Kinkini Gupta
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Written By: Kinkini Gupta | Updated : October 20, 2022 6:56 PM IST
Experiencing IBS? 3 Ways Alcohol Can Prove Detrimental For Your Bowel Movements
Drinking alcohol is something many people across the globe do regularly, but it's important to keep it in its place. In moderation, alcohol might have some health benefits like lowering stress, improving mental health and even improving heart health. But if you overdo it, it can lead to some unsavory consequences like dehydration, fatigue, trouble focusing and feeling off. And, as if the hangovers weren't punishment enough, drinking too much alcohol also can pose some problems for your bathroom routine. Here, we take a look at three ways drinking too much can affect your bowel movements, and provide some tips to help you find relief.
Check out the effect that excess alcohol can have on your bowel movements.
Diarrhea: When we drink alcohol, it is absorbed into our bloodstream through our stomach and small intestine. Our body tries to process it as fast as it can especially because it is a toxin. The faster it is removed the better it is for our body. Alcohol is processed faster on an empty stomach as compared to when the stomach is full. After the process of absorption is complete, our body's job is to flush out nutrients and water through the digestive tracts. Alcohol related diarrhea can happen due to this as flushing out all nutrients and water severely dehydrates our body.
Delay Stomach Emptying: Delayed emptying of the stomach can severely impair the functions of our gastrointestinal tract and also lead to blockages which are very dangerous. If we consume excess alcohol and it becomes a chronic habit, this can lead to delayed gastric emptying of our stomach. The process of gastric emptying is extremely important in order to allow our body to function normally. This process takes place after the food that we have consumed moves through our esophagus and down to our stomach. Overconsumption of alcohol can delay this process of stomach emptying.
Inflammation: Overconsumption of alcohol can also lead to inflammations in the body. After alcohol is broken down and digested in our body, it leaves certain compounds as well. If the quantity of these compounds exceeds excessively, it can lead to inflammation and that in turn can lead to alcohol related organ damage. This can also develop into a vicious cycle.
Be responsible when you drink and prioritize your health.
Moderate Drinking Habits: Spare your body from digestive stress by inculcating moderate drinking habits instead of heavy drinking habits. More than four drinks a day for women and more than five glasses per day for men is classified as binge drinking. Simply make sure that you do not cross the threshold every single day. If you are the kind of person who likes to indulge on drinking a lot once a month and nothing on other days, that is still considered fine for your health.
BRAT Diet: Many experts recommend the BRAT diet for diarrhea, which includes bananas, rice, applesauce and toast. All of these foods are soft and bland, which might help settle your stomach.
Probiotic Supplements: Probiotics are good bacteria that help with digestion of alcohol. It reinforces the development of good bacteria in the gut and also helps the body with speedy recovery. Make sure your diet has enough probiotics like yoghurt, miso, sauerkraut and kimchi. If not probiotic food, you can also include supplements to help speed up digestion and help with bowel movements as well.
