Anyone Have Constipation Problems?

[jasonD2]

one thing that improved when i went gluten-free was my urge to go to the bathroom - now i typically go every morning. before it would be 3-4 days w/o a BM. thing is i'm still having difficulty even though ive cut out so many foods...seems like a lot of the foods i still eat trigger colon spasms. Even though i will go every day, my stools arent very bulky and are difficult to pass because they are hard (sorry for the graphic details). most of the time the initial pass is hard and then it softens up. i dont know what to do about this. im very sensitive to supplements and do not tolerate fiber very well (makes me very bloated). anyone have any suggestions? is there something i can do to make sure i wake up every morning with a strong urge and will guarantee easy passage? the most frustrating aspect of all this is whenever i break my routine I wind up getting backed up...if i go on vacations, trips or even change my daily routine. I was recently on a camping trip and didnt go for 2 days. i'd appreciate some suggestions.

[spunky]

Fiber certainly disagrees with me too... I don't think it's really all that essential to good gut function, myself... I think the key is finding which foods mess you up and avoiding them.

Also.. don't know how long you've been gluten free, but for me, my gut kept constantly changing a lot until around the two year mark... first I couldn't handle soy, then eggs, then pinto beans... finally now I can eat soy and eggs again, but it's been 2 1/2 years gluten free for me and i suddenly started having problems again... mild, but annoying enough that I wanted to get to the root of it.

So once again I had to search and re-search for something I'd missed... wondering again just what it was this time, and I think I finally narrowed it down to xylitol in my gluten-free toothpaste and some chewing gum I was buying. I've stopped all products with xylitol and seems that now things are fine again.

So ... my point is, while admitting I don't know, I think the problems might very well indicate that some food or ingredient somewhere along the way is upsetting your system.

We all should get an A + in Detective Work by the time we get everything figured out.

Guess my post isn't that helpful, but I hope you find a solution soon and get back to feeling good.

[mhb]

This sounds like me exactly. Here's the thing: raw milk kefir did the trick! It must be raw. Commercial pasteurized kefir did not work for me. Nor pasteurized yogurts. Raw milk has loads of enzymes and additional healthy bacteria that assists. The only other dairy I'm eating is cultured raw milk butter. I can't handle pasteurized milk products but this raw milk kefir is amazing. I eat about 4 oz first thing in a.m. on an empty stomach other than water. If I take much more than that it blocks me up a little. I know a guy with the same issues and raw milk kefir does it for him too. What state are you in? The raw milk laws/availability differ by state. I can look yours up. I'm so glad I tried this before concluding I had to try eliminating everything under the sun. The problem for me, other than gluten, was digestion in general, not food intolerances. So I'm doing various things to boost digestion, but the raw milk kefir is what tackled the elimination issues.

[Welda Johnson]

Hi,

I agree that enzymes are a key to the problem. A year ago I started eating fresh pineapple each morning, mixing it with nothing else. The enzymes digest anything eaten the day before. I read that eating fruit with any other food doesn't mix, and it seems to be true for me. So, I followed the instructions I read precisely, and this is what they said: 1. Eat one fruit only at a time, and first thing in the morning. 2. If you're eating vegetables, starches or legumes (beans, soy, etc.) next, stop the fruit and eat only the vegs, starches or legumes by themselves (because they won't digest properly with fruits or proteins). 3. If you're eating protein, eat it last, and don't mix with fruits or legumes. This supposedly eliminates the indigestion that is so typical of certain mixed meals. I haven't talked about milk products because I don't eat them. This has helped my digestion tremendously. Hope this helps. Welda

[jasonD2]

Cant do raw milk kefir- i have severe lactose and casein intolerances. the foods that constipate me the most are :

1. coconut milk

2. nuts

3. soy

4. dark turkey meat

5. chocolate

6. dates

7. berries

but even w/o these foods i still have difficulty- i just cant win

[mysecretcurse]

Unlike some people who get D, gluten gives me C. I can't go normally for a few days after I've been glutened. It sucks. Things get to working normally again after a few days, but it can be awful. Even trace amounts do it.

[jasonD2]

Are u celiac or gluten intolerant?

[sickchick]

If you like apples, they are packed with fiber, taste wonderful, fill you up and keep you regular!

be well

[mhb]

Are u celiac or gluten intolerant?

I'm not sure who this question is directed to, but I wanted to get back about my post about raw milk kefir anyway. I realized after posting it that a lot of people on this list probably can't eat dairy. But just for those who might read it and are flexible about dairy, I wanted to add for those who don't know that many people who can't eat pasteurized dairy can handle raw dairy just fine. Pasteurization kills elements in the raw milk that help to process the lactose and proteins. I seem to be a case in point, since pasteurized dairy products make very bloated, but this raw milk Kiefer does not and actually really helps my digestion. Raw milk may help the same - I haven't tried it. I think I posted before that if I drink too much it has the opposite effect, but now I think it's just if I drink it when I'm eating other foods. This possibility is also mentioned in the book The Real Story of Milk. What works for me is to take it first thing in the morning after my good slug of water on an empty stomach. I have a cup of tea right after and then a little bit later breakfast. Just in case it helps anyone else.

My husband swears by lots of raw baby carrots for this purpose, but I don't digest them well. I find it interesting how completely unique and different we all are! Keep searching and I'm confident you'll find the key for you.

Now to the celiac or gluten intolerance question. I really don't know for sure because I went off gluten before any testing. My main symptoms were a lot of abdominal distention, sometimes a lot of gas but that seems to depend more on other foods, and periods of constipation. Going off gluten helped considerably, and then going off regular dairy was the next big ticket. Adding in coconut oil then helped kill off some unhealthy organisms and bring even further improvement. I don't really think I was active celiac since I was overall very healthy and showed no signs of nutritional deficiencies. I went off medication I have been taking for years for PCOS when I stopped the gluten. For the first time in my life (46 years) I've had three regular periods in a row. I was simultaneously getting acupuncture, but not for that, so I can't be sure that it wasn't the acupuncture helping. I am soon to stop the acupuncture and sort that one out. I plan to do the genetic testing whenever I get around to it.

[RiceGuy]

One thing which I know works is magnesium. The powdered forms usually have no added ingredients. Mix some (follow the label) in fruit juice - citrus fruit juice works best. I'd suggest trying it on a weekend first, so you know how long it takes to work.

[mhb]

At least one of the parts of raw milk kefir that helps with elimination is all the enzymes it is loaded with. But you can get live enzymes in your diet from sources other than cultured dairy products. If you are not already aware of it, start learning about fresh fermented foods which have many enzymes aiding digestion and other bodily processes that have not been killed through pasteurization. Commercial sauerkraut and pickles, for example, are more or less dead because they've been pasteurized to create stability in transport while avoiding refrigeration. I think making your own fermented foods is the simple and cheapest way to go, but you can buy some in the store, for example, kombucha. Consider getting Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon for info on ferments and recipes. Or Wild Fermentation is another book on it. The industrialization of foods has obliterated much if not all of the live enzymes in raw foods that is an important part of traditional diets around the world.

Regarding magnesium, I have also heard this helps some people. It can cause stomach upset or diarrhea too, so if you try it and have one of those reactions, you might lower the dose or change the type of supplement you're using. I had problems with one supplement (I no longer remember which one), but now I am simply taking pills from Now through Whole Foods and I'm having no stomach trouble at all. I believe it is helping me sleep and feel less stressed.

[Chrissyb]

I am right there with you sometimes I will not go for days meaning 5 or more and not even laxatives will work and when I do finally go it will be D. I can' t win for losing. I do very little dairy and it doesn't seem to make a differnce when I do. I tried fiber pills and metimucel (sp) but them made me feel bloated more then I already was. Sometimes I wish I could just take something go in and scrape the insides of my stomach out and I would feel all better. I feel so bloated it goes all the way up my cheast it hurts so bad. Maybe one day I will figure out what to do.

[mhb]

I am right there with you sometimes I will not go for days meaning 5 or more and not even laxatives will work and when I do finally go it will be D. I can' t win for losing. I do very little dairy and it doesn't seem to make a differnce when I do. I tried fiber pills and metimucel (sp) but them made me feel bloated more then I already was. Sometimes I wish I could just take something go in and scrape the insides of my stomach out and I would feel all better. I feel so bloated it goes all the way up my cheast it hurts so bad. Maybe one day I will figure out what to do.

Have you tried coconut oil? It's quite powerful at killing unhealthy organisms in the gut, I think sometimes we get rid of food irritants but forget that a lot of gut dysbiosis remains and needs a lot of attention too. Just something else to try.