Did you know that pooping once a week or every few days is not normal? Ideally, you should have 1-3 bowel movements daily. If you are not having regular bowel movements daily, implement the following five tips to improve bowel movements.
But, before we talk about how to have regular bowel movements daily, let’s talk about healthy bowel movements.
What do healthy bowel movements look like?
An ideal healthy bowel movement will be well-formed, brown in color, sink, and have no undigested food particles that you can see.
Your bowel movement should also feel like a complete evacuation. Having a morning bowel movement every day will leave you feeling lighter and ready to start your day with energy.
Nobody wants to carry an extra heavy load due to sluggish bowels. If you eat every day, you should have bowel movements daily!
How to have regular bowel movements
#1 Take time every day to de-stress your body in whichever way works best for you
Digestion is a parasympathetic process meaning the body needs time to be in a relaxed state to digest food and eliminate waste.
Have you ever noticed that you may go on a holiday or stay a night at your friend’s place then can’t have a regular bowel movement the next morning? The reason why you can’t go to the bathroom is that you are not at home and as relaxed as you would be at home.
Stress can have the opposite effect too. Adrenaline can signal the body to drop the load, as you prepare to run from the tiger, your boss, or whatever your primary emergency stressor is.
Magnesium is known as the stress mineral to support the body in times of stress. Magnesium glycinate is a form of magnesium that is good for relieving anxious feelings. Magnesium is a crucial nutrient to process and clear stress neurotransmitters from the body.
Oxy-powder is an oxygen-based colon cleanser that is bound to magnesium. This supplement effectively melts away compacted feces in the intestinal tract to cleanse the colon. Oxy-powder can be taken at night to promote a bowel movement the following day.
Be sure to have a toilet nearby as oxy-powder works well to relieve constipation. The magnesium oxide found in oxy powder is the best form of magnesium for constipation.
#2 Eat plenty of fiber in your diet to promote healthy bowel movements.
The fiber found in whole plant foods such as vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains helps to promote healthy bowel movements. The fiber bulks up the stool and absorbs water to prevent constipation.
The high fat and high protein diets are leaving many people fiber starved and constipated. Animal products such as meat, dairy, and eggs can be very nourishing foods, but they do not contain any fiber.
Fruits and vegetables are full of fiber and water to promote healthy bowel movements. Eating high fiber foods is crucial for preventing constipation.
Adding 1 tbsp of ground chia seeds and flax seeds to your food daily is a great way to add more fiber to your diet. Start your morning with this blueberry kale smoothie with chia seeds or this apple pie chia pudding!
#3 Ensure you are properly hydrated
Water is the underlooked nutrient and common cause of constipation. Make sure you are hydrated by drinking enough water and not consuming dehydrating beverages.
Fiber retains moisture from water to help keep the contents of the bowel moist so that food can easily pass along the digestive tract. There is nothing worse than not being able to go to the bathroom due to compacted and dehydrated feces.
Be sure to drink half your body weight (in pounds) in ounces. For most people, this is between 2-3 liters a day. Drinking water is one of the easiest ways to promote healthy bowel movements and support detoxification.
#4 Ditch the sugar, refined carbohydrates and fructose
Bile acts as a natural laxative and stimulates peristalsis in the digestive tract. The liver produces bile which is stored in the gallbladder.
The ability of the liver to produce bile can be inhibited with the consumption of processed sugar. Refined carbohydrates, high fructose corn syrup, and refined sugar are the worst foods for the liver. These foods cause a fatty liver when consumed in excess.
If the liver becomes fatty, it is not able to make the same quantity and quality of bile required for peristalsis and a healthy bowel movement. Producing enough bile with optimal bile flow from the gallbladder is key to having regular bowel movements.
The connection between low bile production and constipation is not well known. Insufficient bile production or flow is the underlying cause of constipation that many people do not know.
If you have implemented or tried all the previous tips yet still find your self constipated, then look to a sluggish gallbladder as the cause.
Gallbladder Nutrients and Optimal PC by Seeking Health are the top 2 supplements to support the liver and gallbladder. The two products work together to produce bile and promote bile flow. In turn, optimal bile production and flow stimulate peristalsis for healthy bowel movements.
#5 Eat ½ a cup of grated beets per day and small amounts of healthy fats
Beets are the best superfood that helps to promote good bile flow from the gallbladder. Artichoke and bitter greens such as rocket and mustard greens are fantastic foods for the gall bladder as well.
This low fodmap breakfast scramble with rocket and artichoke helps to prevent fatty liver and cleanse the gallbladder for healthy bowel movements.
The release of bile is stimulated by the presence of healthy fats in a meal as bile is needed to emulsify and break down fats. Eating small amounts of healthy fats helps to stimulate the gallbladder to contract to release bile.
Bile will then stimulate peristalsis to promote healthy bowel movements. Bile is also what gives your stool the normal healthy brown color. If you have symptoms of a sluggish gallbladder, this may be why you have sluggish bowels as well.
Try this berry beet smoothie or creamy coconut beet soup to support bile flow from a sluggish gallbladder.
Implementing these five tips to have healthy bowel movements will help to relieve constipation, improve gut health, and support detoxification.
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