# Your cures for constipation? No jokes please **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 7, 2011, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614 "2011-06-07T10:38:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![67java89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/aeb1de/32.png) [@67java89](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/67java89)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/1 "2011-06-07T10:38:28Z")
I’m not completely blocked, but I’ve been having constipation and hard stool. It’s 2 weeks till the doctor can see me, so in the meantime, I want to know…what are your cures? To save people time, I’ll say that I eat plenty of fiber, drink 6-8 glasses of water per day, exercise daily, and started eating Activia. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/2 "2011-06-07T11:04:07Z")
Since the OP is looking for shared opinions, lets move from General Questoions to IMHO. **samclem** Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/3 "2011-06-07T11:10:07Z")
The jokes about prunes aren’t jokes. When I was a kid, I found some and thought they were delicious. So delicious, in fact, that I ate way too many. Cleaned me out like nobody’s business. Have you changed your diet? Too much cheese is a no no. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/4 "2011-06-07T11:34:57Z")
I’m not sure if it’s an option for you, but smoking a cigarette works for a lot of people. ---
**Author:** ![Staggerlee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/staggerlee/32/3134_2.png) [@Staggerlee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Staggerlee)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/5 "2011-06-07T11:36:41Z")
Cigarettes are good at getting things chugging along, though they apparently have drawbacks too. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/6 "2011-06-07T11:36:46Z")
I’ll second prunes. Eat two to five a day, and your bowels will be much happier. There are also a number of laxatives on the market, like Dulcolax and Ex Lax. Look for the ones that say “stool softener” on them, and drink LOTS of water. Or you could go for the nuclear option, Go Lytely or Half Lytely. I don’t know if these are available over the counter or not. You should ONLY use these if you are able to devote about 6 hours to pooping, and also only if you can have the exclusive use of a bathroom for those six hours. At least some pain meds will cause constipation. Basically, if it’s prescription pain meds, it’ll clog you up. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/7 "2011-06-07T12:39:20Z")
If you don’t like prunes, pretty much any other dried fruit will work - and some of them are less of an acquired taste than prunes - for example, dried apple, apricots, cranberries or mango can be eaten like candy. You’re already drinking plenty of water, which is necessary to make the dried fruit effective. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/8 "2011-06-07T12:42:30Z")
Magnesium Citrate. CVS or Rite Aid will have it in liquid form. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/9 "2011-06-07T12:55:27Z")
I didn’t think that I liked prunes, until I tasted them. I remember keeping them at room temperature, but these days the packages are marked “Refrigerate After Opening”. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/10 "2011-06-07T13:03:03Z")
glycerine suppositories from below to lubricate. Magnesium citrate, one bottle from above, to stimulate. Polyethylene glycol powder in water, one or two times a day after things are unplugged, to keep from having the problem again (assuming high fiber diet, supplements have failed). All of the above is over the counter. Prunes work too, if one is not too far gone, but give one the runes. ---
**Author:** ![melodyharmonius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/melodyharmonius/32/21310_2.png) [@melodyharmonius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/melodyharmonius)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/11 "2011-06-07T13:04:15Z")
I came in to chime in for prunes. Once you get things cleaned out, eating 1-2 prunes a day will keep things regular. ---
**Author:** ![melodyharmonius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/melodyharmonius/32/21310_2.png) [@melodyharmonius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/melodyharmonius)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/12 "2011-06-07T13:10:58Z")
Oh, something else as well: If you have tried some of these things and want to “hurry things along” - sit in a bath of warm water. I suffered from constipation as a kid, and one of the nurses suggested my mom give me warm baths to relax the muscles and loosen things up. I was never sure if it was just an old wive’s tale until I suggested it to my then husband one time and it worked like a charm for him as well. ---
**Author:** ![Daerlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Daerlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daerlyn)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/13 "2011-06-07T13:27:54Z")
I can second the dried apricot suggestion. They’re also an extremely filling snack, if you’re trying to replace junk food in your diet. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/14 "2011-06-07T13:43:21Z")
Two hot cups of full strength coffee and some dietary fat. That’ll get ya moving along. Walk around. Keep active. Too much water = trouble, because some things that are expelled with the extra water are key to digestion. When lacking, you risk constipation., Drink water when you need it, but not some am’t prescribed in advance. Fiber = cleaner, but it doesn’t grease the skids. Enjoy some fats. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/15 "2011-06-07T13:47:45Z")
I had this problem about 12 years ago. Doc said I wasn’t drinking enough water or eating enough fiber. Being too lazy to change my lifestyle, I began taking a teaspoon of Metamucil mixed in a glass of water every night. I haven’t had that problem since. Even better, I truly believe that it had reduced my bad cholesterol and improved my cholesterol ratio to superb levels (according to the same doc). Over the years, several of my friends followed my example and they swear by it as well. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/16 "2011-06-07T14:04:18Z")
Cup of coffee and one of those little bags of sunflower seeds Or overdose on diabetic candy with maltitol or some other sugar alcohol. When they say may effect your digestion, they are not lying chug a gallon of [apple cider fresh from the presses](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_cider) - NOT apple juice that has been pasteurized. It has to be raw and not fermented for those british types among us. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/17 "2011-06-07T14:05:14Z")
Prune-ho. I can’t eat them at all because they’re so delicious I end up eating about four of them. One and a half is the Maximum Allowable by Bowels —mine anyway. Also, prunes kept me running smoothly during my pregnancies, which is the only time I’ve ever been constipated, along with Uncle Sam cereal, which is solely comprised of whole-grain wheat and flax seeds. Talk about your nuclear option. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/18 "2011-06-07T14:38:57Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > . . . Prunes work too, if one is not too far gone, but give one the runes. So that’s my problem. . . ---
**Author:** ![67java89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/aeb1de/32.png) [@67java89](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/67java89)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/19 "2011-06-07T14:43:12Z")
Thanks! The prunes seem to be winning. And since that is the easiest, I’ll try them first. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614/20 "2011-06-07T14:45:09Z")
I’m with **Melodyharmonious** , but I would go one step further. If you’re looking for an all natural solution, it’s a snap and costs nothing to try. Hot bath, hot as you can bear, as long as you can bear, try and relax. It relaxes the clench, ever so slightly. Next get yourself into a hammock or a rocking chair or a swing. Spend 15 mins swinging. This gets gravity working on your parts in different directions. All you need is for things to start moving, your body will do the rest. I’ve never had this combo fail, I encourage you to try it. Good Luck! (Oh, and do let us know what worked!) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-cures-for-constipation-no-jokes-please/584614.md?page=2)