Healthy Bowels Movement Best Practices

A bowel movement is the last stop in the movement of food through your digestive tract. Healthy bowels movement is very essential in preventing bowels related disorders such as constipation, diarrhoea or irritable bowels syndrome etc. Here in this article the healthy bowels movement best practices are presented.

1). Normalize Stool Consistency:

The optimal goal for stool consistency is a formed, soft stool. Hard stools are difficult to evacuate and leakage is more likely if stools are liquid. One should eat well-balanced, regularly timed meals that are high in fiber. Dietary fiber refers to the parts of the food that humans are unable to digest.

This includes whole grains, legumes, fresh fruits, and vegetables. Fiber adds bulk to the stool, eliminates excess fluids, and promotes more frequent and regular movements. With increasing fiber it is important to drink enough fluids. If fluid intake is inadequate, the stool becomes hard because less water is retained in the large intestine.

The amount of fiber and fluids necessary for optimal bowel function varies among individuals. This may not be possible for people suffering from kidney disease, heart disease or urinary problems as they may have some restriction on amount of water intake.

As a thumb of rule remember the principle of moderation that everything and anything in excess is harmful. So maintain a balance in your diet, consult doctor if in confusion.

But note to follow hygiene in washing and cutting fibrous fruits and vegetable as unhealthy way of dealing with them could create secondary health problems.

Also keep caffeine to a minimum. Caffeine is a diuretic drawing fluid from your colon and leaving your stools hard.

healthy bowels movement best practices

2). Establish a Regular Time for Elimination

The need is to establish a routine and predictable time for elimination. When choosing an appropriate time a person should consider his or her past pattern of bowel elimination and present lifestyle.

The time should be convenient and not rushed. Planning the program after meals allows one to take advantage of the wave-like movements that propel the fecal material through the colon to the rectum, which occur 20-30 minutes after a meal.

I remember a interesting fact on this, Some people in southern india prefers to defecate  3-4 times a day and if they go less than that than they consider it as constipation while most people I know defecate 1-2 times a day and if the go more than that then they consider it as diarrhoea. So the same number of bowels movement is constipation for one while diarrhoea for another.

3). Stimulate Emptying on a Regular Basis

A stimulus of some kind may be needed to help empty the rectum. The stimulus will vary from individual to individual but most people I encountered use water.

The stimulus creates peristalsis or wave-live movements of the colon. A meal or hot drink may stimulate some persons. Others may need to use suppositories, enemas or laxatives (only under the advice of a physician) or a combination of the above. One should use the least stimulus that is effective to promote evacuation.

4). Exercise daily

Exercise increases colonic transit time. Bowel function is helped most when exercise is at a consistent daily time. Basic walking and stretching is good enough for busy folks.

References and Further Reading :

1). http://familydoctor.org/familydoctor/en/health-tools/search-by-symptom/elimination-problems.printerview.all.html

2). http://www.aboutconstipation.org/site/what-is-constipation/normal-function

3). http://www.aboutconstipation.org/site/treatment/bowel-retraining

4). http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/MBCP/HealthyBowelHabits.pdf