Yes, let‘s talk about our bowel movements - not your favorite topic? Well, it should be since they are such a vital part of our health, showing us where we might have some weaknesses that need our attention before they develop into more serious conditions.
Regular bowel movements, for most people 1-3 times daily would be ideal, help us to get rid of toxins in our body, expel any waste products from our digestion and support our body in keeping clean and healthy. If we suffer from constipation we normally recognize that by a bloated stomach, abdominal pain, hard stool or the inability to entirely clear out our bowel. These are such important signs since it is our body speaking to us about how it feels.
Your black stimulant - The laxative effect of caffeine
The caffeine in your daily coffee actually has a laxative effect on our system. It puts our body in a state of artificial stress which triggers the release of stress hormones that irritate our intestinal mucosa and result in an unnatural bowel movement right after drinking coffee. You might have realized that some day if you had some more cups than usual and suffered from diarrhea afterwards. I myself could never really warm up to the taste of coffee but when I tried it once in a while, I experienced this effect instantly.
Below the surface - How our daily coffee can hide constipation
Here comes the problem if coffee is a daily habit for us: In case our body suffers from constipation, we wouldn’t even recognize it, since the laxative caffeine gives us a regular bowel movement. Should be all fine then, right? Far fetched, since the underlying problems that caused the constipation in the first place do still exist and might lead to bigger issues in the long run if they remain unnoticed.
Furthermore, regular intake of coffee and other laxatives stimulate our peristalsis (the muscle contractions that move our food through the intestines) and our intestinal system soon gets used to this and forgets its own reflexes. In addition, the feces is discarded too fast, so that the large intestine doesn’t have enough time to perform its task of reabsorbing water and minerals from this mass, which might lead to mineral deficiency or dehydration.
The source of discomfort - Common causes of constipation
Many causes for constipation can be eliminated by a change in our eating habits and lifestyle choices, like the following list of possible conditions shows:
- Drinking insufficient amounts of water
- A lack of dietary fibers in the diet (e.g. berries, pears, flaxseeds, avocados or leafy greens)
- Not enough physical exercise
- Consuming too much refined sugar and white flour products
- Not chewing enough or eating too fast
- Certain medications causing constipation
These dietary and lifestyle habits might lead to a variety of health issues and should not be overlooked. But to take action, we would have to realize that there is actually a problem. This is the first step to more health and can avoid any bad surprises later in life.
Affected, but not helpless - Empower yourself to heal naturally
So, is there a chance your body is also burdened with a hidden constipation? Just take a look at the timing of your bowel movements, do they occur right after your cup of coffee? If that should be the case, you might want to get away from coffee for a while to see if constipation symptoms develop. If your body should be affected, empower yourself with deeper knowledge about constipation and the vast possibilities to sooth the symptoms naturally.
This can be done for example by eating dried plums or figs (choose unsulfurated, organic produce and soak them in water over night) and of course by tackling the common causes for constipation listed above. If possible, try to avoid taking any medications for constipation though, since they often just treat the symptoms without really healing the causes of your problems and might even add some new issues to your current condition. And, who could have guessed, you might want to keep away from the coffee till then.
Early birds on mushroom tea - How to move away from coffee
The brand Four Sigmatic has actually some great mushroom teas in its portfolio that in my opinion taste similar to coffee. I drink their Chaga Mushroom Elixir daily and since I don’t enjoy the coffee-like taste, I do it solely for the health benefits it offers. Apart from that, if you can't seem to get going without your morning coffee, a good stretch and a glas of water with lemon juice can support you towards more wakefulness on a longterm basis - as well as, of course, the powerful effect of a good nights sleep.
We should move away from just treating our symptoms and turning to stimulants like coffee to feel better in the short run, but take a look at the underlying causes of our health conditions. Our dietary and lifestyle choices often play a huge role in this and can therefore make a big difference if we adapt them according to a healthier way of living. There is so much to gain from embarking on such a journey towards more health and vibrancy, we just have to start listening to our body and take advantage of the powerful healing possibilities of nature.
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Have a wonderful day and a fruitful journey ahead!
Yours, Anais
Nomadic adventuress since 2018 | Raw foodie | Health enthusiast | Minimalist | Freedom seeker | Passionate believer in a life full of bliss.
🍓Hungry for some healthy nuggets? Check out my raw vegan posts:
- EATING THE RAINBOW - Delicious Red Cabbage Salad with Almond Dressing
- Daily Dose of Green - Moringa-Pear Smoothie
- My 10 Days on Watermelons - How to Regenerate Your Body
- Taste the Paradise - Explore Bali’s Raw Cuisine
🗺 Time for some adventures - follow me around the world:
- Hidden Treasure in the South of Bali - Melasti Beach
- Tropical Fruit Hunting in Kuala Lumpur - Chow Kit Market
- Hiking Under the Stars - Volcano Sunrise Trek in Bali
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🌟Let me inspire you to explore your full potential, with these lifestyle stories:
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Disclaimer: I am not a registered dietitian, doctor or trained detox expert. My goal is to share my knowledge from conclusive research and personal experiences to inspire you on your own raw adventure. I do not give medical advice and am not liable for any negative consequences you might face by following any information from this post - even if it is too much energy from a newly gained vibrant health and no idea how to deal with it. Always do your individual research when it comes to your precious health, it is absolutely worth the extra effort!
This post had a lot of info I wasn't aware of. I know about the importance of bowel movement. In India, it's a very regular practice to use an enema kit to help empty and clean the body of toxins. When we lived at an ashram for almost two years, I used it very regularly and it did add to a light experience of the body. Now it's not so much part of my routine, but definitely still such an important aspect of health to be aware of!!
Thank you for your sharing your experiences, Amrita! I tried enemas during a juice cleanse a year back and it was really helpful to soothe the detox symptoms since it flushed out a lot of toxins. I don't think it would make a good longterm solution to overcome constipation though, since the underlying problems would remain.
I find it especially interesting that in many countries in Asia the toilets are designed in such a way that you have to squat down to use them - this make the emptying of our bowels much easier since the sitting position on Western toilets bend the colon and therefore obstruct the process. Do you also have these toilets in India?
Yes, India has the squatting kind of toilets too! It's true, they're much better for emptying the bowels in a natural way. Still, they take some getting used to! ;)
Btw, in yesterday's post I announced my first ever contest. Maybe you'd like to join? Would love to read your contribution :).
So true, first time I came across them without ever hearing about these kind of toilets, I didn’t really know what to do 😄
Thank you for letting me know about the contest, sounds great! I will see if I can make some time to take part 😉
Although, I like my morning coffee, I have to do my business before I have a chance to make it. No problem in that department, lol. Nevertheless, i enjoyed reading your article Sweetie. Lots of valuable information.
I am happy to hear that! 👍
I think such topics should not stay in this corner of shame but be more often an issue to talk about. This way many people could learn more about their body and how we really function. That makes it so much easier to detect if there might be an issue here and there. Thank you so much, Lena 😊
I totally agree!
Loved this, so well written about an important matter! One thing I really dislike today is that we are treating symptoms not the actual cause, and oftentimes people want to get only their symptoms treated because they're not ready for a lifestyle change. Our intestines are like another brain, we should do our very best to keep them healthy. 💙
Thank you for your kind comment, Jasmin! That is so true and I was definitely one of them not too long ago. I am learning so much about natural healing, detoxification and the own regenerative power of our body, which absolutely opened my eyes to the way we are dealing with health conditions these days and what immense flaws the common perspective on treatment has.
I hope that we can all empower ourselves by learning more about our body's health condition. This way we can break free of such a harmful circle.
Have a great start into the week! 😊
I love your way of thinking! I'm also so happy for you for having found something you enjoy learning and teaching to others too, shared knowledge is so much more valuable!
You too have a lovely week! 😊
This is such a great article!
I am a coffee lover and lately I drink too much coffee even though I probably should not drink it at all, due to my constipation problems I face often.
When I have a balanced diet, move my body and adopt healthier habits overall, it gets so much better. I've been thinking I should take a little break from coffee so this post might be a sign I should do it, hehe.
Thanks for sharing this valuable information! :)
Thank you so much Nikolina! 😊 It's nice to see when a healthy lifestyle instantly pays off, right? That can be such a great motivation to keep on doing these things.
You should not ignore such a sign 😄 I know how hard it is to change such habits, like coffee - I am quite an extreme person when it comes to transition and would stop consuming a certain food right away, but others love to take things slow. No matter how you will move forward, every cup less is a win!
And maybe some mushroom tea might be helpful for still getting a taste of your beloved black brew? 😉
Have a great day!
This is an awesome article! Will be sharing with my mother - which I've been trying to convince her that coffee is not healthy for most people, especially when used like it is today in our society.
Thank you!! Well the corresponding health issues described in this article are just one side of coffee's more harmful effect on our body. I hope this will help her to switch to healthier alternatives instead 😉 So true, at least drinking less of it is a step into the right direction if we look how much coffee the average person is consuming each day. All the best for you and your mom. 😊