Using milk as laxative healthy?

[healthmi]

I eat cereal every morning with milk. Apparently this helps me move my bowel; perhaps I'm slightly lactose intolerant.

However, when I go on trips and don't eat cereal, then I have a hard time moving my bowel. Often I can't go for two to three days. When I finally am able to, the stools are not very hard. So it's not like a regular constipation.

Is it healthy to keep eating cereal (with milk)? If milk does indeed help move my bowel, is it habit forming like all other laxatives?

[patient915]

Oh, and milk would not be "habit forming."

[patient915]

Welcome to the gastroenterology community!  It may be the milk that is helping your constipation but it could also be the cereal.  Many cereals have a lot of fiber in them, which can help constipation.  If it is the milk that is causing this, then you probably are a little bit lactose intolerant.  It is not dangerous to keep on drinking milk if you are lactose intolerant.  However, there are laxatives that are not habit forming.