No one likes to discuss shit! Yes, literally. How many times have you seen people talk about their poop? Being a bathroom singer is okay, but having bathroom agony isn't. We can't get more biased than this. Constipation is as natural as eating food.
Consciousness aside, did you know that 22% of Indians have constipation issues? Chronic constipation is the main culprit behind anal fissures and haemorrhoids. It not only interferes with our regular lifestyle but also disturbs a person on a personal level. There are many natural remedies out there, and the one you will read about here is ""ghee for constipation"".
What is constipation?
Constipation occurs when the stools are hard and challenging to pass. If bowel movements don’t happen at regular timings, and the person affected by constipation has to strain a lot and feels very uncomfortable as the larger intestines aren’t emptied.
Everyone experiences constipation at some point in their life. It could be due to pregnancy, or a low-fibre diet, high carbohydrate intake, or even because of cancer treatment.
The frequencies of stools vary from person to person. Some might have bowel movements many times in a day, while some might pass stool only a few times during the week. Both these scenarios are normal, but when someone goes longer than three days with no stool, it counts as constipation.
Apart from the time interval between stools, the other constipation symptoms are belly bloating, an uncomfortable feeling of not emptying the bowels, etc.
What Causes Constipation?
One cannot blame constipation for a single reason, but more than one plays an important role. Here, we have listed the major causes of constipation.
1. Dehydration:
Not enough water intake can lead to the formation of hard stools. The colon works hard to eliminate the waste from our body, and water plays a significant role. Without sufficient water, the stools turn into a hard mass, and thus constipation occurs. One should drink enough water, especially in dry weather, to cycle the water throughout the body. The recommended intake of water is 2 litres, which comes up to 8 glasses of water.
2. Low-fiber intake:
Fiber aids in bowel movements and is another major factor whose absence influences constipation. Plant-based foods like vegetables, legumes, seeds, nuts, and whole grains have high fibre content, and missing out on their nutrition negatively affects the body. It is recommended that an adult should consume 30gms of whole-fibre daily. Without the much-needed fibre, stools lack the mass and water is needed to ease movement at the exit.
Fibres are of two kinds: the soluble and the insoluble ones. The soluble fibres absorb liquid and help create a gel-like consistency for stools, allowing them to slide out of the colon. Insoluble fibres added bulk to the stools, which easily influences the gut lining muscles to expel the colon’s waste. Apart from these two features, both soluble and insoluble fibres nourish the intestines’ good bacteria, which support gut health.
3. Weight gain:
Constipation and weight gain due to eating processed foods go hand in hand. Processed food or fast food has zero fibre and has zero nutritional value. The high sugar and fatty carbohydrate diet have a low fibre in it. The digested food is just sitting in your bowel and ready to be expelled out of your body but is hard, and the body is finding it hard to transit the waste out through bowel movements.
Constipation isn’t directly related to weight gain; it's the cycle of eating highly processed foods that plays an important role, and constipation is merely one among the many adverse effects of a low diet.
4. Gas and bloating:
Gas trapped in the gastro-intestinal tract causes bloating and thus causes the abdominal area to swell. A very uncomfortable feeling of fullness is experienced by people who bloat. This feeling is because of improper bowel movements. Soda and other high-carbohydrate foods lead to the build of gas in the intestines, making it difficult for bowel movements to guide the stool out of the body.
A high fibre diet and vegetable soups can rescue you out of this uncomfortable solution.
5. Anxiety:
This reason might sound funny, but hey, gut-feelings are a real thing! People under stress or anxiety can experience diarrhoea or constipation. The nervous system connects the gut and brain, so how one feels always influences the digestive system.
In stress, the body responds by shutting down the unnecessary bodily functions which involve the digestive organs and sexual. It is one of the fight-or-flight responses. Try to practice medication and bring your mind to a peaceful state to help ease out constipation. You relax, and your body relaxes- It is like an inversely proportional thing.
Benefits of Ghee for Constipation
Ghee is like no less than a lubricant in our body’s engine. Just like any automobile needs a lubricant to function smoothly, ghee is that lubricant that our body needs. The enzymes in our body are cleaned by the ghee. Since ghee is a concoction, it improves our intestinal system, clears off the wastes, and thus helps relieve us from constipation. Cow ghee for weight loss is also extremely helpful.
According to Ayurvedic literature, constipation is a Vata, and Vata is a quality assigned to hard and dry things. A low-fibre diet, less intake of water, and lack of movement or exercise can cause constipation. If we refer to our Ayurvedic science, it proves that cow ghee eases bowel movements, thus reducing the chances of constipation.
Being a traditional Indian concoction, ghee is regarded as a sacred condiment. And cow ghee is a very popular remedy every household swears by.
3 Ways to Consume Ghee for Constipation
Constipation arises from overeating. And by not eating a fibrous diet and not getting hydrated throughout the day. And who doesn’t want instant relief from constipation, right? Constipation is a very uneasy feeling even after passing out stool; the sense that one isn’t empty of the waste lingers on. The urge to pass more stools exists, but the strain gets painful, and one has to spend extra minutes in the bathroom.
But worry not! It’s still not too late to adopt a healthier lifestyle and say goodbye to constipation, forever.
We've listed the top 3 ways you should add ghee to your diet and ward off constipation:
- Cow ghee with water: Warm-up 200 ml of water and dissolve one tablespoon of ghee in it. The warm water helps breakdown the fat in ghee to an extent and aids in influencing the effect of ghee in the colon.
As it's advisable to consume at least 2 litres (roughly around 8 glasses) of water daily, we've prepared a chart for your ease:
- A glass after waking up
- Drinking warm water 30 minutes before and after meals
- And regular intakes throughout the day
- Cow ghee with milk: Warm milk before bedtime aids in improving sleep quality. One to two tablespoons of ghee in a glass or cup of hot milk gently relieves constipation, and it mostly works well for the Vata constituents.
- Cow ghee in regular diet: People suffering from chronic constipation should start eating ghee with meals or with warm water or hot milk for at least a month to notice any positive effect. If constipation still troubles you after a month, you should visit a doctor to seek immediate treatment.
Ensure that ghee for constipation is consumed on an empty stomach early in the morning for better results. One can even try yoga and other forms of exercise to improve the constipation situation. Apart from acting as a colon lubricant, ghee also soothes against acidity and protects against anal fissures and haemorrhoids.
Having ghee relieves constipation
Don't feel shy about constipation because passing stool is a natural process, and issues that delay or disturb this cycle should be addressed immediately. Cow ghee for constipation is the easiest solution to unplug the toxic waste for one's body. Be comfortable when you talk about constipation, as it's very natural and normal. Also, do not forget to spread the right words about ghee for constipation.
