Preventing Hemorrhoids
The best ways to prevent hemorrhoids are:
1) Paying attention to your diet:
- Enhance your diet with fiber-filled foods such as grains, fruits, and vegetables and use a fiber supplement - fiber creates lighter and fluffier stools.
- Drink plenty of water up to eight glasses a day – it helps in reducing the hardness of the stools.
2) Keep stools soft so they pass easily. The more moist and easily passable the stool, the less likely you will have to strain to defecate.
- Empty bowels as soon as possible after the urge to have a bowel movement occurs. Use the toilet whenever you feel the urge, even if it is a few times throughout the day. If you delay this urge by a few minutes or more, you might get a reflex constipation and loose the urge to go again for several hours.
- Watch out for constipationsince hemorrhoids are usually a side effect of constipation.
3) Improve your bowel habits:
- Do not strain. When you sit on the toilet, do not push too hard or for too long. A gentle straining of the abdominal and pelvic muscles for less than 30 consecutive seconds is OK. Do not spend more than 3-5 minutes on the toilet for any one sitting, even if you have not completed an entire bowel movement.
- Do not read while on the toilet because this might extend your time sitting on the toilet.
- Do not hold your breath while passing stool.
4) Maintaining good hygiene is important:
- Use soap and water after you defecate so that the bowel movement does not lead to infection.
5) Other helpful tips:
- Do not sit for long periods of time - take short walks or stretch whenever possible.
- Exercises must be performed daily in order to improve the circulation in the abdominal area.
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