Do You Have Quarantine Constipation?

Thanks to COVID-19, every single person has had to figure out a new normal. Staying indoors, working from home, and social distancing has changed the way we live our day-to-day lives. Not only are you stressed from the worries of the virus, but that stress has impacted your health.

Due to the new normal, you may be experiencing quarantine constipation. This new term “quarantine constipation” is impacting many humans’ lives. Even if you didn’t have an issue with constipation before, your stomach may be feeling a little bit off and it’s harder for you to have a bowel movement.

Symptoms of constipation refer to fewer bowel movements, straining to have bowel movements, hard or soft stools, and belly bloating.

For many, quarantine constipation has become a real issue. The global pandemic can help explain why you might be dealing with tummy troubles and a blockage.

There are many reasons why people may suffer from constipation, but quarantine has really affected people’s exercise, stress, and diet.

Lowered Exercise

Since you now have to try and stay inside your home, your daily exercise may have diminished. You may be sweating less, avoiding gyms, and not getting enough movement throughout your day. Daily exercise helps regulate metabolism, and good muscle tone can help improve bowel movements. When you move daily, the muscles in your intestines are more active too. Since you had to abrupt your daily exercise regime, you may be exercising less than you are used to. This decrease in exercise can end up causing constipation, bloating, and gut aches.

Increased Stress

It is very obvious that everyone is experiencing higher stress levels these days. People are constantly worried about the health and safety of their loved ones, and themselves. Stress can impact everything from your mood to your skin to your bowel movements. Stress causes many hormones to be thrown out of whack, including your adrenaline. When you experience adrenaline caused by stress, your blood flow is sent to vital organs rather than your intestines. This causes reduced gastrolienal motility- the movement of your food from your mouth through your digestive system- in turn, this will make you have less frequent and difficult bowel movements.

Stress may also negatively impact the barrier of the gut, allowing inflammatory molecules to get into your bloodstream and cause inflammations that further impact constipation-related symptoms. Due to the increased stress you may be feeling, you might also experience nausea and stomach aches.

Changes in Your Diet

A change in anyone’s diet is one of the most common reasons why someone would experience constipation in their lives. Therefore, it is understandable that quarantine life has led to some dietary changes due to working from home, restaurants closing down, and wanting to stay away from busy grocery stores. People may also experience emotional and stress eating. Emotional eating happens to many people because food has been a way to provide comfort and reassurance during stressful times.

On top of that, people are consuming half the amount of recommended daily fiber (25- 30 grams) to begin with. About 90-95 percent of Americans do not get enough fiber in their diet. Due to that, it is reasonable to assume that people entered quarantine with weaker bowel movements. The combination of even less fiber, the change of diet, and lesser exercise leads to a high amount of people experiencing constipation.

Along with what your body is consuming, there seems to be a shift in when people are eating. This change in meal times can disrupt your sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, which regulate gastrointestinal motility. All of these changes can lead to many digestive problems including bloating, gas, and constipation.

The virus is here to stay for the foreseeable future, and everyone must learn how to adapt to this new normal for now. Learning to manage your lives around these times is essential to improve your health. This means learning how to safely shop for groceries and what nutritious products to buy, learning to workout indoors, and being mindful of stress eating.

Increase Your Fiber Intake

Fiber helps attract and retain water in fecal matter, making it easier to pass and stimulate intestinal motility. Fiber also increases mucus production in the gastrointestinal tract, which helps prevent gut irritation. This irritation is more associated with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) than constipation, but it could aggravate the symptoms of constipation like bloating.

The recommended daily fiber requirement is 25 to 30 grams from food. If you think you are not ingesting that much fiber a day, talk to your doctor about taking fiber supplements and which ones are right for you.

High-Fiber Foods

• Beans
• Avocado
• Broccoli
• Whole Grains
• Apples
• Dried Fruits

Move Around More

According to the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), adults should get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical exercise each week. Since people are moving around less now due to quarantine, it is necessary for your bowel health to increase your daily exercise. That means more exercises focused on cardio like running, biking, walking, and anything that will get your heart rate up. When you move your body, the muscles in your intestines will be more active too.

Stay Hydrated

About 60% of your body weight is made of water and you need that for every single bodily function. Water helps flush toxins from your organs, carries nutrients to your cells, cushions your joints, and helps you digest the food you eat. If you don’t get enough water, you can become dehydrated. Dehydration increases constipation and can cause trouble passing bowel movements.

When the stools in your colon get dehydrated, the stool becomes dry, hard, and difficult to move through the colon. You need to make sure you are drinking lots of water throughout the day, and this will keep your stool soft and easy to pass. How much water you need varies per person, but the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommends a total of 13 cups (about 3 liters) of fluid each day for men and 9 cups (a little over 2 liters) of fluid each day for women.

Supplements

If you think you are experiencing constipation and nothing seems to be working, your doctor will most likely recommend various vitamin and mineral supplements, like Omega-3s.

Each individual is different, so it is important to speak to your doctor before starting any new supplements to make sure they won’t worsen any symptoms you may be experiencing.            

Detox Organics Daily Superfoods

Detox Organics Daily Superfoods is an all-natural green supplement made from over 25 organic superfoods. This superfood is specifically chosen to help reduce inflammation and improve digestion, while also eliminating bloating and replenishing electrolytes. It may help those with quarantine constipation to better manage their symptoms, and you don’t have to leave your house to get it!  

This superfood supplement is also full of healthy fiber, which will benefit your colon health and support healthy bowel movements. With Detox Organics Daily Superfoods, you can kick your quarantine constipation to the curb.

Living through this new normal lifestyle is challenging, so make sure you are taking the time to take care of your health. Be sure you are eating the right foods, drinking plenty of water, exercising daily, and consuming the right supplements, such as Detox Organics Daily Superfoods.

There are many ways to manage quarantine constipation. Stick to a healthy lifestyle and talk to your doctor about other methods you may want to consider.