Harmful Effects of Chronic Long-Term Constipation

Constipation is a medical term to describe infrequent and hard bowel movements, which may cause you to have pain and strain your abdominal muscles. Although there is a range in normal for the frequency of bowel movements, having fewer than three per week is considered constipation, and if this lasts for several weeks or longer, your constipation may be chronic. According to the Mayo Clinic and the National Library of Medicine, constipation may have harmful effects such as hemorrhoids and fecal impaction.

Symptoms

• Symptoms of chronic or long-term constipation include bright red blood in your stool, having stools that are difficult to eliminate and feeling as if you have not eliminated all the feces for more than four weeks.

Features

• Children are more likely to have chronic constipation that adults or the elderly, and women have more chronic constipation than men, which may be related to frequent hormonal changes.

Causes

• Causes of chronic constipation include a lack of exercise, hydration and dietary fiber; stress or anxiety; and medical conditions such as Crohn's disease or Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Effects

• Longterm constipation may cause you to develop persistent large hemorrhoids that may bleed during bowel movements; intense abdominal pain, gas and bloating; and malnutrition.

Home Remedies

• You can take actions such as drinking plenty of water, getting regular exercise such as walking, using mineral oil to lubricate your rectum and taking dietary supplements of fiber and the herb bryonia to reduce constipation.

Medical Treatments

• Depending on the severity of your constipation, you may need medications such as lubiprostone (Amitiza) to add water to your stool. In severe cases, medical procedures such as surgical removal of feces may be necessary.