What are good natural stool softners
Fiber
Fiber, particularly insoluble fiber, helps keep your bowels moving and creates soft easy-to-pass stools. You need to get 14 grams of fiber in your diet for every 1,000 calories you consume, according to the Colorado State University Extension. For example, an average 2,000-calorie diet requires 28 grams of dietary fiber. Insoluble fiber stays intact in your gut and sweeps out waste. This type of fiber speeds digestion and makes your stools bulky and soft. Soluble fiber slows down digestion and helps nutrients absorb through intestinal walls, but it does not work to soften your stool.
Vegetables
Vegetables are a rich source of insoluble fiber to help ease your bowel movements. Celery, corn, salad greens, spinach, peas and green beans are rich in insoluble fiber. These fibrous, chewy vegetables often pass through your digestive tract virtually untouched. You may notice pieces of these vegetables in your stool, since your body is unable to break down the tough insoluble fiber.
Fruits
Most fruits are higher in soluble fiber, but eating the tough outer skins of fruits sneaks some insoluble fiber into your diet. Pears, apples, cherries, peaches and plums each have edible skin that adds to your insoluble fiber intake. As an added benefit, the soft inner parts of these fruits provide plenty of soluble fiber to help with nutrient absorption.
Flaxseed
Flaxseeds are full of insoluble fiber to help you pass soft bulky stools. You can purchase whole flaxseeds or ground flaxseeds. If you purchase them in their whole state, it is best to grind them in a blender or food processor. Otherwise you will have to work hard to break up the seeds when you chew. Sprinkle ground flaxseeds on your breakfast cereal, cottage cheese or oatmeal as a quick way to sneak more insoluble fiber into your diet.
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