Help with fibre!

jj147

Right, so just going to have to come out and say it! Unfortunately my bowel movements are not so regular, its not a recent thing, I've just been a little more conscious and aware of it lately as to try and put it not so vividly a bit of a strain. I'm not in a huge amount of pain, but after 4/5 days I start to feel heavy and bloated and its a great effort and time to get results.

I'm trying to increase my fibre intake but figured it was pretty good. My meals general go a little like the following:

Breakfast: Porridge with some mixed seed/nuts/fruit and a few tablespoons of all bran chucked on top. Occasionally just simply a bowl of all bran or much less occasionally eggs with a slice of mccambridges.

Lunch: Homemade veg soup (skins left on!), Prawn/tuna/smoked salmon salads, often with some dark rye ryvita. Big servings of veg. Occasionally wholemeal pitta breads/wraps with some filling.

Dinner: Tons of veg/salad with some fish/chicken/beef/lamb occasionally with a small serving of brown rice or wholemeal pasta/baked sweet potato occasionally. Sometimes I go carb free.

Snacks: Eat an apple/kiwi/banana or two servings, carrots, fat free yoghurts.

I drink a ton of water so that shouldn't really be an issue, and have been trying to cut down on caffeine. Drink at the weekends which actually helps the matters in this department! And also exercise every/every second day.

Went to the doctor she said the diet is generally good, maybe adjust breakfast by throwing in some prunes/apricots in my porridge with linseeds or oatbran instead of the all bran. and perhaps consuming a bit of brown bread with my soup and maybe potatoes with dinner. I'm on a bit of a weight loss attempt at the moment so don't want to start just eating lots of bread and potatoes for the sake of it.

Does anyone have any advice or tips? I tried taking senekot a while back and while it helped in the short term its obviously not something I want/need to be taking. Also tried those fibrogel drinks which weren't much help.

El_Dangeroso

Believe it or not bowel stools are made up predominantly of gut bacteria and not undigested plant parts, i.e. fiber.

Fiber actually helps constipation not by bulking out stools but rather by feeding gut bacteria, which in turn helps constipation. But if you have severely compromised gut bacteria no amount of fiber will make it better on its own.

So what to do, first start with two tablespoons coconut oil each morning, that will ensure smooth transit of stools through the colon while you get your gut bacteria back up and running.

Swap insoluble fiber for soluble fiber, especially inulin and pectin. I believe you can buy inulin supplements in a health food shop, but it's in onions, leeks and artichokes. Pectin is in carrots, peaches and most other fruit and veg to a lesser degree.

Stop eating refined carbohydrate of any kind so sugar, bread and other things, these will feed the wrong kind of bacteria and prevent the friendly kind from getting a foothold.

And finally a good probiotic, natural yogurt and other fermented foods help to repopulate the gut along with unwashed (or very lightly brushed) organic vegetables (doesn't sound too appetising I know!)

Best of Luck, and let us know how you get on.

Mellor

I eat little or no carbs during the week, so fibre was a concern but I (and a lot of the guys on the fitness forum) take psysillum husk. A few spoons with water and you can really notice the difference, I mix 5-10 grams in a pint of water daily. It has a bland flavour, so sometimes I throw a raspberry flavour sachet in, they sweeten it nicely but are only 9 cals

metamorphosis

+1 one psyllum husks - works wonders and much better than other fiber supps i tried in the past. Be sure to take with enough water though.

Also agree with temple re. cocnut oil. On here reccomendation i put 2 spoons in warm water and drank - that **** worked for me ... excuse the pun.

davyjose

I searched for Psyllium husks yesterday, in the Square in Tallaght, to no avail. where can they be gotten?

Jarren

I got my Psyllium Husks from Holland & Barrett.

http://www.hollandandbarrett.ie/pages/product_detail.asp?pid=124&prodid=145

all_smilz

try drinking hot water with your meals or sipping it throughout the day if you can....
you didnt post your fluid intake so i wonder if you are drinking enough water to bulk up the fibre... that is REALLY important esp if you are going to start on psyllium husk- i took it once and didnt drink extra to compensate and was quite uncomfortable the next day! good luck!
also try sitting on loo for 5 or ten mins STRAIGHT after breakfast in morning so your bowel gets trained....
a good swim always helps me (dont ask how!):D

Khannie

I put my psyllium husks in my porridge or oat / protein pancakes in the morning. Drinking them down with water is a bit rank IMO. I get mine from the local supermarket. myprotein.co.uk also sell them.

corkcomp

Khannie wrote: »

I put my psyllium husks in my porridge or oat / protein pancakes in the morning. Drinking them down with water is a bit rank IMO. I get mine from the local supermarket. myprotein.co.uk also sell them.

+1 for psyllium husks .. the capsule format is fine to drink with water though .. and on that note make sure to drink a lot of water..

banquet

Yeah Psyllium Husks really do the trick, i got them off myprotein, far cheaper the Holland and Barrett. Also i find the taste grand, just drink it quickly after you mix it otherwise its like drinking sludge.

rubadub

This was the long thread in the fitness forum about the p husks
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055522503