The Best Fruit Juices You Should Drink To Poop Fast – Health Digest

Everyone’s poop schedule is different. You might be someone who routinely poops in the morning, or your bathroom time might be right after dinner. While an occasional missed poop is normal, it can feel uncomfortable, especially if you don’t poop for a day or two.

While laxatives can address constipation, sometimes they have the opposite effect and cause diarrhea. Some foods and drinks can help you poop fast, such as fruit juices. “Juices that are best for constipation are ones that are freshly made with natural ingredients such as fiber and sugars,” Dr. Amy Lee, Head of Nutrition for Nucific, said in an exclusive interview with Health Digest. She suggests celery juice, orange juice with pulp, carrot juice, and juice made from ginger root. (Read the best and worst juices for your health.)

Juices work well for constipation because they help rehydrate you, and dehydration can often cause constipation. If the idea of drinking ginger root juice sets your stomach on fire, other fruit juices could help you poop fast. Some juices are higher in sorbitol, which has a laxative effect on your body.

Sorbitol is a sugar alcohol found naturally in many fruits, such as apples, figs, and peaches. It’s considered to be an osmotic laxative, which means it helps to pull water from your body to help soften your stool. Sometimes the muscles of your colon need a little poke, and sorbitol wakes up these muscles to help you have a bowel movement. Pear juice, plum juice, and apple juice are some juices that have the highest amount of sorbitol.

You can’t rule out prune juice for its ability to relieve chronic constipation. Sure, prune juice has sorbitol as well, but it has other nutrients that can alleviate constipation. The pectin fiber and polyphenols work with the sorbitol to help get things going, according to a 2022 study in the American Journal of Gastroenterology. The study involved people from a wide age range who had fewer than three bowel movements a week (the definition of constipation). The people who drank prune juice every day for eight weeks saw the consistency of their poop improve after just three weeks. They also didn’t experience side effects of laxatives such as diarrhea or loose stools.

Eating foods high in fiber can improve your digestive system, but Dr. Amy Lee stresses the importance of drinking enough fluids. “Overall fluid intake should be a minimum of 2-3 liters daily, as we lose one liter just from respiration,” she said. Drinking some juice can add to your daily hydration needs.

You don’t want to rely on juice as your main source of hydration. Lee says that fruit juices can add a lot of carbs and sugar to your daily intake of calories. Although a cup of sliced pears has about the same amount of calories as an 8-ounce glass of pear juice, the sliced pears will give you slightly fewer grams of carbs and sugar with more than twice the fiber.

Not all juices are necessarily healthy. If you buy commercial juice, look closely at the label to ensure it’s 100% juice. “Avoid fruit juices made from concentrate, as that may be derived from processed sugars,” Lee said. Some juices might say they’re 100% juice but include other juices that add extra sugar. For example, Ocean Spray’s 100% Cranberry Juice Blend Cranberry might have you believe it’s 100% cranberry juice with no added sugar, but it also has apple, grape, and pear juice from concentrate.