Constipation And Hemorrhoids - What Is The Connection?

Constipation is considered to be #1 cause of hemorrhoids. It causes straining during bowel movements and straining causes hemorrhoids! Most of us don't take it seriously, and we apply some sort of hemorrhoids treatment only when we already feel hemorrhoid symptoms, and by that time hemorrhoids are much more difficult to cure.

Many people seem to think that it means that you don't have bowel movements every day, but in fact less then 40% of the population in US has bowel movements every day. Any number from 3 to about 20 times a week is good, less then that and we can talk about constipation, more and you probably suffer from diarrhea.

Constipation signs:

• If you have hard stool less then three times a week.
• Frequently strain during bowel movements.
• Are bloated or feeling discomfort.

There is no proof that body absorbers more toxins if you have irregular or infrequent stool, but one thing is certain, as your stool ''waits'' inside, more and more water is absorbed by your body and stool becomes harder and harder.

And when you finally decide to take the time to sit down, and have it done, the stool is so hard you have to strain to push it out, instead of just relaxing and letting it go out by itself. This is where connection between constipation and hemorrhoids begins, danger of hemorrhoids lies mostly in people not taking seriously signs that your body is sending you.

It is a closed circle, one thing leads to another, and before you know it, you notice blood in your stool or itching and burning starts to bother you, even though constipation as cause of hemorrhoids can actually be corrected and prevented very easy.

Constipation can be divided between the recent (acute) or long-term (chronic), long term constipation requires immediate medical examination and diagnosis because serious illness may be the cause of it.

How to recognize cause of constipation and hemorrhoids?

One of the most often causes of constipation and a hemorrhoid is not paying attention to your bowel movements. For some of that we can only blame ourselves, most of us don't go as soon as we feel the need, sometimes it's ok, when there is no toilet around or situation is not permitting, but most of the times it's pure laziness.

During digestion, waste is pushed through your intestines by muscle contractions and during that, most of water and salt is absorbed back. If your water intake is insufficient, water absorbed by digestion will harden your stool causing intestinal slowdown. Slow passage of digesting food through colon is the most common cause for constipation and hemorrhoids.

Other causes may be medications (iron supplements, antidepressants, pain medications), diet (lack of fiber), bad bowel movement habits, over use of laxatives, colon diseases, hormonal disorders or pelvic floor dysfunction.

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