All natural stool softener?!
Question: Are there any natural ways to soften stools? Certain foods to eat? Supplements to take?
Answers: Are there any natural ways to soften stools? Certain foods to eat? Supplements to take?
There is often some confusion about this topic, mostly centering around how soft is soft? Dietary fibre, such as from plums, prunes, cherries, or phsyllium husk, all bulk up stool, and thereby soften it to some extent. If you drink lots and lots of water, high-fibre stool should be plenty soft enough for comfort. However, this means "lots" of water. If I don't drink enough water that I have to get up in the night to urinate, my stool is sometimes not soft enough for comfort despite my high-fibre diet.
If you want to actively soften your stool, you can use docusate salts, particularly docusate sodium (also known as dioctyl sodium succinate, DSS, or DOSS.) These should be available both at your drugstore and your natural food store. Docusate is a surfactant; it actively impedes the colon's ability to extract water from stools, leaving them very soft but solid. Long term use of docusate seems to be discouraged, possibly being linked to magnesium and potassium loss. However, it is deemed safe for occasional use to get one through a temporarily difficult time.
Drinks lots of water this always helps. Also a product by the name of colon cleanse its sold at the local GNC. Food rich in fiber will also help.
prunes help a lot
also apple juice is a natural laxative when you drink a bunch
There sure is.Eat fruit like grapes,prunes etc.Stool softener and vegetable laxatives.If that doesn't work there is a medicine called Miralax over the counter and it really works.
eat papaya or pineapple. fruits with high-fiber content.
lots of fruit and vegetables. spinach especially good although does give you rather dark stools. breakfast cereal with lots of fibre but just try a few different things a day as takes awhile for results and you don't want to over do it. too soft is really a problem; easy does it is the rule.different things work for different people. Can also take a fibre supplement so good luck and be careful especially if intending to go on a trip away from where you know the conveniences are. Beans good lots of fibre but can give you wind if your digestive system not used to it......
Water, fiber, hot drinks, caffeine are all stimulants.
RN