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Increase fiber (can be Citracel if he's not a veggies man).
Add in Dulcolax, Colace or any stool softener.
Get more "exercise" like walking around the house.
Pain relievers all create constipation. If he's on any opioids, all the more. "Sleeping aids" like Tylenol PM also create a problem.
When I was on massive doses of Tylenol after my knee replacement surgery, even though I was on a prescription laxative and stool softener, I was amazed at how constipated I became (and I even eat lots of nature fiber and veggies).
He can become impacted if it isn't dealt with, or it can create a pain in his abdomen bad enough to require a trip to the ER (been there, done that with my Mom who is a retired RN and swore to me it wasn't constipation. It was.)
Constipation makes you feel crummy, and can cause you to lose your appetite.
There's rectal suppositories or the Fleet enema...
If they have tested and everything but dad's brain is fine, I would introduce bulk forming foods, maybe citrucel (sp?), metamucil or extra fruits and veggies, because some diets just do not create a lot of waste. I do recommend daily magnesium supplements to help keep everyone's system performing as best as possible, magnesium oxide will create loose stool, so nix anything for that if the supplement has that as 1 of the mags.
Best of luck, this is a tough issue.
My Aunt tells the story of when they lived in the Bronx in their Italian neighborhood. There was a kid there named Manzi. Apparently, Manzi's Mother would regularly fling open the 2nd story window and yell down to him in the street, "Manzi, hai fatto poo poo???" (Manzi, did you poop today??) We still yell this in our house.
Source: https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-998/magnesium
Supplements aren't free from having potentially harmful interactions with other prescription drugs. The primary physician or pharmacist should be consulted before administering.
Is Dad on iron or any opioid based pain killers. If so, these can cause a problem. Also, because he isn't walking. I would start with those fruits and vegetables that have fiber in them. Lots of water. I would also speak with his doctor.
Cover mentioned M&Ms. I looked it up. Seems like they have no idea why, but they do help you go. I have never heard of this but I do know that diet candy with Sorbitol in it can cause diarrhea in large amounts. Maybe just piece would help? Problem with laxatives is you do not want the body to rely on them.
This worked for her and we never had another problem.
For more water try the small bottles of water. They are easy to handle and I was able to get aunt to drink the whole bottle at one time. She still uses them in the NH. Her skin is amazing for almost 98.
I found she would only sip water from a glass and not drink that much.
I also found her geriatric primary through the gastro and we were able to get her thyroid meds straight. Everyone, ERs, gastro was telling me that she had “too much thyroid on board”. Her previous primary wouldn’t adjust it. We moved on to a more knowledgeable doctor for aunts issues.
Please do keep a log of what you try so you can discuss with his primary. Some products will effect kidneys and/or heart.
My dad would just put syrup on anything he was eating and it did the trick.
Massage is also effective.
This attached link from the Cleveland Clinic explains that stool,softener tests the same as placebo for constipation. It has its use but doesn’t help chronic constipation.
https://www.ccjm.org/content/84/5/397
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/massage-for-constipation#abdominal-massage