Constipation can affect your whole mood. It is not just mildly uncomfortable but can become dangerously painful. While we all get constipation at some point in our lives, it is often linked to an illness. When we have the flu, or suffering with some illnesses, we do not tend to eat well and that leaves our digestive systems in tatters.
However, constipation can also be a sign that our diet is not the best overall. If you are not ill in some other way but do have other digestive complaints, you may need to change everything that you eat. You may not be getting enough fiber in your diet.
It is important not just to eliminate constipation temporarily, but to eliminate it for good. Improve your digestive health and make it easier to pass stools. These five foods are ones that you can add to your diet full time. You can improve your bowel movements and eliminate constipation forever.
Add More Beans to Your Diet
Beans, beans, they are good for the heart,
The more you eat, the more you fart.
You have likely heard of this poem. Kids love to sing it in the playground, but it is not just a poem for fun. There is a lot of truth in it. Beans really are good for the heart, but they can also make you fart. They also help to improve your bowel movements, so you get rid of constipation.
The farting and constipation are linked together. Flatulence helps to eliminate trapped wind from the body. When you have a lot of trapped wind, you can be left in pain throughout your body. It is not just your stomach that complains, but you can end up with pain shooting into your back.
Moreover, the trapped wind can be linked to constipation. When you cannot pass the stools, you can cause pockets where the wind collects. That wind cannot get past the waste that collects within the digestive system.
You need more fiber in your diet to soften the waste and help work it through your system. What better than beans? You get 10g of fiber with just one cup of beans, and you can easily add much more than that to your dishes. Beans are among the best vegetables around for fiber.
One of the best things is that you get a mixture of both soluble and insoluble fiber. The soluble fiber will soften the stools to make it easier to pass them, while the insoluble fiber remains stodgy. However, the insoluble fiber will force the rest of the waste through the system, removing the blockages at various points in your digestive system.
You can get the fibrous benefits from all types of beans, helping to create enjoyment and deliciousness within your meals. Baked beans are quite honestly the most popular, but do not overlook kidney beans, black-eyed peas (yes, they are beans and not peas), black beans, pinto beans, and even lima beans. Use the beans with pasta, in casseroles and soups, and through chilies. When using pasta and rice, opt for brown versions for even more fiber in your diet!
You will see results within a day or so with the regular use of beans in the diet. Just adding beans into one meal a day will help to eliminate constipation in the future.
Use Nuts Daily for a Snack
Unless you are allergic, there is no need to avoid nuts in your diet. If you are allergic, you can get similar benefits from seeds, although they are not as good. Not only are nuts and seeds good for reducing constipation, but they can also make you feel fuller. They are the perfect healthy snack for those trying to lose weight.
Each nut and seed will contain a different amount of fiber. Almonds are among the best, offering 3.5g of fiber in just an ounce. Pecans and walnuts have 2.9g and 1.9g of fiber respectively.
The only seed that beans the nuts is the pumpkin seed. You can get a full 5g of fiber from an ounce. The downside if you need to get about 85 seeds for this amount, whereas you’d only need 23 almonds for the ounce serving. If you prefer sesame seeds, you can get 1.1g of fiber from a tablespoon, which is enough to add to your dishes, such as Chinese dishes and salads.
Nuts are also packed with healthy fats. While they help to support your heart health, the fats will also aid the digestive system. They can help to provide lubrication to make it easier for the waste to leave your system.
Try creating a trail mix of nuts and seeds for snacks. You will only need a handful to satisfy hunger cravings, making them a healthy snack. Despite the high calories, the handful is filling and offers a range of other nutrients as well as fiber. The other snacks you are likely to eat are full of empty calories.
Alternatively, you can add the nuts and seeds to your cooking. They add a crunch to salads and dishes. Try roasting them dry with a little spice to add a new flavor to them. Nut and seed butter can also be beneficial to help support your digestive health and prevent constipation, but watch out for the amount you have. There are some unhealthy saturated fats in them.
Stock Up on Kiwis for Fruit
While you may have apples, bananas, oranges, and other fruits in your cupboards and fridges, you may want to look out for kiwis. Sure, all fruit is packed with fiber, but kiwi is certainly the best. You get 2.5g of fiber from just one kiwi, and there are high chances that you can eat more!
Not only will you get the fiber, but a range of other nutrients. Kiwis are berries, which means they are packed with some antioxidants to keep the whole body in check. Research has shown that just two kiwis a day will help to improve bowel movements, adding more bowel movements to your week to eliminate constipation for good.
You may have heard people tell you to get rid of the kiwi peel. Well, it is edible, but not as tasty as the rest of the fruit. You can eat the seeds and will likely not even notice them.
The great news is kiwis are extremely easy to eat. You can chop them up and enjoy them as a daily snack. Consider having one at the end of your lunch or the end of dinner as a healthy dessert. It is also possible to chop them up with some other fruit to create a delicious fruit salad. Add complimentary benefits for more fiber and antioxidant intake.
If you are going to create kiwis into a drink, make sure you blend instead of juicing. The process of juicing will remove the fiber, offering you no nutritional benefits. Blending will keep the fiber and help to improve your digestive system.
Watch out for eating too many Kiwis. They are highly acidic, similarly to many citrus fruits. They can be damaging to the teeth and may play up with sensitive teeth. If you find it hard to eat kiwis, then consider adding more berries to your fruit. The skin is the best part of the fiber, and you will still get the antioxidant benefits, unlike with some other fruits.
Replace Potatoes with Sweet Potatoes
If you already use potatoes in your diet, you can find they offer some fiber benefits, but there is a better option out there. It is all about the sweet potato.
A regular potato has just 3g of fiber, while a sweet potato has 3.8g. Both include when the skin is eaten, which is perfectly safe to eat! If you are worried about the skin being too tough or earthy, wash the potatoes fully and boil to help soften up the skin. You will still get the starchy goodness that helps to support your digestive health.
As well as the fiber, you will get a range of other nutrients through sweet potatoes. They contain more potassium than a banana, which means your electrolytes will be more balanced. You will find your kidney function is improved and will not suffer muscle cramps as much.
While they are known as sweet potatoes, they do not have many sugars. They do taste sweeter than normal potatoes though, which helps to curb your sweet cravings.
The skin does contain the most calories, but they are not empty ones. After all, you get the fiber. What you will want to watch out for is the butter, sour cream, and other high-calorie toppings. If you are struggling to lose weight, it could be the empty calorie additions making it harder.
Eat your sweet potatoes in a variety of ways. You can bake them in the same way that you would normal potatoes, or even boil, fry, and make into fries and wedges. Do not forget about adding them to your frittatas for a delicious and healthy way to start your day. Mashed sweet potato is also an option. You will not need as much milk or butter to create them, which will help to save on the calories.
You do not have to replace normal potatoes all the time with the sweet options. Just look at adding them to a few meals per week.
Finish Off with Some Flaxseeds
Have you ever added flaxseeds to your meal? While they are excellent for eliminating constipation, they tend to be overlooked. However, they are one of the most nutritionally beneficial ingredients and not just for your digestive system.
Let’s look at the fibrous benefits first. You get 2.8g of fiber in a tablespoon of flaxseeds. This fiber is both insoluble and soluble, so you get the same benefits as you would with beans. While you do not get as much in a serving, the serving is smaller, and you can easily add more to your diet.
At the same time as the fiber, you get antioxidant, omega 3, and many other benefits. Your body will suffer from less cell damage and inflammation. When your digestive system becomes inflamed, your immune system cannot work effectively. Your body does not absorb all the necessary nutrients from the food, and it is harder for waste to pass through your system.
The best way to absorb all the fiber from flaxseeds is by getting ground options. However, you can get some from full seeds, or you can ground them yourself. The ground flaxseeds are extremely easy to add to your meals, whether you top your salads, add them to smoothies, or throw them into your soups and stews. You can even top your porridge with them, and the oats will offer further fiber benefits to support your digestive system.
Create a Mixture of the Different Options
You do not just need to eat the foods one at a time to eliminate constipation. It is possible to mix the ingredients to create a supportive digestive diet. Why not add berries and flaxseeds to your oats for a fully nutritious start to the day? Consider adding sweet potatoes, beans, and seeds to your casseroles rather than normal potatoes. You can even add seeds and nuts with your jacket potato toppings, using sweet potatoes instead of normal potatoes.
Getting more fiber into your diet is essential to help support your digestive system. Get a mixture of both insoluble and soluble fiber for the best support. You will not just soften the stools but help to push the waste through your system. Fiber is better than laxatives since it will make your digestive system work rather than do the work for it!
The ingredients above are good for eliminating constipation in the future. They work in a healthy lifestyle and can help you with your weight loss efforts. However, if you are currently suffering from constipation, they can also help offer immediate relief. Try one or multiple foods together to start your digestive system working again. Within 24 hours you should find your bowels move properly again, depending on the exact reason for constipation.
