you may find yourself unable to hold your poo a minute longer. Also, the taste is not palatable, so you may have to mix it with fruit juice if you find that you can’t chug it down your stomach, but I must stress again that wherever you go, don’t go too far from your toilet.
Note: Although castor oil is safe for use and is a quick fix for constipation, it should not be used for a prolonged period.
How to treat Constipation with Castor oil
- Take two teaspoons of castor oil in the morning before mealtime
- Stay close to your toilet
4. Aloe Vera
Aloe Vera is a rich source of natural laxatives that improves bowel movement; Also, due to its antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, it is used as an effective treatment for irritable bowel syndrome.
How to Treat Constipation with Aloe Vera
- Slice two big sizeable aloe vera leaves into small chunks
- Soak in a bottle or jar of water for 3 days
- Consume half cup of the juice before breakfast
- Alternatively, squeeze and consume two tablespoons of aloe vera gel in the morning before breakfast.
Read Also: 9 Easy Natural Home Remedies to Get Rid Of Stomach Ache in 2 Minutes
5. Baking Soda
Baking soda is an age-old natural remedy for getting rid of constipation fast. A drink of baking soda will cure bloating by getting the gases popping out of your stomach; it will also ease bowel movement and get the stool coming out nice and easy by absorbing water into your colon, ease digestion and prevent heartburn, and relieve rectal pain.
How to treat constipation with baking soda
- Mix a teaspoon of baking soda in a cup of warm water
- Drink in the morning before breakfast
- To relieve rectal pain, add 2 ounces of baking soda to a bathtub of warm water and soak yourself in it for 20 minutes.
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6. Raisins
Raisins are rich in fiber and magnesium, which promotes easy bowel movement. Magnesium relaxes the nerves and muscles of the colon and large intestine and softens your stool by drawing water into the colon, thus making your poop come out easy.
How to get rid of constipation fast with raisins
- soak a cup of raisins in a bowl with a cup and half of water overnight
- Drink the raisin-soaked water in the morning, and eat the raisins also.
- Repeat the process for as long as you likelihood
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7. Unsweetened Yogurt
Unsweetened yogurt contains beneficial bacteria known as probiotics. These bacteria improve digestion and prevent the growth of harmful bacteria in the guts. Overall, these beneficial bacteria are your friends because they keep constipation at bay and make toilet time a memorable one.
How to treat Constipation with Unsweetened yogurt
- Consume a cup or two of plain yogurt, preferably before breakfast
- Make this a daily habit to keep your digestive system running smoothly
8. Dandelion Leaves
Dandelion root is rich in inulin, a potent substance that helps relax the large intestine muscles, ease bowel movement, and prevent constipation. Dandelion leaves are often used as a major constituent in treating digestive disorders and as a detoxifier.
How to treat constipation fast with Dandelion leaves
- Option 1: Boil 3 dandelion leaves in a cup of water, consume in the morning after cooling
- Option 2: soak 3 dried dandelion leaves in a cup of hot water for 30 minutes, and drink 3 times daily.
9. Olive Oil
if you’ve been having difficulty stooling, it’s time to soften things up with olive oil. Just as oil gets moving parts of the machine moving smoothly, olive oil also gets your bowel moving nice and smooth.
How to get your bowels moving with Olive oil
- Take a tablespoon (½ tablespoon for children) of olive oil in the morning before breakfast.
- Repeat every three hours until your bowel gets moving normally
- You can dilute the olive oil with a teaspoon of lemon juice to improve its potency
Conclusion
The natural remedies discussed above will get rid of constipation fast. However, healthy eating and exercise will help you keep constipation at bay.
Incorporating morning tea or coffee, fruits, and vegetables, exercises (30 minutes brisk walk daily is enough), and drinking lots of water is all you need to keep your bowel moving nice and easy without making stooling time painful moments.
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