How to fight constipation specifically for 30+ woman.

Dear MiamiPlus,

Thank you for your question.  As usual, this is only general
information and no substitute for direct medical examination and
advice.  That being said, the cure for constipation depends to some
degree on the cause.  Some folks suffer from chronic constipation,
likely due to insufficient fiber intake, as suggested by one
commenter.  Remedies such as prune juice, increasing vegetable intake,
etc., aim to increase fiber intake.  Another good source is simple
bran (or raisin bran) cereal.  Coffee will also produce an
anti-constipation effect.  Exercise is also beneficial.  Constipation
is a common complaint, with around 4 million cases in the US alone.

Another common cause of constipation is narcotic pain medications such
as Percocet, Lortab, Morphine, etc.  These medications essentially
help to put to sleep the muscles of the intestines, resulting in
constipation.  Changing or discontinuing medications can help to
resolve these unwanted side effects.

Regardless of the cause, a reasonable "bowel regimen" can be helpful. 
This consists of a combination of medications, which do not need to be
used all at once (i.e., one can try the simplest ones first and
progress to the stimulant medications).  This eMedicine website
discusses various medications for constipation:

http://www.emedicine.com/EMERG/topic111.htm
http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic2833.htm
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/articles/5894-1.asp

The most common medications include the following:

Bulk-forming agents: psyllium (e.g. Metamucil, Fiberall)
Stool softeners: Colace
Osmotic laxatives: Milk of Magnesium, MiraLax


Constipation that doesn't resolve with these medications or
alterations in medications and/or diet or that recurs frequently
should be evaluated by a physician.

I hope this information was useful.  Feel free to request any clarification.

Best,

          -welte-ga

---

Clarification of Answer by welte-ga on 10 Apr 2005 11:16 PDT

Dear MiamiPlus,

Just to clarify - near the end of my answer, I listed the most common,
effective medications used to treat constipation (both in and out of
the hospital).  Here is the list again:

Bulk-forming agents: psyllium (e.g. Metamucil, Fiberall)
Stool softeners: Colace
Osmotic laxatives: Milk of Magnesium, MiraLax

Tap water and Fleets enemas are also effective if these agents fail.

Please feel free to request clarification.

         -welte-ga

Responses were OK, i was looking for recommendation on specific medications.

If you haven't tried this already...increasing your fiber intake to
25-35 grams a day can help but make sure to drink at least 6 cups of
water a day as well. You can improve your fiber intake by eating more
fruits and vegetables, use whole grains (look for 3 grams of fiber or
more per serving on whole grain breads, cereals, etc).

If this doesn't work a sure fire thing is to drink a 6-ounce glass of
prune juice. This usually always does the trick!

Good Luck!

www.reallivingnutrition.com

Note that I'm not a health care professional, but I have lived and
learned through my own experience and the experience of various
friends and family members!

If your constipation is a long term, ongoing problem then it's quite
possible that you're simply not drinking enough fresh, clean, plain
water. In addition to everything else you drink, make sure you drink 2
litres (not sure what that is in pints or quarts) every single day.
There are so many drinks that contain salt, sugar, caffeine, alcohol
etc that many health conscious folk believe that they end up having a
dehydrating effect. Plain water. You can learn to love it!

If you do increase your fibre intake, you absolutely *need* to
increase your water intake or you could end up in a great deal of
discomfort. Increase your fibre intake gradually.

In addition, there is also some value in checking out magnesium
supplementation. You can find all kinds of support, from both
conventional and alternative therapists, for the theory that magnesium
supplements will help resolve constipation. This site offers a good
explanation: http://www.patient.co.uk/showdoc/30003830/

Also, are you taking painkillers that contain codeine? Codeine's a
sure fire constipation pill.

In the short term, psyllium husks are very helpful and gentle. Another
effective, gentle remedy is barley, cooked well according to
directions and served in a similar style to rice. It's also delicious
so check out some barley recipes online and regularly incorporate it
into your diet for ongoing benefit.

Do you do yoga? There are several exercises that specifically target
this area and are very worthwhile both for your general health and for
this particular problem. Simply do a search and you'll come up with
literally thousands of web sites that explain 'how to'.

And there's great truth in the old adage that "an apple a day keeps
the doctor away". It's really worth doing -- the results are likely to
be very pleasing for you and will certainly be good for your general
well being also.

How on earth is anyone supposed to work out that you want
recommendations on specific medications if you don't say so! (You
*didn't* say so!) And why didn't you just ask welte-ga for a
clarification instead? That's what you're meant to do, instead of
giving them a ... rating. Sheesh!

I have personally had success getting rid of constipation using prunes
and increasing water intake. I have had more pleasant success using a
couple different herbal supplements(at different times). One is
hemorr-aide http://www.hemorraide.angelsherbs.com which has given me
the best results (I won't go into details). The other is called Smell
Fresh http://smellfresh.com

Good luck.

Hi stressedmum...

I echo your setiments. It always galls me that many questioners think
Researchers are mind readers.

Steph53