<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>cincycf</b></i>
What else can we do to help her digest her food?
Could her body be addicted to exlax?
</end quote></div>
I don't know specifically about exlax, but have heard some pretty bad things about Miralax -- like some people become dependent upon it and get to the point where they can't go without it because of what it does to the body.
Some things that helped me improve my digestion:
Sticking with oils that work for me and avoiding oils that cause me problems. The two oils/fats that work best for me are organic butter and organic coconut oil. Some I tolerate occasionally/in moderation are organic olive oil, sunflower seed oil and corn oil. Oils I do my best to avoid include Canola oil, peanut oil and soybean oil.
Switching from table salt to sea salt. The brand I use the most is Celtic sea salt, though I do keep a tin of McCormick's French Grey in my desk at work these days. It's pretty good as well, though not as good as Celtic and it costs more to boot.
I took glyconutrients for a long time and when I couldn't afford it anymore, I took aloe and arabano galactan (two of the ingredients in the glyconutrients I used to take). "Glyconutrients" is just a fancy word for some simple carbohydrates. These days, I don't take any of those supplements but I make sure to get a variety of healthy carbs on a regular basis, like organic noodles, potatoes, and rice. They absorb best and do the most for me when cooked with sea salt and a healthy oil, like organic butter. My understanding is that aloe is a good natural treatment laxative. It might be a reasonably good substitute for the laxatives she is on and a way to gradually get her off them, if you are interested in doing so.
I also worked hard on my PH balance. I suspect high acidity in the gut is part of what causes digestive problems. My doctor told me that pancreacarb has sodium bicarbonate added to it as a buffer to make the enzymes more effective by making sure they aren't destroyed by high acidity in the gut. So I am inclined to think that high acidity in the gut is part of why pwcf need prescription enzymes in the first place: we are probably destroying our own enzymes because of the high acidity we are prone to. I would guess this is part of why some people start out not needing enzymes but later need them: because over time as we deteriorate, we probably become increasingly acid.
Good luck with this.
