Why do people have constipation? There are two main causes of constipation.

Constipation is not a disease. Many people mistakenly think that constipation is a disease, so they always take medicine to treat it. However, they do not see any effect. Instead, the constipation tends to become more and more serious. To completely treat constipation, we should start with the cause. The causes of constipation can be divided into two categories.

1. Organic

(1) Intestinal stenosis or obstruction caused by organic intestinal lesions, tumors, inflammation or other reasons.

(2) Rectal and anal diseases: rectal prolapse, hemorrhoids, anterior rectal prolapse, puborectal muscle hypertrophy, diastasis reticulum, pelvic floor disease, etc.

(3) Endocrine or metabolic diseases: diabetes, hypothyroidism, parathyroid disease, etc.

(4) Systemic diseases such as scleroderma and lupus erythematosus.

(5) Nervous system diseases include central brain diseases, stroke, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, and peripheral neuropathy.

(6) Intestinal smooth muscle or neurogenic lesions.

(7) Colonic neuromuscular disease, pseudointestinal obstruction, congenital megacolon, megarectum, etc.

(8) Neuropsychological disorders.

(9) Drug factors: iron supplements, opioids, antidepressants, anti-Parkinson's disease drugs, calcium channel antagonists, diuretics and antihistamines, etc.

2. Functionality

The cause of functional constipation is still unclear, and its occurrence is related to many factors, including:

(1) Eating less or eating a diet lacking in fiber or water reduces the stimulation of colon movement.

(2) Normal bowel habits are disturbed by work stress, fast pace of life, changes in the nature and timing of work, and mental factors.

(3) Caused by colon motility disorder, commonly seen in irritable bowel syndrome, it is caused by spasm of the colon and sigmoid colon. In addition to constipation, it also presents with abdominal pain or bloating. Some patients may experience alternating constipation and diarrhea.

(4) Insufficient tension in the abdominal and pelvic muscles, insufficient force for defecation, and difficulty in expelling feces from the body.

(5) Abuse of laxatives can lead to drug dependence and constipation.

(6) Difficulty in defecation due to frail elderly people, lack of activity, intestinal spasms, or a lengthy colon.