Morning coffee and the pressing need: Understanding the bathroom rush

Does your morning coffee make you need to use the bathroom? This is completely normal and a common occurrence, although there are people on whom drinking coffee has no effect. For some, it acts as a diuretic, and for others, it stimulates bowel movements. Many people wonder whether this is caused by the caffeine or the temperature of the drink. Although coffee has been with us for centuries, it still holds many mysteries.

Almost one in three people feel the need to use the bathroom immediately after drinking coffee, and the phenomenon can occur as soon as four minutes after consuming the black brew. As explained by Dr Łukasz Drzewiecki for the portal Medycyna Praktyczna, coffee has laxative properties due to its impact on the level of gastrin and thereby on the digestive processes.

Coffee acts as a stimulant for the digestive tract. It stimulates the secretion of gastrin and hydrochloric acid, which can lead to increased bowel activity and stimulated bowel movements. Another explanation is the so-called defecation effect, which means that simply drinking a warm liquid, such as coffee, can stimulate bowel movement by increasing the activity of rectal muscles. Decaffeinated coffee can also induce a laxative effect.

Based on the above information, one might boldly conclude that coffee, due to its laxative properties, could remedy constipation. However, while it may bring relief, its effect is merely temporary and does not solve bowel movement problems in the long run.

It is worth mentioning that the caffeine in coffee can even worsen symptoms for those struggling with persistent constipation because it leads to dehydration, which exacerbates the problems.