Gut Disorders During Postpartum
The gut is the digestive tract that runs from your mouth to the rectum. It is where the mechanical and chemical digestion of food takes place. Absorption of water, fats, oils, and mineral salts also take place along the gut. Another important physiological process of the gut is excretion through defecation.
The gut partly requires gastrointestinal tract muscles for digestion and excretory activities to take place. However, the process of giving birth can temporarily alter certain physiological processes of the gut.
The postpartum period of a mother comes with a lot of conditions in the gastrointestinal tract. There may be nausea, heartburn, or vomiting, but the most common and noticeable postpartum gut disorders are fecal incontinence, constipation, gas/bloating, and leaky gut.
These are excretory problems that interfere with normal defecation. They may stress you up.
Fecal Incontinence
Incontinence is the inability to control the movement of the bowel. This is caused due to extensive perineal muscle tears and assisted vaginal births. Assisted vaginal births involve minor surgeries during childbirth where the forceps usually leave lacerations. The open wounds render the rectal muscles numb and peristalsis of the muscles is less effective.
Perineal tears also cause sphincter injuries. They are called Obstetrical Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASIS). Such injuries are very common with first births.
Perineum tears are not superficial, and they can cause malfunction of the gut around the rectus muscles to cause retention of fecal materials within the distal end of the gut. This condition may likely cause infections around the rectal muscles or colon. It affects the proper movement of muscles of the belly and lower abdomen.
How to control postpartum incontinence
Go for the pelvic floor muscle therapy
Take foods rich in collagen to heal your gut lining tissues faster.
Avoid food that takes longer to digest and which is not easily digestible like cereals and starchy vegetables. They may cause gas.
Take probiotics. They improve conditions for gut bacteria to thrive.
Constipation
Constipation is a condition where there are difficulties with emptying the bowels. The main cause of constipation is water/salt imbalance. It could also be a lifestyle health condition, especially when you don't follow the right nutrition or don't exercise. And postpartum constipation can be caused by all of these.
The difference between constipation and fecal incontinence lies in the consistency of the fecal material. With constipation, the fecal materials are consequently hard.
What are the causes of postpartum constipation?
ü Lack of enough water in the body. During delivery, the mother losses much body fluid, water, and blood. And consequently, you will need to increase the amount of water intake with time during the postpartum period to cover up.
ü During pregnancy, your body needs much of all nutritional values and water for you and your unborn baby. Consequently, constipation may start this early and stay long after delivery.
ü Change of daily routines. Giving birth sends you to the rest bed, and you won't be moving around normally. This limits your daily exercise routine and may lead to constipation.
ü Improper nutrition. When you don't take enough fibre in your diet, you will likely experience constipation, especially during postpartum when your body requires a lot of water
ü Medications. During pregnancy, hormonal changes result in unpredictable changes in moods, and psychological disorders may arise. After delivery, when the mother is overwhelmed with depression and decides to subscribe to antidepressants, these drugs may result in constipation.
Other causes of postpartum constipation may be haemorrhoids and iron supplements. These conditions result in difficult and painful defecation.
Constipation is normally experienced within the first six weeks of postpartum. It will cause more complications like urinary incontinence, rectal prolapse, and haemorrhoids. Therefore, it is necessary to deal with these conditions properly.
To prevent postpartum constipation, add more fibre-rich foods and drink a lot of water. Eat prunes and have enough peaceful rest.
Gas and Bloat
When air is trapped along the gut, the normal peristalsis is interfered with even if the gut muscles keep moving accordingly. And the anal sphincter may be difficult to control.
How to control gas and blot during postpartum
ü Take food when it is warm, and only take fully cooked food that is easy to digest. You can love stews and soups.
ü Take supplements for digestion. Some supplements promote the activities of digestive enzymes.
ü You can also take probiotics to improve the life of bacteria in the gut.
Leaky Gut
This is a condition where your gut may be permeable to food materials. It can be caused due to inflammations resulting from medication, poor diet, chronic diseases, or high pH in your stomach (low acid)
How to control a leaky gut
ü Take foods rich in zinc, vitamins B, and C, and essential fatty acids. And avoid food rich in sugar or processed carbohydrates.
ü Avoid inflammation triggers.
ü Take supplements for nutrients and digestive enzymes. Some herbs like marshmallow roots will help too.
ü Takes foods that are rich in fibre, fats, protein, and collagen.
ü Add probiotics to improve the life of gut bacteria.
Stress
The postpartum period may be stressful as it comes with several health conditions. But, notably, these disorders are never permanent. And they cannot last more than the postpartum period.
Most of the disorders come in the first six months after delivery and when you heed the preventive and control measures, you will not feel much discomfort. Accepting help from family and friends will help to boost your condition during this time.
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