Everyone has the urge to pass a bowel movement, but sometimes, things can get blocked up, making the urge to go unsuccessful. If you feel like you have to use the bathroom, but you can’t quite get things moving, you are constipated.
When you’re constipated, your bowel movement become difficult to pass, or they happen less frequently than they normally do. Almost every person will experience constipation at one point in their lives. While the frequency of passing bowel movements varies from person to person, if you have not passed on in three days or more, it can complicate the process. The stools become harder and they become even more difficult to pass. And when you do go, it can be intensely painful.
Constipation is characterized by a number of symptoms. These can include infrequent bowel movements, straining to use the bathroom, small or hard stools, feeling as if all of your stool was not evacuated, abdominal cramps, and even nausea.
This condition can be caused by a number of things, including medications, changes to your diet, dehydration, and in serious conditions, pregnancy, resisting the urge to pass a bowel movement, and in serious cases, colon cancer.
If you are experiencing constipation, there’s no doubt that you want a quick remedy to ease your discomfort. Here are 20 remedies that can help to get things going.
1. Prunes
One of the best known natural remedies for constipation is dried plums, or prunes. They are high in dietary fiber, so they can help break up hard stool and push it through the intestines and out through the rectum. Prunes also contain sorbitol, a substance that pulls in and absorbs water. As a result, they can help hard stool absorb more fluid, literally lubricating them and making them easier to pass through your system. If you are constipated, eat several prunes a day until you pass a bowel movement.
