Introduction

If you experience constipation, you have plenty of company – there are approximately 4 ½ million U.S. citizens with constipation. This is about 2% of the general public. Constipation complaints account for 2 ½ million doctor office visits every year. Constipation is the most common GI complaint in the U.S. Not only are these significant statistics, but can lead to frustration for the patient if the complaint is not resolved.

Constipation means different things to different people. It may mean the stool (bowel movement-BM) is too hard, too small, too difficult to expel, too infrequent or a feeling of incomplete evacuation (can’t get all the BM out). It is important to have a clear understanding of what you mean when you go to see your physician, nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant for the complaint of constipation. The articles on the site talk about the physiology and causes of constipation, as well as diagnosis and treatment options.

First, let’s address one major myth involving bowel movements that most people believe:

Myth: You have to have a BM everyday to be normal.

Some people go everyday. Some people go three times a day. Some people go every other day. Some people go three times a week.

What is normal to one person is not necessarily to another. Having fewer than 3 BMs per week is considered functional constipation. The word functional does not mean it is all in your head! The word functional in this instance means that the symptom happens without something being specifically wrong with the anatomy, that there is no inflammation or tissue damage and that it is within the range of behaviors that are expected in the body.

For example, have you ever had a muscle cramp or charley horse? You know that it really hurts. It was not in your head, but in the muscle. If you went to the doctor and the muscle was cut out or the leg was cut off and then examined under the microscope and found nothing wrong, what does that mean? The pain is functional, meaning that is was something that happened in the expected range of behavior for your leg muscle.

Next: Understanding Your GI Tract