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Olive us poo — and some things can make that process even easier.
Around four million people in the US suffer from constipation so searching for a reliable remedy can be a crap shoot.
But people are turning to natural remedies like drinking olive oil to help them fight their constipation, according to laxative retailer Dulcolax’s poll of 2,000 people in the UK obtained by the Daily Mail.
And it’s not just some viral hack beloved by Gen Z — experts say it works.
The fats in olive oil can help smooth the inside of a person’s bowel and keep their stool softer, by helping the stool absorb more water, according to Medical News today.
Constipation, characterized by infrequent or uncomfortable bowel movements, is the most common gastrointestinal complaint and leads to 2.5 million doctor visits annually, according to Hopkins Medicine.
“Constipation happens because your colon (large intestine) absorbs too much water from your poop. This dries out your poop, making it hard in consistency and difficult to push out of your body,” Cleveland Clinic explained.
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One tablespoon of olive oil taken in the morning on an empty stomach can help people poo, and there are studies to back it up too.
A study published in the Journal of Renal Nutrition in 2015 found that olive oil, flaxseed oil and mineral oil effectively relieved constipation for the 50 people in the study.
In addition to the 5.7% of Brits drinking olive oil, 65.6% are drinking more water, 22.2% of the people surveyed in the UK said they ate prunes and 13.1% admitted to jumping up and down to get things moving.
Other remedies, according to the poll include drinking coffee to speed up the bathroom process (23.7%) and taking a hot bath (15.9%). Among those surveyed, 15.6% eat a fruit-only diet, 6.3% try fasting and 7.4% resort to having a cigarette.
Over half of people between 18 and 54 have been constipated sometime in the last six months — but one in seven of them said they were too embarrassed to get help and 48% of people were too shy to buy laxatives.
In addition to trying laxatives and natural remedies, people who want better bowel movements can make lifestyle changes like eating more fiber, drinking more water, reducing dairy intake and exercising more.
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