WELLNESS AUTHOR
Stephanie Kuehne, ACN, CHC
KEEP IT MOVING n If jet-setting or driving during your vacay leaves you feeling stopped up, here are a few tips from a clinical nutritionist on how to avoid constipation while traveling.
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hile traveling may look a little different these days, one thing remains — that pesky bout of constipation. If you’ve ever experienced this, you are not alone! One thing to always remember when it comes to constipation: Never leave your body backed up for too long. Before we get into the “how-to remedy” conversation, let’s look at why this even occurs in the first place. The main factor is simple: Your body is experiencing major changes in its normal routine when you are traveling, including the digestion routine. Airplane travel, road travel and water travel alike — you are simply not in a space you would otherwise find familiar or even comfortable. Many people are simply not comfortable with having a bowel movement in public places due to comfort, cleanliness and unfamiliarity. In addition, diet and sleep cycles can also play a role in travel constipation. If you are constantly on the go and find yourself feeling
JUNE 2021
bloated, gassy or experiencing abdominal pain, try to remember the last time you had a bowel movement, as these symptoms may correlate to constipation. Now, let’s take a look at some solutions. If you’ve read my previous articles in AFM, you already know how much I love the wonder that is magnesium. Good news, you can take magnesium citrate for constipation, usually around 600mg. Depending on how severe you feel the symptoms, you may need to add more, but stop when you finally experience a bowel movement. Think about starting at the 600mg dose and wait 30 minutes to see if things start moving. You can also try senna tea, which is normally used as a natural laxative or to clear the bowels before a surgical procedure. Cascara sagrada is another great option and usually takes about six to eight hours to work. Cascara sagrada is a stimulant laxative, meaning it works by causing muscle contractions in the intestines, which helps move stool through. A method that may be more familiar is fiber. When
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