The jury isn't out yet on the link between bananas and constipation. Some people say without a doubt they do, others claim they are actually a cure. Well surprisingly, both are right and it all comes down to the ripeness of the banana at the time of consumption.
If you are getting constipated from eating bananas, chances are you're doing it wrong. So when should you eat them in order to avoid inflicting any unnecessary discomfort.
Just because a banana doesn't have any green on it doesn't mean it's ripe. What is an indication is the brown spots that appear all over the skin. As a rule, if you want to avoid any bowel movement complications you should ensure that your banana has its first brown spots on it before consuming one.
This is the telltale indication that they are ripe and ready to eat and should be what you rely on. As long as your bananas have these spots, regardless of whether there remains any green on the skin, the consumption of them should be unproblematic. What if you don't have any ripe bananas? Is there any way to speed up the ripening process?
Luckily for you there's a way to get your bananas ripe just that little bit faster. For this method you're going to need one ripe banana. Simply place this banana amongst the unripe fruit in a paper bag.
The gas produced by the ripe banana will cause those around it to ripen. This is a simple and effective way to speed up the ripening process. Another factor that affects the process is the temperature of the location in which they're being held.
A warmer location will cause ripening to occur more rapidly, if it's colder the reverse will happen. So now you know which bananas cause constipation and how to speed up the ripening process in order to avoid this phenomenon but what actually is it about unripe bananas that cause complications?
What Causes Constipation, and How Does This Have Anything to do With Bananas?
To understand why unripe bananas cause constipation we must first recognise the causes of it. The most prominent cause of constipation in the modern day is a lack of fibre in your diet.
Many people will forget to maintain healthy levels of protein in their diet and half the population of the US has bowel movements that aren't frequent enough. Another major factor is dehydration or a lack of foods which are high in water content.
Other factors that affect the regularity of bowel movements are dairy consumption, dieting, not enough exercise, and side effects from drug use. So before you start blaming bananas for your bowel complications make sure you aren't just suffering due to one of these factors.
The reason ripe bananas do cause constipation though is due to the amount of starch within them at different stages of their ripeness. As a banana becomes more ripe the level of starch drops and the level of sugar rises. Starch is much harder for the body to digest; this is why eating a lot of unripe bananas cause stomach problems. Once ripe however, the body no longer has to deal with this problem, thus eliminating the issue entirely.
The other factor that has an impact is the amount of the enzyme pectinase within the banana. You see, as the banana ripens the amount of this enzyme increases. Pectinase has a major impact on stool movement as it causes the breakdown of pectin. To understand why this important we must first review pectins impact on the bowels.
Pectin causes clumping and thickening. When you think of the impact this would have on our stools it becomes obvious that the less of this chemical is in the banana then the less bowel movements would be affected by it. This is why it's a good idea to wait until your bananas are ripe before their consumption.
Other Ways to Avoid Constipation
If you're truly not a fan of ripe bananas and continue wanting to eat them with minimal spot coverage don't worry, there are other ways to bring your bowel movements back to normal. The first way you can do this is by eating foods that promote stool movement. This should offset the problems that arise from the unripe bananas. So what foods achieve this and which ones do it in the most effective manner?
I think everyone knows that a natural cure for constipation is prunes. They are jam packed with fibre, the dietary material that promotes bowel movements. They also contain sorbitol which is a known laxative. On top of this they are more than safe for long term consumption.
So if you really feel the need to eat unripe bananas, throw a few prunes in, your body will thank you for it. Not a fan of prunes, not a problem, there are many other foods that achieve the exact same thing.
A foodstuff that is generally liked by all that can provide relief is berries. Berries, just like prunes, are extremely high in fibre. On a diet? Berries are very low in calories so should not encroach on your daily limit.
Not a fan of sweet foods?
Try beans. Beans provide twice as much fibre as most vegetables and therefore are the perfect food for this purpose. So if you want to eat your bananas when they're a little less ripe than usual don't worry, there are a lot of foods that you can use to supplement your fibre intake.
If you are getting constipated from eating bananas, chances are you're doing it wrong. So when should you eat them in order to avoid inflicting any unnecessary discomfort.
Just because a banana doesn't have any green on it doesn't mean it's ripe. What is an indication is the brown spots that appear all over the skin. As a rule, if you want to avoid any bowel movement complications you should ensure that your banana has its first brown spots on it before consuming one.
This is the telltale indication that they are ripe and ready to eat and should be what you rely on. As long as your bananas have these spots, regardless of whether there remains any green on the skin, the consumption of them should be unproblematic. What if you don't have any ripe bananas? Is there any way to speed up the ripening process?
Luckily for you there's a way to get your bananas ripe just that little bit faster. For this method you're going to need one ripe banana. Simply place this banana amongst the unripe fruit in a paper bag.
The gas produced by the ripe banana will cause those around it to ripen. This is a simple and effective way to speed up the ripening process. Another factor that affects the process is the temperature of the location in which they're being held.
A warmer location will cause ripening to occur more rapidly, if it's colder the reverse will happen. So now you know which bananas cause constipation and how to speed up the ripening process in order to avoid this phenomenon but what actually is it about unripe bananas that cause complications?
What Causes Constipation, and How Does This Have Anything to do With Bananas?
To understand why unripe bananas cause constipation we must first recognise the causes of it. The most prominent cause of constipation in the modern day is a lack of fibre in your diet.
Many people will forget to maintain healthy levels of protein in their diet and half the population of the US has bowel movements that aren't frequent enough. Another major factor is dehydration or a lack of foods which are high in water content.
Other factors that affect the regularity of bowel movements are dairy consumption, dieting, not enough exercise, and side effects from drug use. So before you start blaming bananas for your bowel complications make sure you aren't just suffering due to one of these factors.
The reason ripe bananas do cause constipation though is due to the amount of starch within them at different stages of their ripeness. As a banana becomes more ripe the level of starch drops and the level of sugar rises. Starch is much harder for the body to digest; this is why eating a lot of unripe bananas cause stomach problems. Once ripe however, the body no longer has to deal with this problem, thus eliminating the issue entirely.
The other factor that has an impact is the amount of the enzyme pectinase within the banana. You see, as the banana ripens the amount of this enzyme increases. Pectinase has a major impact on stool movement as it causes the breakdown of pectin. To understand why this important we must first review pectins impact on the bowels.
Pectin causes clumping and thickening. When you think of the impact this would have on our stools it becomes obvious that the less of this chemical is in the banana then the less bowel movements would be affected by it. This is why it's a good idea to wait until your bananas are ripe before their consumption.
Other Ways to Avoid Constipation
If you're truly not a fan of ripe bananas and continue wanting to eat them with minimal spot coverage don't worry, there are other ways to bring your bowel movements back to normal. The first way you can do this is by eating foods that promote stool movement. This should offset the problems that arise from the unripe bananas. So what foods achieve this and which ones do it in the most effective manner?
I think everyone knows that a natural cure for constipation is prunes. They are jam packed with fibre, the dietary material that promotes bowel movements. They also contain sorbitol which is a known laxative. On top of this they are more than safe for long term consumption.
So if you really feel the need to eat unripe bananas, throw a few prunes in, your body will thank you for it. Not a fan of prunes, not a problem, there are many other foods that achieve the exact same thing.
A foodstuff that is generally liked by all that can provide relief is berries. Berries, just like prunes, are extremely high in fibre. On a diet? Berries are very low in calories so should not encroach on your daily limit.
Not a fan of sweet foods?
Try beans. Beans provide twice as much fibre as most vegetables and therefore are the perfect food for this purpose. So if you want to eat your bananas when they're a little less ripe than usual don't worry, there are a lot of foods that you can use to supplement your fibre intake.
If constipation occurs for long periods of time consult a healthcare professional.
| Food Type | Fibre Content (/100g) |
|---|---|
Raspberries
|
7g
|
Air-popped popcorn
|
13g
|
Black beans
|
16g
|
Dried Apricot
|
7g
|
Whole Grain Bread
|
7g
|
Corn Bran
|
79g
|
Broccoli
|
2.6g
|
Plums
|
1.4g
|
Peanuts
|
9g
|
Baked Potato
|
2.2g
|
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