Do Bananas Regulate Your Bowel Movements or Make You Constipated? Here's the Truth!
A lot of us resort to eating bananas when we feel severely constipated. But can it really help regulate your bowel movements? Here's the truth behind whether bananas can help you poop. Read on!
All of us love the versatile snack banana whether it is blended into a smoothie, mashed into banana bread, or sliced on toast with peanut butter. What experts are still arguing about, however, is that, whether bananas help constipation or cause it. A lot of us resort to eating bananas when we feel severely constipated. But can it really help regulate your bowel movements? Here's the truth behind whether bananas can help you poop. Read on!
Can Eating Bananas Help with Constipation?
The science behind whether bananas can treat constipation depends on their colour and ripeness.
Green and unripe bananas: Green bananas are slightly bitter, harder in texture, unripe bananas. They are higher in resistant starch and pectin. While green bananas are suitable for your gut health, resistant starch can be harder to digest, which can aggravate preexisting constipation. 'Quarantine Constipation' Is Real During COVID-19 Lockdown: Here's How to Get Your Bowel Movement Running When Your Guts are Giving You Silent Treatment.
Yellow and ripe bananas: As they start to ripen, the yellow bananas lose their starch content. The starch converts into simple sugars, increasing both the glycemic index of the banana. The banana becomes easier to digest as the resistant starches break down. Yellow bananas are also higher in soluble and insoluble fibre which promote bowel regularity. Home Remedies for Constipation: 7 Best Foods to Regulate Your Bowel Movements.
Brown bananas: These bananas also continue to lose resistant starch over time. Bur as they are high in both sugars and carbohydrates, they can have inflammatory effects on some people. That said, brown bananas can still be beneficial for digestion because of their low resistant starches. They also contain a high level of antioxidants. Keto Diet and Constipation: Diet Tips to Avoid Getting Constipated on the High-Fat Diet.
Bottomline: Bananas have nutritional values at every stage of ripeness, but the benefits differ along the way. Green bananas may actually get you constipated whereas yellow, and brown bananas will aid in digestion. So, make your choices accordingly!
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 24, 2020 11:26 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).