Constipation? Don't be afraid! Tips on how to treat constipation

Expert in this article: Chen Huiting, head nurse, Anorectal Department, Dongguan People's Hospital, the 10th Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University

Constipation mainly refers to a decrease in the number of bowel movements or a change in the shape of the stool. In daily life, constipation is often manifested as the excretion of feces that is too dry and hard, and is also accompanied by obstructed and difficult defecation. Although constipation is not a serious disease, it is very painful for us. The following is an introduction to some tips for constipation care, I hope it will be helpful to everyone!

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1. The main causes of constipation

Modern people lead fast-paced lives and work under great pressure, which causes high mental stress. They often eat takeout, which leads to an unreasonable diet structure, or eat at irregular times and often eat late-night snacks. These are all causes of constipation among office workers. The "Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Constipation" show that constipation is closely related to our usual diet, bowel habits, emotions, or unreasonable use of drugs.

2. Here are some nursing methods for constipation:

1. Change your diet

In daily life, if we want to solve the problem of constipation, we need to start with diet. Only by having a scientific and healthy diet can we make defecation easier. So what should we do in daily life? We need to eat more vegetables with fiber, such as winter melon, loofah, spinach, rapeseed, soybean, mung bean, kelp. Fungus, radish, etc. These vegetables are generally light and have relatively high fiber content. At the same time, they can play a role in clearing away heat and detoxification [1]. We also need to eat more fruits. Fruits are indispensable in our daily life, and the same is true for people with constipation. However, people with constipation should be selective in eating fruits. They can choose bananas, watermelons, oranges, pineapples and pears, which have laxative effects. At the same time, they can choose to eat whole grains such as millet and sweet potatoes. If we have constipation, we should eat less spicy foods such as ginger, chili, garlic, etc., because ginger, chili and garlic have warm properties and are not conducive to the recovery of constipation. It is also important to note that when using drugs to treat constipation, some drugs cannot be used together with certain foods. For example, when using heat-clearing and detoxifying agents, you need to avoid eating shrimp, fish, coriander, lamb, and leeks, etc., and it is also best not to eat seafood, dog meat, and other irritants. When taking drugs for replenishing both qi and blood, you need to avoid eating peaches, radishes, plums, etc., otherwise it will easily affect the therapeutic effect of the drug [2].

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2. Develop good bowel habits

We try to choose a fixed time for defecation every day, because colon reflex can also promote defecation. People with constipation generally do not have good defecation habits and their defecation reflex is weak. Therefore, we can fix the time of defecation in the morning or evening according to our living habits, and do not play with mobile phones, listen to music or read books while going to the toilet, because distraction can also affect normal defecation. We should have enough time and a private environment during defecation, and ensure that we are happy and comfortable during defecation [3].

3. Increase exercise

We can also perform circular massage on the abdomen to promote defecation. During defecation, you can use your hands to perform circular massage from right to left along the anatomical position of the colon. This method can increase the pressure in the abdomen and promote the effect of defecation. You can also use the fingertips to gently squeeze the back end of the anus, which is also a good way to promote defecation. We can also take a sloped position, take a deep breath, and then use the lower abdomen to make a bowel movement. This method can promote defecation. You can also promote intestinal peristalsis and relieve constipation through Tai Chi and brisk walking.

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4. Maintain a positive attitude

After suffering from constipation, the patient's daily life will be greatly affected and the body will be damaged. Therefore, many people will experience negative emotions such as anxiety. Defecation is controlled by the patient's cerebral cortex and coordinated by multiple muscles. Long-term negative emotions of constipated patients will also aggravate the patient's symptoms. On the contrary, maintaining a healthy mentality is conducive to the adjustment of the patient's constipation. We should keep a relaxed mood [4].

5. Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatment

At the same time, the use of moxibustion in our daily life to treat constipation also has a very good effect. Moxibustion treatment can be divided into three types. The first is gentle moxibustion, moxibustion for ten to twenty minutes per acupoint, once a day, and ten times as a course of treatment. The second is ginger moxibustion, the moxa stick is about the size of a peanut, five to seven strong per acupoint, once a day, ten times as a course of treatment. The last is direct moxibustion, the moxa stick is about the size of a grain of wheat, seven strong per acupoint, once a day, and thirty times as a course of treatment. It can also be treated by pressing beans on the ear acupoints. The specific operation is to stick the smooth, spherical or elliptical Chinese medicine Wangbuliuxing seeds or small green beans on the center of a small piece of 0.6×0.6 cm tape, and then press it against the ear acupoints and apply a little pressure to make the patient's ears feel sore, numb, swollen or hot.

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If the above methods still cannot solve constipation, we can take oral laxatives under the guidance of medical staff. The use of laxatives can increase the water content in the feces, and this method can speed up the peristalsis of the stomach and intestines and accelerate the movement of intestinal contents. In this way, it can effectively have a laxative effect, but in the process of using laxatives, it is also necessary to use them according to people's actual needs and characteristics. For children, the elderly and some weak people, it is necessary to use more moderate laxatives. For some people with chronic constipation, rhubarb, senna and other direct contact laxatives can be used. Enemas can also be used to assist defecation. However, in the process of using enemas, it is necessary to pay attention to the need to keep the liquid in the body for five to ten minutes before defecation, and this is very important. In clinical practice, there are often many phenomena in which the use of enemas is ineffective. The fundamental reason is that many times people do not know how to retain the medicine after squeezing it in, but are eager to defecate, which will cause the enema medicine to have no actual effect and lead to the failure of using enema to induce defecation.

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The above is some basic knowledge about constipation care. Therefore, we should pay attention to eating habits in our daily lives, strictly control our diet, maintain a regular schedule and life, and strengthen exercise in daily life, so as to effectively prevent constipation!

References:

[1] Wang Hongguang. Nursing of constipation[J]. Chinese Journal of Mongolian Medicine (Mongolian), 2022(004):017.

[2] Liao Li. Popular Science: Why Do You Have Constipation! [J]. Health Care Literature, 2020(05):82.

[3] Su Hang, Yang Yitian, Ye Wei. Introduction to Ye Wei's experience in treating constipation[J]. New Chinese Medicine, 2023, 55 (22): 210-214.

[4] Yue Dachun. Popular knowledge about constipation[J]. Health Care Guide 2019, (47): 105.