If you suffer from constipation, you may get a lot of strange advice on how to cure it. If you’ve been wondering if chili dogs will help kick things off, you might want to think twice. If you’re going to eat a regular beef hot dog and a regular beef chili, it’s likely to make the problem even worse. You may be thinking that since chili dogs seem to pass through you just fine, they will be able to clear up your constipation and things will take care of themselves.
First, it’s time to stop viewing your body as such a simple system. If you’re constipated, it’s not just a plumbing problem. It’s not like you can pour some equivalent drain opener in your stomach and it will break down naturally. Constipation can be a sign of many different things, and many factors can contribute to constipation. Instead of asking what you can eat or drink to clear your system, you should ask yourself why you are constipated in the first place. Once you discover the cause of your constipation, you can avoid the foods or factors that caused it.
There are several reasons why you could be constipated. Perhaps you need to drink more water and have become dehydrated. You may be lacking the proper amount of fiber in your daily diet. You could be getting older and your intestines aren’t as active as they used to be. Perhaps you have irritable bowel syndrome and are under a lot of stress. Maybe you waited too long to go to the bathroom and now your intestines aren’t responding. Any number of illnesses have constipation as a symptom, you could possibly have one of those, or worse. It probably won’t, but you shouldn’t take it lightly and think of a quick fix.
If you made yourself a tofu dog and topped it with vegetarian chili made with high-fiber ingredients, and ate it all on top of a whole wheat bun, you might have a chance to relieve your constipation. Only an over-the-counter or prescription medication will provide any kind of immediate relief. If you try to fix your constipation by eating something, you’ll still have to wait for it to pass through your digestive system, and that can take too long.
What you really should be doing is making a pact with yourself to drink more water and eat more vegetables every day. This will promote healthy function of your digestive tract and should prevent future cases of constipation. If you still suffer from this problem on a regular basis after making diet and lifestyle changes, you should see a doctor to see if you have any underlying conditions.
