Subject: The Green Pharmacy for Constipation

[Guest guest]

The " Green Pharmacy " for Constipation

 

A few years ago, I was interviewed for Dan Rather's Eye on America

program on CBS. In another segment of the same program, Rather

interviewed the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration

(FDA), David Kessler, M.D. The program showed me in my habitual

fieldwork environment, on location in Ecuador, wearing my exotic

jungle garb. Dr. Kessler was shown in his office wearing his usual

coat and tie. Although we never actually met or debated on that

program, the difference in our garb spoke volumes.

 

Dr. Kessler and I disagreed about herbs and nutritional supplements.

He has come down rather hard on them, while I am convinced that they

can be useful. They're a cheap way to prevent some conditions,

ameliorate others and even cure a few. But the FDA does not allow

any medicinal claims for herbs and supplements unless they have been

proven to FDA satisfaction with extensive clinical trials.

 

As of 1995, it cost $500 million to jump through the FDA hoops to

prove any new drug, herb or supplement to be safe and effective. Few

marketers of herbs or supplements have that kind of spending money.

Drug companies, which do have the money, can justify the expense

because once they get a new drug approved, they usually have a

patent entitling them to exclusive marketing rights for many years.

During that time they can recoup many times over the investment made

in the approval process. But who in their right mind would spend

hundreds of millions to prove that prune juice is a good laxative?

(It is.) You can't patent prunes, so you could never make your money

back.

 

In Praise of Prunes

 

When Dan Rather's producer called, he asked me what questions Rather

should ask Dr. Kessler. I told him to have Rather offer Dr. Kessler

a bottle of prune juice and ask if he considered it a safe,

effective laxative. If he answered no, I suggested that Rather

request that Dr. Kessler drink some and experience the results for

himself. If he answered yes, I suggested that Rather ask why FDA

labeling regulations prohibit prune juice marketers from stating

that prune juice is a safe, effective, gentle laxative.

 

At my supermarket, prune juice costs only $1.30 a quart, making it

probably the cheapest, least unpleasant laxative now available. At

my nearby herb store, effective botanical laxatives--rhubarb root,

cascara sagrada bark, senna pods and leaves and psyllium seeds and

husks--are almost as cheap, but they don't taste half as good.

 

Meanwhile, FDA-approved commercial laxatives, many of which have

senna, cascara sagrada or psyllium in them, are comparatively

costly. And many Americans do use prune juice as a laxative. So why

won't the FDA allow it to be labeled as such?

 

Facts on Fiber

 

The sad fact is that most Americans probably wouldn't need a

laxative, herbal or otherwise, if they ate right. Doctors know that

a high-fiber diet controls constipation by keeping things moving

through the intestine.

 

Thanks to a family history of colon cancer, I was already a high-

fiber freak when I first heard a talk by Denis Burkitt, M.D., a

respected British surgeon who has spent a lifetime working in East

Africa. Dr. Burkitt noted that in nonindustrial societies, among

them the African communities where he worked, people eat a very high-

 

fiber diet and rarely suffer from constipation. In fact, the only

people Dr. Burkitt ever saw with constipation while in Africa were

wealthy people who ate the same low-fiber diet that so many

Americans eat.

 

Here's a sure-fire formula to create a problem with constipation:

Take all the fiber-rich fruits, vegetables and whole grains out of

your diet. In their place eat lots of meats, fats and dairy foods.

No wonder an estimated 10 percent of Americans suffer from

constipation, with at least 20 percent of the elderly complaining of

it.

 

When I say that diet can control constipation, I'm not just talking

about prune juice. Every whole-grain item and every fiber-rich fruit

and vegetable helps prevent and relieve constipation. In folk

medicine the foods that get special recognition as laxatives include

almonds, apples, avocados, chicory, dandelion, dates, endive, figs,

flaxseed, grapes, mangos, papayas, papaya, persimmons, pineapple,

prunes, rhubarb, rutabagas, soybeans, turnips, walnuts and

watercress. You might easily contrive any number of soups and salads

from this list.

 

If you are constipated, the first thing you should do is change your

diet to the " double high five " by eating five fruits and five

vegetables a day. If you are still constipated after two days,

increase your fruit and veggie intake while diminishing your intake

of low-fiber foods like meats and refined breads. Also, I'd

recommend that you avoid tea if constipation is a problem for you.

Tea is rich in tannins, which is one reason that it is recommended

as a treatment for diarrhea. Tannins help bind stools and hold back

bowel movements.

 

Fruit and vegetable juices also work, especially those that retain

much of their fiber. Prune juice tops the list, of course, but some

juice advocates say that apple-pear juice is a particularly good

laxative. Among vegetable juices, asparagus, jícama and potato have

been suggested.

 

Some people who favor juicing use machines that eject most of the

fiber. When it comes to treating constipation, that's a big mistake,

because fiber is precisely what you want.

 

Green Pharmacy for Constipation

 

Several herbs can also help prevent and treat constipation.

 

Flax (Linum usitatissimum). Also known as linseed, flaxseed as an

herbal treatment for constipation gets an endorsement from

Commission E, the body of scientists that provides advice on herbal

treatments to Germany's equivalent of the FDA. Commission E suggests

taking one to three tablespoons of whole or crushed flaxseed two or

three times a day for chronic constipation.

 

A special word of warning: If you try this remedy, make sure that

you also get plenty of water--at least eight full glasses a day--to

keep all that bulk moving through your digestive system.

 

Psyllium (Plantago ovata). Tiny psyllium seeds contain a fiber

called mucilage, which absorbs a great deal of fluid in the gut.

This makes the seeds swell. They add bulk to stool, and as stool

becomes bulkier, it presses on the colon wall, triggering the muscle

contractions we experience as " the urge. " Psyllium is quite popular

in Germany, and Commission E approves taking three to ten

tablespoons a day for chronic constipation.

 

As with flaxseed, psyllium needs water to work, and if you take it

without water, it might obstruct your digestive tract.

 

And if you have asthma, don't take this herb. There have been

several reports of allergic reactions to psyllium, including a few

serious asthma attacks from inhaled seed dust.

 

You should also watch how you react to this herb if you have

allergies. If allergic symptoms develop after you take it once,

don't use it again.

 

Aloe (Aloe, various species), buckthorn (Rhamnus catharticus),

cascara sagrada (Rhamnus purshianus), frangula (Frangula alnus) and

senna (Cassia senna). These herbs all contain powerful natural

laxative chemicals called anthraquinones. With certain reservations,

Commission E endorses all of these herbs for treating chronic

constipation.

 

I suggest trying any of these anthraquinone herbs only as a last

resort. You should try a high-fiber diet and other, gentler herbs

before reaching for any of these. Any herb that contains

anthraquinones can be unpleasantly powerful.

 

If you use buckthorn, cascara sagrada or frangula, which are all

barks, insist on aged bark. The anthraquinones in fresh bark

irritate the digestive tract and may cause bloody diarrhea and

vomiting.

 

Anthraquinone laxatives should not be taken over long periods of

time or during pregnancy or nursing. If you take these laxatives for

long periods, you may become dependent on them. That's why I call

them a last resort.

 

Fenugreek (Trigonella foe-num-graecum). Like psyllium, fenugreek

seeds contain fluid-absorbing mucilage. If you use fenugreek seeds,

make sure you drink plenty of water to keep things moving along. And

don't use more than two teaspoons at a time, as any more may cause

abdominal distress.

 

Rhubarb (Rheum officinale). I like this constipation-relief recipe

from physician Ronald Hoffman, M.D., that was published in Parade

magazine: Puree three stalks of rhubarb without the leaves. Add one

cup of apple juice, a quarter of a peeled lemon and one tablespoon

of honey. It will make a thick, tart drink that should do the trick.

 

Dr. Hoffman is right about rhubarb. It contains a natural laxative

chemical that's roughly equivalent to that in cascara sagrada and

senna. It's also high in fiber. Remember, though, that its laxative

action can be pretty powerful; you should probably try some other

methods first.

 

http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/41/35.cfm

_________________

JoAnn Guest

mrsjoguest

www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Genes

 

--

 

Conquering Constipation -- Naturally?

====================================================================

I've been taking laxatives on a regular basis. I know they're bad

for me and would like to quit, but when I do, I can't go to the

bathroom and get bad headaches. Do you have any advice?

 

-- Anonymous

 

Answer (Published 02/20/2003)

 

You don't say what type of laxatives you're using. Overuse is of

most concern when the laxatives in question are the " irritant types "

such as Ex-Lax and Feen-A-Mint (or the herbal irritants cascara

sagrada (Rhamnus purshiana) and senna (Cassia acutifolia).

 

Chemicals and herbs that induce bowel movements quickly, sometimes

violently, by irritating the bowel, can cause cramps and diarrhea

and lead to laxative dependence, resulting in worse constipation

than was present in the first place.

Saline laxatives such as milk of magnesia and Epsom salts that work

by drawing water into the colon are safer but can also cause

problems with chronic use. And those containing mineral oil, such as

Haley's M-O, can cause toxicity.

 

The safest laxatives are the bulk-producing ones such as Metamucil.

The bowel regulator I recommend most frequently is Triphala, a

mixture of three fruits from India from the Ayurvedic tradition,

available in capsule form at health food stores. Follow the dosage

directions on the label.

You can take it regularly; its benefits accumulate the longer you

stay on it.

 

A low dose of magnesium glycinate may also be helpful for chronic

constipation.

 

However, most importantly, you should consider the factors that

contribute to constipation.

 

Are you getting enough fiber in your diet? Make sure you're eating

lots of vegetables, wheat bran, whole-grain breads and cereals and

fruit.

 

If you can't get enough fiber from your diet, consider powdered

psyllium, available at health food stores, as a quality source of

supplemental fiber.

Start with one rounded tablespoon of the powder stirred well into a

glass of water or diluted juice. Drink it down and follow with

another full glass of water.

 

Be sure you're drinking plenty of water, getting daily exercise,

avoiding caffeine and tobacco.

 

Try to wean yourself away from laxatives gradually, first going for

one day out of four without taking any. You also might consider

acupuncture, which may help with this process. Good luck!

 

Dr. Andrew Weil

www.drweil.com

_________________

JoAnn Guest

mrsjoguest

www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Genes