Ask Your Pharmacist: Constipation

Submitted By James Bay Pharmasave

The Facts

Constipation occurs when stool or waste material moves too slowly through the large intestine. Feces that stay in the bowel too long before elimination become hard and dry. This results in difficult, painful, and infrequent bowel movements. In many cases, constipation is harmless. It's not a disease, but it might be a symptom of a disease.

Causes

When food leaves the stomach, it's still a partly digested mush. Your body recuperates valuable fluid from it while it's moved down the colon (large intestine). This transforms it into normal feces. The longer it stays in the colon, the drier and harder it gets.

Obviously, the quantity also increases if you wait to go to the toilet. A large, hard stool can be painful and difficult to pass, which then makes people reluctant to go, thereby creating a vicious cycle. This pattern of chronic constipation is especially common in children. It often begins when they start school. Many young children avoid school toilets and end up waiting too long.

Chronic constipation can last for months or years. It's usually caused by poor diet, by some other disease, or by regularly ignoring the urge to go to the toilet. Low-fibre diets and insufficient water intake are the leading causes of constipation.

Acute constipation starts suddenly and lasts for a few days. It can be caused by a blockage, prolonged inactivity, medication, dehydration, or missing a bowel movement. Pregnant women can develop constipation when the womb presses on the intestine. Sometimes, general anesthesia affects the bowel muscles for a few days after surgery. Lead poisoning and swallowing indigestible objects are other occasional causes.

Treatment and Prevention

Constipation can be treated medically, but lifestyle changes are often very important. The following practices can both treat and prevent constipation:

Avoid medications with constipating effects.

Do physical exercise to stimulate the movement of waste through your intestines.

Drink at least 8 glasses of fluid each day - water is best.

Eat a diet that's high in bulk and low in processed foods.

Increase dietary fibre to about 25 g per day for women and 38 g per day for men by eating whole grains, especially flaxseed, fruits, and vegetables (these add bulk to stools, making them easier to pass).

Schedule regular times for bowel movements to condition your body (after breakfast, for instance).

Use prune juice, stewed prunes, or figs to soften hard stools (increase the amount slowly to reduce gas).

Medications are usually brought in if changing diet and habits don't work. Most laxatives should be used sparingly as needed. Bulk-forming laxatives add bulk to the stool, stimulating defecation. Others act by coating the feces with oil, preventing water from being absorbed by the intestine. Some laxatives are irritants or stimulants that cause the lining of the intestine to contract, helping to push out the stool. Some laxatives work by pulling water back into the colon to ease transit. Medications can also create dependence, so use them only as directed by your health care professional.

If constipation is a chronic problem, see your doctor. For information on over-the-counter products, Ask Your Pharmacist!