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Is Coffee Good For Healthy Bowels?
Answering the question of “is coffee good for healthy bowels” is complex. Coffee may stimulate bowel movements for some individuals but may also worsen constipation for others depending on your metabolic and GI health, caffeine consumption levels and how sensitive your digestive system is. If this is a concern for you, decaf or pairing coffee with milk (or dairy alternatives) could help limit how much caffeine enters your system.
What is well known is that shortly after drinking coffee, your colon muscle, known as the large intestine, becomes active. Within four minutes after you drink your first cup, its muscles will start contracting and relaxing as part of a process known as peristalsis, moving stool through your digestive tract more regularly and helping protect you against colon cancer. Peristalsis plays an essential part in both digestive health and cancer prevention and helps ensure regular poop.
Coffee may help stimulate gastrin production, a hormone which makes your colon more active. One study revealed that drinking both regular and decaf coffee increased gastrin levels 2.3- and 1.7-fold respectively when compared with drinking plain water alone. Furthermore, coffee may increase the production of cholecystokinin (CCK), an amino acid which encourages your gut to produce enzymes which break down food before pushing it out into your small intestine.
Also, when and how often you consume coffee could have an effect on whether it makes you poop. Your digestive tract becomes more active as your body adjusts from nighttime circadian rhythms to awakening and alertness in the morning, increasing gastrointestinal motility and motility of colon. Furthermore, drinking morning coffee could increase gastrocolic reflex and speed up its movement into small intestine.
However, the type of milk or creamer used in your coffee can have an impactful impact on its esthetic as well. If you are lactose intolerant, try switching to non-dairy or low-fat alternatives to reduce how much dairy enters your digestive tract. Furthermore, limit using sweeteners like sugar that are high in calories as these could negatively impact health.
