Bloating and constipation?!

Magnesium

I go through the same thing! Honestly a lot of people recommend me fiber and such but it NEVER works. So every week or so i get a laxative drink from Walmart and its only 98 cents.

But if you don't want laxative drinks and want natural food. I recommend having papaya first thing in the morning and it should help as well

kiwifruit is my tool

Magnesium, fats, and digestive enzymes. However, chronic constipation and bloating is very often a sign of a food allergy. Top culprits that tend to produce those symptoms are dairy and gluten. Sometimes some citrus fruits will cause those symptoms but that is a less common allergy. You might try adding magnesium and digestive enzymes to your day (and fats if you're not hitting a 20-30% macro minimum). A digestive enzyme typically needs to be taken with every meal for 3-4 months before you can try cutting back to once a day. If this is a long standing problem it can take as long as 6 months to a year to cut back to once a day. How long that takes is very individual. You would need to try those things for a few weeks to see if they help.

If those things do not work, then I would suggest an elimination diet with dairy and gluten. You typically have to remove an offending food for a minimum of 30 days (this means literally reading every label b/c dairy is listed as casein, whey, lactose, etc. and gluten can be listed as individual grains) and then adding it back in for 3 days straight (at least once per day). If you are allergic, you'll know it pretty quick. An allergy will reproduce your bloating and constipation symptoms and/or it may show up other symptoms like hives, rashes, etc.

If all else fails, Miralax is safe. Babies can take it. A doctor told me a study showed that it could be taken for 50 years without complications. If you can tolerate it of course. Magnesium works as someone said. But use care not to over do it. Check out magnesium overdose.

If this is an ongoing problem speak to your doctor I have IBS and laxatives made it way worse (even the "safe" natural kind) it could be anything though so don't start self medicating laxatives or buscapan. It could even be stress or a side effect to a medicine.

I however managed to identify my trigger foods and cope without medication for the most part. Since you're keeping a diary I'd start seeing if you can identify anything, mine ended up being really random foods eg. bananas, microwave pasta meals like lasagne (but not pasta dishes cooked from scratch), thai sticky rice, coffee. Good luck and hope you get better soon. x

fatblatta wrote: »

If all else fails, Miralax is safe. Babies can take it. A doctor told me a study showed that it could be taken for 50 years without complications. If you can tolerate it of course. Magnesium works as someone said. But use care not to over do it. Check out magnesium overdose.

I realize doctors say miralax is safe but please, OP, do research before ever taking that stuff. It is plastic. It is known to cause tics in susceptible people. It also does not address the root cause of your symptoms which would be far healthier in the long run. Bandaids will only make this worse. BTDT with a child. Go for the root cause even if you have to play detective.

I've had a lot of luck with activated charcoal helping the bloated/gassy feeling. Check for interactions with anything else you're taking though.

kaity727 wrote: »

I get very bloated after eating small portions of food and I am usually fairly constipated, maybe having a BM every 3-4 days. I'm not sure if it's a food intolerance or what.

Any ideas on foods that can help with relieving constipation??

So how much are you eating? If you only ever have small portions, and you aren't doing that very often because you feel bloated, it would not be surprising that you're constipated.

kaity727 wrote: »

Thank you for all the suggestions. I have seen my doctor about it and was prescribed a laxative but they never preformed any allergy tests or anything so I'll try and cut back on different food or see if I notice anything that triggers it.

When you saw your doctor, did you tell him/her how much you were eating?

MeredithDeVoe1 wrote: »

I have struggled with both for years, but with all the protein I am eating it got really bad lately. Two nights ago I decided to double my magnesium dosage from 100mg/2x day to 200mg/2x day (chelated). Literally overnight, things changed!! I had soft bm for the 1st time in weeks. Today is the same. I am hoping it continues.

As for bloating, banish white foods (flour especially) and deep- fried foods. The magnesium helps with this, too. When bloating strikes, find a quiet spot and do downward facing dog for 30-60 seconds. This really works for me.

Best of luck!
Meredith

I have a bottle of magnesium tablets in my cupboard for just this situation. 2 before bed on an empty stomach works like a charm every time.