Constipation is when passing bowel motions is difficult and or painful and or incomplete and or infrequent.  It is a symptom of many digestive disorders, can range from mild to severe and has many causes.

 

Common causes of constipation include not consuming enough water or fibre, insufficient exercise, ignoring the urge to have a bowel motion, sluggish liver and digestive function and a number of medications.  Less common causes are structural abnormalities of the small and or large intestine. 

 

Constipation leads to the re-absorption of toxic by-products of digestion that should normally have been eliminated.  These by-products re-enter the blood stream and can affect moods, behaviour and energy levels.  As a toxic load accumulates in the body, it puts more pressure on the other organs of elimination, such as the liver, the kidneys, the skin and the lungs.  Children with asthma often have constipation, and constipation commonly contributes to skin conditions such as eczema and acne.