Constipation and BPH

Sorry Jim, perhaps the potato chips finally caught up with you. Hank

No chips in weeks, Sir. New low sodium, low fat diet now. I think it might have been a bad Mango. Or this thread that you started

Jim

Very low sodium + very low fat = constipation, I am sure of this, regardless how much you drink. Maybe you should resume the potato chips. " Maybe the added sodium helped you regular. Hank

Have you ever been on a very low sodium, very low fat diet, like Pritikin or even DASH? Maybe try it, it can do wonders for your overall health, and with adequate hydration, constipation should not be an issue. 

No, Hank, I am bequeathing all my left over chips to you

Jim

Thanks so much for the chips. Actually, I did try low fat, low sodium before and I had bad constipation. I found out that the more I drank, the more I peed. Yet my poop remained hard and dry since there was nothing in it to retain moisture. My diet is very much like DASH with added olive oil. Just wonder, why would you want to go too low sodium, unless you have high blood pressure ? Even that, low sodium should be sufficient. Too low sodium may also cause cramping, especially summer is almost here. And why would you want too low fat ? You need some fat to absorb some important nutrients. Hank

If there's any topic where both the literature and anecdotes are more contradictory than diet and nutrition, I haven't found it

Nathan Pritkin was an early proponent of a low fat, low protein, low sodium diet. Several more current doctors followed like Dean Ornish and Esselystn. The "China Study" is a book that makes interesting reading regarding a Vegan diet, which is not what I'm currently on.

Yes, I do have both bp and cardio issues, so I do favor any diet that will lower both my cholesterol and bp. I went from 160/95 on bp meds to 118/75 in less than two weeks. Same meds, different diet.  I am now going to try an wean off the meds like I was succesfully able to wean off the chips

BTW DASH does have two different sodium levels. I would call their lowest level, "very low sodium". 

Jim

Hi Jim,

I am glad you are making great progress with your BP. Keep us posted. Or maybe you can open a new discussion on this. Hank

Thanks. Maybe I'll wander over the bp forum one of these days. Wonder if they have any threads on chips?

Jim

i can see it already. New thread :"Potato chips before bed keep the doctors away !!!" by jimjames. Hank

I had been feeling constipated for few days (not complete - just feeling all not empty). Yesterday for lunch I had seafood noodle, and decided to drink all the broth. I do not know what is in it but am pretty sure there is plenty of sodium. Today, after 2 BMs, constipation is gone. Hank

I'm not saying it's not the high salt content of broth, but you don't want your tombstone to read: "He died before his time but with an empty colon"

Jim

Hi Hang,

It's most likely the increased liquid from the broth. Much constipation is caused by not drinking enough liquid, and it can usually be cured by drinking more liquid.

Neal

No Neal, definitely something is special about this broth. It is only about 8oz (240cc) of broth. I had it again to day and I had BM 2 times, 1 and 3 hours after, unloading big time. Hank

Hank,

Sometimes if you don't rinse the soap off the bowl, it happens like that?

Jim

But seriously there is somethiing called a "salt water flush". But something to steer way clear of if you have bp issues.

Jim

"..steer way clear of if you have bp issues."

Can you explain why ? The bowl is throw-away plastic ware so there is no soap in it. Hank

Hi Hank,

Bad communication on my part. The "steer clear..." was in reference to the "salt flush", ie drinking a solution of salt and water to help flush the bowels out.. The "rinse soap out of bowl" was meant to be a joke. 

Jim

No, you communicated fine. Actually, it was my miscommunication. I read "bp" and I thought it was "bph". So I wondered what salt flush has to do with "bph". Hank

Hi Jim + Neal

Regarding my heavy BMs yesterday after my broth consumption, now I wonder if it might be a coincidence. Maybe it has more to do with the fact that I had stopped taking doxazosin (alpha blocker) for 3 days. One of the side effects of alpha blocker is constipation. My theory (I need your opinion on this) is AB relaxes bladder and prostate muscles. However, it also relaxes colon muscles by accident, therefore slowing down the stool transit, causing constipation. Hank

It could indeed have been the broth if it had a significant sodium concentration, ie salt water flush. It could also be in part going off doxazosin although constipation is not widely reported. If you're curious, probably easier to experiement with the broth now that you're off dixazosin. Forgot -- is this something that you brewed up yourself or is it store bought. If the former, how much salt did you put in, and if the latter, what is it called?

Jim

It came from a small seafood noodle bowl, from a small restaurant. If it happens again, I'll ask them what is in it. Hank

Hi, Jim and Hank

Perhaps I can throw some light on the subject. There is this wonderful expression in the Old Country, something "goes through like a dose of salts" when referring to results that are quick, good, or thorough. Perhaps Cartoonman can back me up on this one?

Cheers, Alan.

Thanks Alan for the wisdom. Hank

Hi Hank,

Yes it could be that this broth is a natural laxative as prunes are. These things do work sometimes, but some are addictive, and become ineffective over time, or you can't dedicate at all without them.

I'm simply pointing out that the real natural solution to all of that is to simply include more liquid, anything from water to broth in your diet, and the problem will go away with no side effects.

Neal

I think it is a combination of both salt and extra liquid from the broth that helped moving my bowel. Hank

Hi Jim, how are you doing with your low fat low protein low sodium diet ? Any constipation ?  Any other issues ? Still eat can sardines and can spinach ? Hank

Hank, So I slipped a little on the diet lately, and bp went back up to no surprise. Back to bp meds until I eat better. As for canned sardines and spinach, look at it as an acquired taste, like with fine wines. Elevate yourself and try them!

Jim

The question is : why did you slip ? I think I know the answer: such a strict diet is hard to follow for long. If it is so, maybe you should relax it a little like I did ? Ours is basically the same diet yet more relaxed and both my wife and I have fairly low BP.

Yet I am still struggling with mild constipation. Don't want to up liquid intake. It's already at 2 liters a day. Anymore will cause problems with increased retention as well as nocturia. Maybe time for Miralax.  Hank

Had a lot going on.  My diet requires prep and cooking, so the diet suffered. But...it could/will come back. And then a weird thing happened and I had a craving for whole eggs, not just the whites which I only used to eat. Got to get that back in check!

If I drank 2 liters of liquid a day, I would have to break out the catheters again!

Jim

That craving is your body telling you that it needs more nutrients from egg yokes, not just protein from egg whites. You might have been starving youself nutritionally IMHO. Hank

Just came across some new articles just released today, 18 years and 130,000 people study, indicated that low fat diets cut lives short. Fat, even saturated fat, makes people live longer. Just Google 'low fat diet could kill you'. I think i will have more fat. More fat will solve my constipation too. Hank

Correction !  Fat Study : 10 years, 18 countries, 135,000 participants. Hank