Issues of weight control today are of interest to many people, regardless of gender and age. The most popular way to get rid of extra pounds remains eating according to a certain plan. In this case, you may encounter such an unpleasant side effect as constipation during the diet.
The fact that the intestines have begun to function incorrectly may be indicated by the appearance of unpleasant or painful sensations during bowel movements and/or the absence of natural bowel movements for 48 hours or more. We'll tell you what to do if constipation occurs during a strict diet, and what to do.
Possible reasons
Most often the cause
This delicate problem is caused by weakness of the intestines itself (often caused by a sedentary lifestyle) or an unbalanced diet. Problems with bowel movements during a diet can begin in most cases for the second of these reasons.
In most cases, people do not try to understand either the rules for constructing a menu or the principles of its effect on the body. They simply limit the consumption of a number of foods and reduce the amount of food to minimal amounts.
The result is temporary weight loss. It is accompanied by side effects such as decreased muscle tone, decreased sensitivity, and, finally, defecation disorders. This is how constipation occurs in dieters. What to do in this case?
What should you eat?
A woman experiences constipation due to her diet, what should she do? Most often, constipation occurs with a low-carbohydrate diet, in which a person consumes too much protein and fat.
To increase the amount of carbohydrates, it is important to diversify your diet with the following foods: mushrooms, legumes, cereals, berries, fruits and fresh vegetables. They contain a small amount of carbohydrates, but a lot of fiber, so they are especially effective in restoring stool.
It is best to use products that do not require long-term heat treatment - they retain the largest amount of minerals and nutritional components with fiber.
Bran (rye or wheat) has a good effect on the intestines. This product should be poured with boiling water and wait until it swells for 30 minutes. Ready-made bran is consumed separately or added to other dishes, increasing their quantity every day. At first, you should consume a small amount of bran (about 5 grams per day), gradually increasing it.
Ways to normalize the emptying process
What measures should be taken to avoid these unpleasant phenomena? If you still experience constipation while dieting, what should you do? There are a number of recommendations that can help normalize the body’s condition:
- Drink enough
liquids. Most diets contain recommendations regarding increasing the amount of water in the diet, but the drinking regime is designed in such a way that water is removed from the body very quickly. You can increase the amount of fluid to three liters per day and drink that much for several days in a row. - Consumption of fermented milk products. They are able to cope with constipation and activate intestinal function. Often problems with bowel movements occur after leaving a diet based on such foods. This is due to the oversaturation of the intestines with beneficial bacteria. In this case, you should remember that it is not recommended to consume fermented milk products saturated with live bacteria more than four times a week.
- Introduce more natural plant foods into your diet. They help the fermentation process and maintain optimal water balance. In particular, increasing the content of fruits and vegetables in your diet will be beneficial. They are useful both raw and after heat treatment (for example, boiled or stewed). In the case of fruits, preference should be given to fruits with a minimum content of natural sugars.
- Drinking one glass of freshly squeezed fruit juice daily before breakfast can stimulate bowel movements. However, in this case, you need to remember that this remedy is contraindicated for people with high stomach acidity.
- Must be in the diet
include whole grain products, such as wholemeal bread. The optimal breakfast menu should contain a glass of low-fat kefir (if desired, it can be replaced with yogurt) and a bran bun. - When trying to get rid of constipation, a person often begins to eat large amounts of foods containing fiber. Immediately introducing a lot of fiber into your diet is harmful: it can lead to intestinal irritation, increased gas formation and pain, which will only worsen the situation. You need to start consuming such products little by little, increasing their quantity gradually.
Attention! If the measures taken to improve bowel function have not brought results within 72 hours, further self-medication should not be undertaken, as this may pose a health hazard. In this case, you need to take a break from the diet and seek medical help from a specialist.
Physical exercise
It is also important to remember about measured physical activity. Movement and sports help stimulate the functioning of organs and systems of the entire body, including the gastrointestinal tract. Physical activity should be evenly distributed according to the number of calories consumed per day. If the human body does not receive the required amount of energy, then it becomes very difficult for him to exercise, fatigue and a feeling of malaise arise.
Experts advise consuming the amount of calories that will help a person lead a full life and feel normal every day. For an adult, the approximate amount of calories should reach 1500 per day (+ or -300).
Laxatives and enemas during the diet
In order to avoid violating the recommended diet and at the same time eliminate the problem associated with irregular bowel movements, you can take laxatives.
You can use it like
herbal infusions, for example, take a decoction of buckthorn bark or senna herb, and medications, a large selection of which is available in any pharmacy. In this case, products such as Duphalac, Bisacodyl, Florax and other drugs of similar action can be effective.
Important! You should not constantly use laxatives, as this can lead to temporary constipation becoming chronic. During the diet, only one-time use of such drugs is permissible in order to provide urgent assistance to the body.
As for such a popular remedy as a cleansing enema, it is quite effective, but you should not abuse it either. The fact is that during the cleansing procedure with an enema, the beneficial microflora is washed out. And if you do an enema regularly, it can simply lead to disruption of the normal functioning of the intestines.
Medicines
If you are constipated, you should not start taking laxatives. Under their influence, the human body eventually ceases to cope normally with the process of defecation (it ceases to carry out this process independently). Over time, this condition provokes serious intestinal diseases, which the patient simply cannot cope with without the help of a specialist.
If the disease cannot be cured without medications, then it is important not to self-medicate and immediately go to see a doctor who can recommend an effective remedy. You should seek help from a nutritionist if you cannot restore the functioning of your digestive system with the right foods and regular physical activity.
If improving your diet and lifestyle does not have any effect, then the chosen diet is not suitable for the human body.
What to do if you are constipated?
How to solve the problem of constipation from diet? Constipation is an involuntary abstinence from bowel movements that lasts more than three days. Normally, a person should go to the toilet every day. But all people are completely different, so treating constipation with laxatives begins only on the third day.
Features of treating constipation from a weight loss diet:
- To restore the elimination of feces and toxins from the body, it is important to start drinking plenty of fluids per day - 6 to 8 glasses.
- Review your diet. Diets set their own rules, but nothing prevents a person from adding a little flaxseed to the dishes he eats, taking a spoonful of vegetable oil every day, eating carrots or an apple - they contain a minimal amount of calories.
- Start using rectal laxatives. It is important to avoid chemicals that negatively affect the state of intestinal receptors and lead to severe irritation. It is best to use herbal remedies.
Prevention and drinking regime
Make sure that when following a high-protein diet, a person consumes enough liquid. Moreover, the best option for hydrating the body is clean water.
“Dietary fiber removes water from the body, so increase your fluid intake,” recommends Armul. “Carry a water bottle with you everywhere throughout the day.”
Advice
8 cups of water a day is a good dose to start with, but needs to be increased if a person becomes thirsty or becomes constipated.
What does long-term constipation lead to?
- Decreased body weight, decreased performance, increased fatigue, psychological disorders.
- Intoxication, infections that arise due to stagnation of feces and lead to inflammation of the small and large intestines, exacerbation of hemorrhoids, and the appearance of anal fissures.
- Acute intestinal obstruction is a life-threatening condition and is classified as a surgical pathology. Requires rapid diagnosis and treatment.
- Long-term chronic constipation in adults is a risk factor for colon cancer.
What is better to exclude from the diet?
- Fatty and fried foods. They slow down intestinal motor activity. Choose low-fat varieties of fish - hake, cod, dorado, grass carp. Meat – turkey, chicken, rabbit.
- Boiled or fried eggs.
- Smoked meats, canned food.
- Alcoholic drinks have a diuretic effect. This leads to fluid loss. Coffee has the same effect.
- Radishes, onions, turnips, garlic.
- Spicy seasonings and sauces.
- Chocolate, sweets (especially baked goods).
- Fruits: quince, barberry.
- Viscous porridges: semolina, rice.
- Legume products (lentils, chickpeas, peas).
- Flour dishes made from dough: dumplings, pies, dumplings.
- Products and dishes with gelatin: marmalade, jellied meat, jelly, jelly.
Lactose intolerance
Whey is milk protein. This is the liquid left over from the cheese making process. Therefore it contains some lactose. Those who are lactose intolerant may experience various digestive problems if the lactose concentration is too high.
There are two types of whey protein - concentrate and isolate. They differ in processing and lactose content.
If you are lactose intolerant, choose whey protein isolate, which contains only 1 gram (or less) of lactose per 100-calorie serving.
Another alternative is to take an over-the-counter lactase supplement before drinking the shake. This can help your body digest small amounts of lactose properly.
Even if you are lactose intolerant, some whey protein powders can cause constipation. Therefore, it is important to choose a protein shake that is high in fiber to minimize the likelihood of constipation.
Before choosing a protein powder, study the contents of sports nutrition. Choose one that contains a lot of fiber, but without a huge amount of calories.
Many carbohydrate powders are actually weight gain shakes. They can contain a whole day's worth of calories in one serving.
Mixing protein with milk
Most whey protein powders are designed to be mixed with milk. If you are lactose intolerant, this can cause both gas and constipation. Even if you don't suffer from it, using whole milk can add too much fat to the protein in your shake.
As you know, both fat and protein are digested slowly. When both of these components remain in the intestines for a long time, they can harm the digestive system.
If you are lactose intolerant, simply switch to skim milk. Try soy, almond or rice milk. Or mix the powder with juice or water.
Lose weight correctly and safely
Before deciding on a diet, it is better to consult your doctor. Choosing a diet on your own can result not only in constipation, but also in such serious health problems as vitamin deficiency, metabolic disorders, and gastrointestinal diseases.
A nutritionist will help you create a personal diet that will take into account your physiological characteristics, lifestyle, living conditions, etc. It is extremely important that the doctor takes into account your illnesses when choosing a weight loss model. It is also necessary to adjust your diet if you are allergic to any foods.
Nutritional Features
Constipation from dieting when losing weight, what to do? When choosing a diet, it is important to remember one thing - strict restrictions on the quantity and calorie content of food can lead to serious problems with the functioning of the digestive system. To prevent your diet from becoming a test for your health, it is important to follow certain rules. If, when losing weight, a woman experiences constipation from dieting, then the following foods should be included in her diet:
- fruits, dried fruits and vegetables (dried apricots, prunes), also vegetable and fruit juices, beet puree;
- fermented milk products (fresh kefir and yogurt);
- whole wheat bread;
- berry compotes, as well as juices with pulp;
- oatmeal and buckwheat.
It is important to avoid the following foods when dieting for constipation:
- strong black tea, cocoa;
- blueberry jelly;
- rice and semolina porridge.
A good effect can be achieved by taking the laxative Duphalac, which eliminates constipation and naturally restores the functioning of the intestines. The medicine does not irritate the mucous membrane of the organ, restores the number of lactobacilli, the balance of intestinal microflora and relieves problems with defecation.
