Always Get Constipated Before Your Period? Here’s How to Keep Things Moving

Every month, you get your interval. And each month, like clockwork, your digestive system slows all the way down to what appears like a full cease. When you regularly expertise constipation simply earlier than or throughout your interval, know that you simply’re not alone.

“Hormonal fluctuations that happen earlier than a girl’s interval can definitely have an effect on the intestine,” says Asma Khapra, MD, an American Gastroenterological Affiliation (AGA) skilled, co-founder of Olvihealth, and a gastroenterologist specializing in ladies’s well being and IBD at GastroHealth in Virginia.

Learn on for extra about why constipation can happen within the days surrounding your interval, plus simple dwelling treatments to assist get issues shifting.

So, what causes constipation earlier than your interval?

Like different modifications you might expertise while you’re menstruating (temper modifications, cravings), hormones are prone to blame right here. “Hormonal modifications, particularly elevated progesterone, decelerate the intestines, inflicting constipation,” says Sherry Ross, MD, an OB/GYN, creator, and co-founder of Oneself & the Ladies’s Well being & Wellness College on the Mproov app.

Analysis on this matter is sparse, Dr. Khapra says—so specialists do not know precisely why or how constipation throughout this time happens. “Nevertheless it’s clear that progesterone and estrogen play a job.”

Along with loads of anecdotal proof from ladies affected by constipation round their intervals, we now have research on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel illness (IBD). Though these situations have completely different causes and signs, each can produce gastrointestinal discomfort. Analysis has proven that ladies with IBS and IBD can expertise flares simply earlier than their menstrual cycle, which suggests hormonal modifications as a transparent set off.

Cures for constipation earlier than your interval

1. Drink loads of fluids

Although “water is your best option,” says Dr. Ross, fruit juice—prune juice particularly—may help regulate your bowel actions, too. “Ingesting heat liquids within the morning can be efficient,” she provides.

Goal for between 11.5 and 15.5 cups of liquid per day from each meals and beverage sources, per suggestions from the U.S. Nationwide Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Drugs. (Simply do not feel like you must go means overboard: “Staying hydrated is essential, however extra water than the essential quantity to maintain you hydrated is not going to make a distinction,” says Dr. Khapra.)

2. Attempt to slot in some train

Bodily exercise can really feel uncomfortable while you’re constipated, however even mild train similar to a stroll may help. That is as a result of “the colon strikes higher if there’s extra bodily motion—similar to different muscular tissues within the physique,” says Dr. Khapra.

An everyday train routine also can assist stop future constipation earlier than your interval. The newest Bodily Exercise Tips for Individuals suggest 150 minutes of moderate-intensity bodily exercise every week, plus two days of muscle-strengthening train.

3. Enhance your fiber consumption

Upping your consumption of dietary fiber may help you get by a present bout of constipation, in addition to help your digestive well being for the subsequent time your interval approaches. “Fiber helps deliver water into the intestines, softening the stool and making it simpler to go,” says Dr. Ross. Goal for between 25 and 38 grams of high-fiber meals a day, similar to complete grains like oats, recent fruit like berries and apples, and veggies similar to broccoli, in addition to seeds and legumes.

4. Attempt an OTC stool softener…

Often known as emollient laxatives, stool softeners moisten the stool, per the Cleveland Clinic, permitting you to go it extra simply.

Dr. Ross recommends taking 50 to 100 mg of Colace twice a day to assist ease constipation attributable to period-related hormonal shifts.

5. …or a bulk-forming laxative

One other over-the-counter choice to get issues shifting? Bulk-forming laxatives, similar to fiber dietary supplements like Metamucil, Citrucel, and Miralax. “These are gentlest in your physique,” says Dr. Ross.

They work by rising the quantity of fluid in your stool, making it simpler to go, per the Nationwide Library of Drugs. Simply remember that it is vital to drink loads of water whereas taking these dietary supplements, as a result of they’ll really trigger constipation to worsen for those who’re not well-hydrated.

6. Add a magnesium complement

Including a magnesium complement at bedtime can enhance colonic motility, says Dr. Khapra. Our physique would not make this mineral by itself, so we have to get it from dietary supplements and meals (pumpkin seeds, Brazil nuts, and chia seeds are all good sources).

There are a selection of several types of magnesium dietary supplements in the marketplace, however magnesium citrate is usually really helpful for digestion as a result of it will probably produce a mild laxative impact.

Are you able to stop pre-period constipation?

The entire methods above may help stop constipation from occurring earlier than and through your interval, too. “Be in line with a high-fiber weight loss program, common train, staying well-hydrated, and controlling life stressors to assist decrease constipation,” says Dr. Ross.

When you have heavy, painful intervals or endometriosis, discuss to your physician about your choices. Some individuals could profit from oral contraceptives to assist handle their intervals, says Dr. Khapra, and this may occasionally ease the frequency of constipation, too.

When to see a physician

It might not really feel like a “critical” concern, however constipation could be painful and debilitating, and many individuals do not search assist for his or her signs. A 2020 survey led by Cedars-Sinai, for instance, discovered that 3 out of 5 Individuals who’ve constipation have by no means spoken to a physician about their signs.

Constipation is completely value a dialogue along with your practitioner, even for those who do not suppose your signs are significantly extreme. Nevertheless it’s particularly necessary to hunt medical care for those who discover any of the crimson flags under, specialists say:

• Constipation earlier than your interval is persistent
• You will have vital belly ache and bloating
• You discover blood in your stool
• You will have sudden, unexplained weight reduction
• Constipation seems to be worsening and is tough to handle

And even for those who’ve tried the entire dwelling treatments above, know that your physician could produce other instruments. “There are such a lot of new choices, even prescription drugs along with over-the-counter choices, which might be very secure long-term that can be utilized,” says Dr. Khapra.

FAQ

Is constipation a symptom of being pregnant?

“Being pregnant could be difficult for a lady’s bowel habits,” says Dr. Ross. Once you’re pregnant, you expertise vital hormonal modifications, together with a soar in progesterone. Increased ranges of this hormone can decelerate the motility of your intestines, Dr. Ross says, presumably resulting in constipation.

On the identical time, “the iron and calcium in your prenatal nutritional vitamins and the shifting of your intestines by a pregnant uterus additionally create disruption in bowel functioning,” Dr. Ross provides. In line with the American Faculty of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), constipation is particularly widespread on the finish of your being pregnant, so be certain that to eat loads of fiber-rich meals throughout this time.

Can constipation trigger delay in interval?

By itself, constipation should not delay your interval,  in keeping with Dr. Ross. Nonetheless, “the signs related to [constipation], together with stress, sure drugs, and dietary modifications to deal with constipation could have an effect on a interval,” she says.

When you’ve missed your interval, think about taking a being pregnant take a look at to be secure.

Do you get constipated throughout ovulation?

Ovulation is the section throughout your menstrual cycle by which your physique releases an egg, making it the optimum time to get pregnant. This often happens round 14 days earlier than the beginning of your interval, in keeping with ACOG. Equally to simply earlier than your interval, you expertise hormonal modifications throughout this stage in your cycle, and it is attainable for these shifts to have an effect on bowel functioning, Dr. Ross says. Throughout this time, you may discover that you simply’re constipated and even expertise diarrhea.