Do you spend way too much time trying to eliminate? Are you getting hemorrhoids from the pressure? Constipation is a symptom of long-term poor eating habits and/or deficiencies in certain nutrients that your body needs and it is something that needs to be resolved. Failure to do so can lead to worse problems.

Symptom handling is not an optimum way of addressing any health problem because if you don't get to the underlying cause and deal with it, the constipation can worsen. If you just keep taking laxatives for constipation and don't change your eating habits, the constipation will not resolve and eventually even the laxatives won't resolve the constipation.

Things that can cause constipation include insufficient water intake, eating too much refined and cooked foods that have no enzymes left in them, not getting enough fresh fruit and salad, insufficient dietary fiber, not going to the bathroom when you feel you ought to, insufficient exercise.

Fiber is found in raw vegetables, fruit and whole grains - not refined foods ever. According to the American Dietetic Association, the typical American eats only about 11 grams of fiber daily. Our bodies need a minimum of 20-30g daily.

Eating food that has no nutritional value left in it and without any roughage to help "sweep" the bowels, along with the added chemicals that are in the food is about the same as eating cement. Blockage in your bowels from poor eating habits is no different than if you poured cement down your toilet. It would block the toilet. Eating "dead" food with no life in it blocks your body's plumbing.

The solution is to improve your diet as best you can by eating fresh, uncooked vegetables, good quality whole grains and proteins. In other words, eat real food and not "dead" food. Best is organically grown food and protein that is free of hormones and antibiotics.

Besides deficiencies in good food, your body could also be deficient in calcium and magnesium. How do calcium and magnesium help solve the problem?

Calcium assists the pushing process by contracting your colon muscles, while magnesium relaxes them and that is how your colon is able to push the waste (stools) down the 5 - 6 ft of your colon. Just like Draino unblocks blocked drains.

Magnesium is a natural laxative. It attracts water into the colon, softening your stools and making them easier to eliminate, while reducing tension on your colon walls, which all helps make your bowels function more smoothly. Of course, this means you need to drink sufficient water every day.

Adding calcium and magnesium into your diet is a simple solution for many other body functions as well as constipation. Besides softening the stools, it is also vital for the digestive process and for keeping your intestines moving naturally. You'll have more energy and time to do the things you really want to do!

In order to actually absorb calcium and magnesium into your body, they need to be taken together in the doctor-recommended 2:1 ratio, properly pH balanced to ensure optimum absorption by your body.

Calcium and magnesium is safe for all ages from baby to granny - even diabetics. In fact, it's essential for them.