Chronic Constipation
- Chronic constipation is not the most glamorous topic, but it
certainly is an important one.
- Over 25% of Indians suffer from constipation.
- Doctors write
over a million prescriptions for constipation per year, and roughly 725 million
is spent annually on laxatives.
- Clearly this is a significant topic, even if we
don’t want to talk about it much!
- In that vein, I have created a guide called the Constipation
Correction that you can peruse and implement in the privacy of your own home.
- It includes the myriad of reasons for constipation, how to get additional
testing if needed, and a nutritional, supplemental and lifestyle approach with
a variety of protocols, tailored to your specific needs.
+ So what is constipation, anyway?
- If you ask different providers, they very well may give you
different definitions.
- The classic criteria for constipation (which can vary by
person) will include two or more of the following: Fewer than 3 bowel movements
per week, hard stool 25% of the time, feeling as if you are not done 25% of the
time, sensation of obstruction 25% of the time, having to use manual maneuvers
25% of the time, and hard stool without the use of laxatives.
- People mean many things when they say they have
constipation.
- The infrequent passing of stools, difficulties in voiding,
sense of incomplete voiding are all suggestive of constipation.
-The normal reference range for bowel movements is very
varied. Some people have bowel movements three times a day; others, only one or
two times a week.
- Medically, constipation is defined as fewer than three bowel
movements in a week. Constipation may be considered severe when there is less
than one bowel movement in a week.
- Constipation is twice as likely in women as in men, and more
common in people over 65.
Causes
- Many factors contribute to the development of constipation.
Different people will have a different set of causative factors.
- Insufficient fiber intake in the diet.
- Not chewing the food properly / eating hurriedly.
- Reduced water intake.
- Various medications
- Iron supplements
- Antidepressants, tri-cyclic anti-depressants.
- Anti-convulsants
- Diuretics
- Stopping cigarette smoking.
- Abuse of laxatives.
- Medications containing calcium and aluminum.
- Endocrine disorders like - underactive thyroid.
- Any severe illness like stroke, paralysis.
- Major changes in life like pregnancy, old-age or traveling.
- Psychosomatic causes like depression and anxiety neurosis.
- Biochemical imbalance 'low potassium levels in the blood.
- Lead poisoning.
- Conditions that obstruct the normal passage of the stools
within the intestines ' foreign bodies in intestines, strictures, adhesions,
tumors, etc.
- Abdominal surgeries.
- Weakened pelvic floor muscles.
- Constipation can occur sometimes as part of a condition called
'irritable bowel syndrome' where it alternates with diarrhea.
Functional issues that can contribute to constipation
include:
- undiagnosed
food sensitivities;
- dysbiosis
- an imbalance between good and not-so-good gut flora;
- small
intestine bacteria overgrowth (SIBO);
- leaky
gut;
- nutrient
insufficiencies, particularly magnesium;
- underactive
thyroid;
- imbalance
in the enteric nervous system/second brain and hormonal imbalance can play a
part.
Tips to Prevent Constipation
Have more fibers in your diet. 25 to 30 grams of daily
intake can prevent constipation. Fibers help retain water in the stools thus
making them softer and easier to expel.
- Whole grain cereals and bread
- Dried fruits, such as prunes and raisins
- Popcorn, nuts, and seeds
- Beans and legumes
- Raw fruits and vegetables
Drink plenty of fluids, preferably water. 8 glasses a day
will help. Have more if you are physically active. Prune (manukka) juice and
other fruit drinks are known to normalize bowel motility.
Cut down on soft drinks and alcohols. Dehydration is a major
contributor for hard, lumpy & irregular stools. Overuse of colas, alcoholic
and caffeinated products can contribute to constipation. They are dehydrating
agents.
Check your medicine closet. Identify your routine medications
that may contribute to constipation. Let your doctor help you find an
alternative.
Don't curb your natural tendencies! Do not ignore your
body's natural urge to defecate. Over time, your body will stop having these
natural urges and constipation will set in. Train your child to void himself
when he has the urge, even if he'd rather play.
Stop the regular use of laxatives and enemas. Their
long-term use can aggravate constipation. If you must take laxatives, then try
starting with very low doses. Avoid randomly self-medicating oneself.
Exercise, Exercise, Exercise!! Physical inactivity can
certainly make bowel movements very sluggish! People tend to cut down on
physical activities as they age, for many reasons. Walking is a great way to
exercise and prevent constipation.
Homoeopathic treatment for Constipation:
- Homoeopathy offers a promising cure for constipation.
Chronic constipation results from various constitutional problems such as
stress, genetic predisposing, altered sleep pattern, etc.
- Homoeopathy offers treatment which is based on the patient's
individual case pattern. Homeopathy is strongly recommended for all cases of
constipation.
- Homoeopathic treatment for constipation is based on the
treatment of internal causes leading to the development of constipation. Most
cases of constipation may not need medicine but some lifestyle and food
changes.
- The homoeopathic medicines for constipation have a
distinction over the purgatives by it not being habit-forming. Most of the
purgatives are habit forming, doing more harm at the end, on stopping it.
Homoeopathic medicines are NOT habit forming, as they are actually not
purgatives.
Homoeopathic Remedies for CONSTIPATION:
Nux Vomica
- This is an over-the-counter homeopathic
medicine, which is safe to take for a few days, for getting relief from
constipation.
- Constipation with ineffectual urging and scanty stool.
- Nux Vomica passes scanty stool, very frequently.
- A sensation as of a weight in the abdomen, with rolling and
grumbling, and great heat
- The stool is unsatisfactory and insufficient. Even after
passing stool many times a day, there is a never “got done” feeling.
- Abdomen pain may arise along with constipation
- Typically, this medicine is suitable for young executives or
businessmen, who are always on the go, living a stressful life, the pressure of
deadlines, frequent travelers, irregular sleep habits, use or abuse of alcohol
and smokers, and who are highly ambitious.
- They are likely to be lean, thin in physical structure and
may be regular at the gym, still not satisfied with bowel movements.
Sulphur
- Serviceable in the beginning of many cases of chronic
constipation, especially when accompanied with haemorrhoids.
- Frequently indicated after Nux vom. or to complete a cure,
in hypochondriacal or haemorrhoidal subjects.
- According to Hirschell Sulphur acts like Nux vom., in the
constipations which are even more obstinate, when, for example, the
constipation depends upon the obstruction or swelling of some organ, especially
the liver, together with the engorgement of the portal circulation.
- The typical Sulph. patient is worse for heat.
- Loves fat, which may disagree: salt: sweets.
- Feet burn at night: puts them out.
- Starving at 10 or 11 a.m.
- Always wants to sit down.
- Stoop-shouldered.
- Untidy.
- Worse for bath-hates bath and washing.
- The "ragged philosopher" type.
Alumina
- Constipation with no urge to pass stool for days
- A guiding feature for Alumina use is absence of the urge to
pass stool for days together.
- The person needing Alumina will go days without passing
stool.
- The intestine action is extremely sluggish.
- Stool is passed only when there is large accumulation of
faecal matter in the intestine.
- Another important symptom for using Alumina is excessive straining
to pass stool even when the stool is soft.
- Alumina is also one of the majorly indicated Homeopathic
medicine for constipation in children, infants, bottle-fed babies and among
elderly persons.
Bryonia Alba
- This medicine is suitable to those who are constipation and
having dry, hard stool, requiring straining at passing stool; or those who have
no desire to pass stool for a couple of days.
- Again, they are business executives, living stressful urban
lifestyle.
- For constipation with hard, dry stool that passes in lump
form, Bryonia Alba is considered one of the best Homeopathic medicine for
constipation .
- The stool is dry, as if burnt, and is passed with much
difficulty.
- Abdominal distension is also noted in some cases.
- Thirst large quantities for and often
- Business talks
- Headache from constipation may also be effectively treated
with Homeopathic medicine Bryonia Alba.
Lycopodium Clavatum
- Constipation with flatulence and bloated abdomen
- Lycopodium Clavatum works wonders in cases where
constipation is attended with flatulence and a bloated abdomen.
- Lycopodium Clavatum is also the most helpful Homeopathic
medicine for constipation in elderly people.
- It is very useful in irritable bowel syndrome as well.
Silicea
- Constipation where stool recedes after being partially
expelled
- In some constipation cases, the stool is known to recede
after being partially expelled.
- In such cases, Silicea is the most useful Homeopathic
medicine for constipation.
- The stool is soft, needs straining to pass out, but recedes
back into the rectum after being partially expelled.
- There is constriction of anus.
- Exhaustion attends straining efforts to pass stool.
- Burning, smarting pain at the anus may also arise.
- Constipation in women before and during menses makes another
case of using Homeopathic medicine Silicea.
Natrum Mur
- Constipation when stool is passed on alternate days
- In cases where stool is passed on alternative days,
Homeopathic Medicine Natrum Mur is what the doctor orders to regularise bowel
movements.
- The attending features are constriction in the rectum,
smarting, burning or tearing pain at the anus.
- Morning Headache
- Anorexia with Constipation
- Irritable and restlessness with debility
- Cachexia with constipation
Aesculus
- Constipation; stool large, hard, dry; passed with
difficulty, with dryness, heat and constriction of rectum which feels as if
full of small sticks; knife-like pains shoot up the rectum after stool
Plumbum Met
- Constipation, once a week a hard knobbly stool.
- The faeces composed of lumps packed together like sheep's
dung
- The impaction of stools leads to blockage and considerable
difficulty in passing.
- Retraction of abdomen, as if by a thread, to spine.
- Abdominal colic, with pain as if umbilicus is pulled towards
spineare
Opium
- Patient is hungry, but has no desire to eat, great
constipation, black, round ball-like stools. - Patient is worse in hot weather,
during and after sleep, better in cool open air and constant walking.
- Constipation from inaction, or paresis for 6 or 8 weeks,
with loss of appetite
- Violent griping in abdomen with constipation
