SPECIAL BLOG ON CONSTIPATION FOR NIGERIAN AUDIENCE :CONSTIPATION REMEDY

   The last blog was on constipation and proposed  follow up blog on constipation  remedy. However I received quite a number of messages from Nigerian audience on how to manage constipation with Nigerian food. Nigeria has one of the best foods in the world. There are so many Nigerian foods that can help manage and prevent constipation. To manage constipation successfully in a warm climate like Nigeria, hydration comes first.
Drink plenty of water, not juice. The sugar in juice may worsen constipation. Drink prune juice if available, it is a natural laxative or eat prune fruit/nectar. Exercise enough, by taking cool evening walks or running where possible. Eat foods rich in fibre like, Oats meal, cereals rich in fibre, garri, water yam,coco yam, okroa, cassava flour or meal, plantain flour(elubo), and  yam flour .Eat more of vegetables, like bitter leaf, water leaf, green leaf, pumpkin leaf, okazi, scent leaf, egusi, ogbono, any form and type of salads etc.
     Cut down on fast foods and sugary baked foods. Eat whole wheat bread instead of white bread. Eat lots of nuts, like groundnut, wall nut, cashew nut. Eat fruits like mangoes, they contain a lot of fibre, oranges with their pulps, pumpkins, sour sup, guava, cashew, cherries,tangerines, pears of any kind, papaya, etc. Eat beans as much as you can in any way or form like moi moi, akara, cooked beans with oil etc.
      Reduce red meat consumption and increase chicken and fish intake. Eat less rice and more vegetable.
Try food and lifestyle changes before laxatives. Let laxative be your last resort.
    If constipation persist despite lifestyle and dietary changes, see your doctor as soon as you can, for further medical investigation.
          

Increase vegetable consumption helps to prevent constipation.