Constipation: A Mostly-Preventable Regularity Problem

Constipation is a regularity problem in the colon (the large bowel) which limits bowel movements. Most people are embarrassed to talk about it, but when I meet with clients as a nutritionist, bowel movements are one of the ways I gauge a person’s health and overall diet. If you are not eliminating properly, then you are recycling toxins from wastes and changing the ideal conditions in your colon for you to be healthy.

A lack of adequate bowel movements can needlessly interfere with your quality of life and result in nuisances such as abdominal bloating, abdominal pain, headache, dizziness and poor appetite.

Worse than those annoying symptoms, are more dangerous outcomes. Constipation increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and in late 2016 was linked to kidney diseases, such as CKD (chronic kidney disease) and ESRD (end-stage renal disease.) Fortunately, probiotics have been shown to help with kidney disease.

Bowel movements may become difficult or less frequent. Going longer than 3 days without bowel movements allows the feces to harden as the colon absorbs most of the water in them and they become more difficult to pass. So if your stools are hard and dry and you’re having less than 3 bowel movements per week, you probably have it.

What is Constipation, Officially?

According to WebMD, a decrease in regularity affects approximately 2% of the population in the US, with women and the elderly being most affected. They define the condition as having 2 or more of these symptoms for at least 3 months:

  • Straining more than 25% of the time;
  • Hard stools more than 25% of the time;
  • Incomplete evacuation of the colon more than 25% of the time
  • 2 or fewer bowel movements in a week

If no structural problem or disease is found as the cause of the irregularity, and the colon is otherwise healthy, then the diagnosis is called “functional" irregularity.

It is considered to be a symptom of an underlying cause, not a disease in itself. Most people have it at least once in their lives, but if it becomes chronic (ongoing) with you, then you may not be as healthy as you could be. Also, think about how your quality of life is lowered with chronic constipation if you have abdominal bloating, abdominal pain, headache, dizziness and poor appetite on a consistent basis.

What are Causes of Irregularity?

Read about the causes of this condition so you can take preventative action.

Here's where you can learn about conventional ways to bring you relief.

Here's how probiotics may bring you relief.


Return to Homepage.

I research studies and share my clinical experience to write this free site to help you find solutions to your problems. As part of that, I recommend products and services that I genuinely believe will be of help to you. If you click on a link to a product/service, I may receive a small commission to support my efforts if you buy something. The item does not cost you more.

Thanks for visiting this site! If you've enjoyed reading this page or have found the information to be useful to you, please "like", tweet about it, or share it so others can benefit, too. You can leave comments below via Facebook or Disqus.

Comment with Facebook!

I'd love to hear your opinion about what you just read. Leave me a comment in the box below! Other commenting options follow the Facebook comments.

Comment with Disqus (including as a guest), Twitter or Google accounts:

If you are one of my many readers without a Facebook account, you can still comment.


Disclaimer: Please note: By law, I cannot provide any personalized recommendations for your specific health concern on this site. The information contained in this site is educational in nature and is not intended as diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure for any physical or mental disease, nor is it intended as a substitute for regular medical care. Consult with your doctor regarding any health or medical concerns you may have.

Subscribe to my monthly newsletter and receive a free copy of "How to Use Probiotics to Lose Weight and Be Healthier".

To comply with the EU's GDPR data privacy regulation, please subscribe here:


Looking for some quality professional supplements, including probiotics? Check out my online dispensary, as I will be doing reviews of some of these products in the future. Click on the Fullscript picture. (Note: If you were a former Wellevate customer, please switch to Fullscript for a better customer experience. Thanks!)


SiteSell Hosting

Some competitors of SBI (Solo Build It) are posting fake negative reviews of SBI. If you are considering creating your own website business, or if you have a brick-and-mortar business but want an online presence, I highly recommend SBI!