What is senna fruit

Here's what you need to know about your treatment options for opioid-induced constipation, from medications to natural remedies and more. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. Warwick, R. This article explains everything you need to know about senna tea. Share on Pinterest. What is senna? How is senna tea used? Senna tea should not be used for weight loss. Safety, precautions, and side effects. Recommended dosage. How to prepare senna tea at home.

The bottom line. Read this next. Teas for Constipation Relief. Medically reviewed by Alan Carter, Pharm. Medically reviewed by Debra Rose Wilson, Ph. Medically reviewed by Dena Westphalen, Pharm. Laxatives Side Effects: Understanding the Risks. Medically reviewed by Lindsay Slowiczek, Pharm. This means that your baby will not feel the effects of the laxative. However senna is partly absorbed by your gut. Your doctor or midwife will usually only recommend senna if other laxatives have not worked.

Lactulose and Fybogel are safer laxatives to take during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. For more information about how senna can affect you and your baby during pregnancy, read this leaflet on treating constipation on the Best Use of Medicines in Pregnancy BUMPs website. There are some medicines that do not mix well with senna and can change the way it works.

Apart from liquorice root preparations, there are no known problems with taking other herbal remedies and supplements with senna. Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you're taking any other medicines, including herbal medicines, vitamins or supplements.

Senna is known as a stimulant laxative — it stimulates the muscles that line your gut, helping them to move poo along your bowel. Take senna for a few days only and certainly no longer than a week. If you take senna for longer, your body can start to rely on it, rather than your bowels doing the work on their own.

If you are still constipated after taking senna for 3 days, talk to your doctor. Ideally, you should only use senna occasionally and for a few days at a time.

Using senna for longer can lead to diarrhoea. Stop taking it if you get diarrhoea. It can also cause an electrolyte imbalance, where levels of substances like sodium, potassium and magnesium in your body get too high or too low. A severe electrolyte imbalance can cause serious health problems such as muscle spasm and twitching, and even convulsions.

Using senna for many weeks, even months, could also stop your bowel working properly on its own. Occasionally, you may need to take 2 different types of laxatives at the same time to get your bowels moving again. Only take 2 laxatives together on the advice of your doctor or pharmacist as there is an increased risk of side effects.

There are other types of laxatives. They work in a different way to senna but are equally good at treating constipation. Some take longer to work than senna. There's no clear evidence to suggest that taking senna will reduce fertility in either men or women. However, speak to a pharmacist or your doctor before taking it if you're trying to get pregnant.

Senna does not affect any type of contraception including the combined pill and emergency contraception unless you have severe diarrhoea for more than 24 hours. If you have severe diarrhoea your contraceptive pills may not protect you from pregnancy.

Look on the pill packet to find out what to do. Read more about what to do if you're on the pill and you're vomiting or have diarrhoea. It might be a good idea to stop eating pastries, puddings, sweets, cheese and cake for a while as these foods can make constipation worse.

It's quite common to have constipation after surgery. Using a laxative may help relieve the discomfort. If you have constipation after an operation, it's better to use lactulose because it's gentler on your stomach muscles than senna.

It's often possible to relieve constipation without having to use laxatives. Grants Management Contacts. Prior Approvals. Annual Reporting and Auditing. Transfer of a Grant. Grant Closeout. Cancer Training at NCI. Resources for Trainees. Funding for Cancer Training.

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Is senna tea safe to drink? Medically reviewed by Natalie Olsen, R. Uses of senna tea Risks Side effects What are the drug interactions? Takeaway Senna is an herb that comes from several different flowering species of the Cassia plants. Uses of senna tea. Share on Pinterest The leaves of the senna plant are used in teas and may help relieve constipation.