Hemorrhoid Treatments

It’s funny – well not really but when you’re able to get food into your body without being sick, that you all of a sudden find you can not get the waste food out of your body.  Nearly half of all the women who are pregnant suffer from constipation during pregnancy and often half of those get haemorrhoids too.

As with all parts of pregnancy there is a cause for constipation.  When you are pregnant your body creates progesterone which in turns relaxes the muscles of the bowels and causes your digestive tracks to work much slower.  Your digestive track works slower to make sure your body absorbs the nutrients from the food for your baby.  This can create constipation, which if it not kept under control, can lead to hemorrhoids.

There are some ways you can help avoid constipation throughout pregnancy.  Make sure you take plenty of fibre in your diet.  fiber absorbs water and can help to soften your stools and speed their passage out of your body.  Eat plenty of high fibre foods like whole grain cereal and oatmeal.  Instead of eating white bread with your sandwiches, eat whole grain breads and add some oat bran to your cereals or yoghurt.

Fresh fruits are also an excellent way to make sure you get enough fibre.  Melons and plums have a high amount of fiber in them as wells as dried fruits like figs, raisins, apricots and of course the well known favorite – prunes.  Prunes and prune juice have a laxative like effect and will help keep things moving the right way in your body.  Eat at least 25 to 30 grams of fibre a day.  You’ll know when you are getting enough fibre if your stools are large and soft and you aren’t pushing to pass them.  Keep in mind though that too much fibre can lead to diarrhoea which can lead to dehydration so do not over do the fibre in your diet.

Drinking plenty of fluid too will help combat constipation.  Fluids help keep digested products moving through the body’s system so it is very important for you to drink at least six to eight glasses of water a day.   Keeping up with your fluids is important especially if you are increasing your intake of fibre.   Your body needs water to soak up the fiber otherwise it can cause more constipation.

Also, make sure you are eating yoghourt if you can.  Yogurt has a bacteria called Lactobacillus acidophilus that helps stimulate the intestinal bacteria to break down your food in a better way.  Some of the prenatal that women take a lot of iron and iron can play a big role in constipation.  Talk to your doctor to see if you can switch for a while to a different prenatal that contains less iron or at least stay off of the prenatal for a while until your constipation is under control.

Avoid foods that can lead to constipation.  White bread and some cereals such as corn flakes can lead to constipation as well as white rice and bananas.  If all this fails, give your doctor a call to find out if there is something you can take to help keep you regular.

Constipation is never good but during pregnancy it can be even more irritating.  Make sure you take steps to avoid constipation and hemorrhoids during pregnancy and help yourself make your pregnancy that much more pleasurable.

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