SUPPORTING SLUGGISH BOWELS

It’s more common than you think to experience sluggish bowels and no doubt with the global pandemic we are facing at the moment, it’s something a lot of people are wondering how to treat. The reason I say that is because stress is linked to our gut health and can be a culprit for slowing bowel movements. There are many other reasons of course that might cause your bowels to become sluggish like low fibre intake, dehydration, lack of movement, interruption to routine, travel, pregnancy, irritable bowel syndrome and also medications but with the current situation, it’s likely stress, diet and movement are the biggest players here for a lot people.

What is considered ‘sluggish bowels’ you might be thinking? Ideally bowel movements should be anywhere from 1-3 times per day, every day (this can vary for everyone however and even as little as three times per week can be considered normal in some cases). They should be easy to pass and a 3-4 on the bristol stool chart which you can see here.

So if you’re a 1-2 on the chart, here are my top tips for supporting sluggish bowels - some might seem obvious, ie. drink more water, but others you may not have thought of before and once applied could actually transform your trips to the loo!

1. Drink more water: Water helps to soften the stool and is absolutely essential for regular bowel movements. Furthermore, when you increase fibre in your diet (see point below) you must match it with increased water consumption so you get a balance of bulking an softening stool.

2. Eat more fibre: Fibre is what bulks out your stool and will be (along with water) the most effective way to improve your bowel movements. We have different forms of fibre (soluble and insoluble being the main two) and we need a good mix of both as they work in balance to ensure optimal stool consistency and smooth elimination. You can read more about why I always make a fuss about fibre here but what you need to be aiming for is a diet JAM PACKED with foods like vegetables, fruits, legumes, wholegrains, nuts and seeds. The recommendations for fibre are 25g/day for females, 30g/day for males, 28g/day for pregnancy and 30g/day for lactation. To show you an example of how much fibre is in particular foods (total fibre in 100g):

   Oats: 10.3g
   Wholegrain bread: 7-8g
   Wholegrain pasta: 6g
   Brown rice: 2g
   Sweet Potato: 3g
   Lentils: 5g
   Almonds: 11.2g
   Flaxseeds: 22g

   If you significantly increase your fibre intake you may experience some gas, bloating or bowel movement changes initially - this is normal and it can just take a while for your body to adjust (if it continues it is best to see a practitioner). Don’t forget to match your increase in fibre with increased water intake!

3. Include more gel forming foods: Here I’m talking about types of soluble fibre like chia seeds, flax seeds and psyllium. When consumed, these seeds absorb water (you may have noticed how this happens when mixing them with water before consuming them) and form a gel like consistency which can help form a soft stool. Flaxseeds are best ground into a meal before consuming but chia seeds don’t require this. Increased water consumption is also important here because of the process of absorbing water themselves.

4. Include pro and prebiotics: Having a healthy microbiome (ie diversity and richness in the bacteria composition of your gut) is extremely helpful at bringing about more regular bowel movements. For probiotics go for foods like kefir, yoghurt, fermented veggies, miso and tempeh and for prebiotics look for bananas, Jerusalem artichokes, oats, wheat, barley, garlic, flaxseeds, cashews, legumes and green vegetables.

5. Move your body: Your bowels respond to activity and muscle tone in general, particularly for the muscle surrounding the digestive tract are helpful in the process of stool elimination. Note this just has to be movement - whether it’s as low intensity as walking or gentle yoga or more high intensity like running or boxing, any kind of movement is helpful.

6. Get a stool for your toilet: Interestingly, the design of toilets in Australia are not very conducive to healthy bowel movements. Ideally you want your knees above your hips as our body is designed to have a kink in our colon and being in this position can help flatten this kink for a more straight/direct pathway out. Essentially you want to be in a squatting position, so by making or buying a stool you can put your feet up on to create a squatting position you can help create an easier pathway for elimination.

7. Change your breathing: Try this for me… squeeze all of the muscles in your body really tightly and hold your breath. Can you feel how tight and tense everything is? When we go to the toilet we want the puborectalis muscle to relax not tighten but this squeezing and pushing sensation tightens all our muscles and this is how many people who struggle with constipation go to the toilet. Instead, try this: take a sharp breathe in and then slowly breath out imagining the breath going down through the entire digestive tract and eliminating out as your stool would. Do this multiple times whilst trying to keep your body relaxed, not tight. Honestly this one trick can actually transform your bowel movements!

In some cases bowel support supplements can be beneficial and you should seek the advice of a practitioner about this however if the above are all regular habits in your every day lifestyle then the risk of sluggish bowel should be very low.