Travel constipation: a checklist for trips and holidays

You remembered the chargers, the comfortable shoes and the sunscreen. Then day two of the trip arrives, and your bowels seem to have stayed home. If that sounds familiar, you're in good company, and the reasons are rarely a mystery.

Travel changes almost everything your gut relies on at once: meal times, sleep, movement, bathroom access and what's on your plate. This checklist covers what to do before, during and after a trip.

Why travel slows things down

Researchers at a University of Utah travel clinic surveyed 83 people, mostly young returned missionaries, about their bowel habits before, during and after trips abroad. During travel, 9% developed new constipation and 45% developed bloating. Of the six people who became constipated, three were still constipated after they got home (Tuteja et al., 2008). That group isn't typical of vacationers, but it shows how easily a trip can shift digestion.

One big factor is simple: putting off the urge. In a German study, 12 healthy men spent one week going to the bathroom normally and one week deliberately holding it in. When they postponed, their bowel movements dropped from about 9 a week to fewer than 4, and the time it took for food to move through the gut nearly doubled, from about 29 to 53 hours (Klauser et al., 1990). Unfamiliar bathrooms, long drives and packed schedules make that kind of postponing very easy.

Before you go

• Keep your usual fiber routine. If a fiber supplement is part of your day, pack enough for the whole trip. Travel isn't the best time to start a new one, since a sudden jump in fiber can cause temporary gas while your gut adjusts.
• Pack a familiar snack or two. Prunes travel well, and both prunes and kiwifruit have been tested for constipation (more below).
• Check your medications. Ask your pharmacist how to time daily medications across time zones, and whether anything you take can affect your bowels.
• Bring a refillable water bottle. It's easy to drink less than usual on travel days, especially if you're trying to avoid airplane or rest-stop bathrooms.

On travel days

• Move whenever you can. Walk the terminal instead of sitting at the gate, stretch your legs at rest stops, and stand up on long flights when it's allowed.
• Sip regularly. Small, frequent drinks are easier than trying to catch up at the hotel.
• Don't postpone. If you feel the urge, go, even if the bathroom isn't ideal. Holding it in is exactly the habit the German study showed can slow things down.
• Keep meals roughly on your home schedule. Eating at familiar times keeps at least one part of your routine the same.

Once you arrive

• Protect a morning bathroom window. Build 10 unhurried minutes after breakfast into your day, before the sightseeing starts.
• Walk as much as you comfortably can. In the Nurses' Health Study, which included more than 62,000 women aged 36 to 61, women who reported daily physical activity had a lower rate of constipation than less active women (Dukas et al., 2003). Vacations are often a great chance to walk more.
• Add prunes or kiwifruit. In a trial with 40 adults with constipation, most of them women, 50 grams of prunes twice a day for three weeks improved the number of complete bowel movements and stool consistency more than psyllium did (Attaluri et al., 2011). In a US trial with 79 adults with chronic constipation, 87% of them women, two green kiwifruit a day, prunes and psyllium all increased complete bowel movements over four weeks. Kiwifruit caused the fewest side effects and also improved bloating scores (Chey et al., 2021).
• Balance the big nights. Large restaurant meals, more alcohol and shorter sleep often come as a package on vacation. You don't need to skip the fun. A lighter lunch or an earlier night now and then keeps more of your routine intact.

If you're still stuck

• Return to your routine quickly. Once you're home, go back to your usual meal times, movement and fiber right away. In the Utah survey, some travelers' symptoms lasted after the trip, so pay attention if yours do.
• Ask a pharmacist. They can suggest gentle over-the-counter options and flag any that aren't right for you, for example if you have kidney or heart problems.
• Don't strain. Sit with your feet raised on a small stool or your bag, lean forward and breathe slowly.

If you already use a fiber supplement, single-serve sticks such as Gentle Fiber, with 6 grams of partially hydrolyzed guar gum each, are easy to pack.

When to see a doctor

Get medical help quickly for severe abdominal pain, repeated vomiting, a swollen and hard belly, or not being able to pass gas. After the trip, see your doctor if constipation lasts more than a few weeks, or if you notice blood in your stool, black stools, unexplained weight loss or a lasting change in your bowel habits.

Sources

1. Tuteja AK, Talley NJ, Gelman SS, et al. Development of functional diarrhea, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, and dyspepsia during and after traveling outside the USA. Dig Dis Sci. 2008;53(1):271-6. PMID 17549631
2. Klauser AG, Voderholzer WA, Heinrich CA, Schindlbeck NE, Müller-Lissner SA. Behavioral modification of colonic function. Can constipation be learned? Dig Dis Sci. 1990;35(10):1271-5. PMID 2209294
3. Dukas L, Willett WC, Giovannucci EL. Association between physical activity, fiber intake, and other lifestyle variables and constipation in a study of women. Am J Gastroenterol. 2003;98(8):1790-6. PMID 12907334
4. Attaluri A, Donahoe R, Valestin J, Brown K, Rao SS. Randomised clinical trial: dried plums (prunes) vs. psyllium for constipation. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2011;33(7):822-8. PMID 21323688
5. Chey SW, Chey WD, Jackson K, Eswaran S. Exploratory comparative effectiveness trial of green kiwifruit, psyllium, or prunes in US patients with chronic constipation. Am J Gastroenterol. 2021;116(6):1304-1312. PMID 34074830

This article is for general information and isn't medical advice. Check with your healthcare provider or pharmacist before using laxatives or changing how you take your medications while traveling.