Chronic Constipation

And the Importance of Good Digestion

The Greek words for “difficult” and “easy”, I would argue, are actually quite relevant to constipation and its implications on one’s health and overall mood.

Easy is: εύκολος (ev-kolos)

Difficult is: δύσκολος (dys-kolos)

This is discussed in lesson 77 of the Greek language course offered by

Language Transfer

. In my opinion, the best method to learn a new language is the method taught by Language Transfer (“the thinking method”). Here is the youtube link to this specific lesson.

The “kolos” part of these words is related to the “colon” or large intestine. Other words like “colic” also share the same etymology.

In Greek, the prefix “eu” (which in Greek is pronounced “ev”) means “good”. The prefix “dys” or “dis” essentially means “bad”.

Why is this all relevant? Well, one could interpret the Greek word for easy to mean “digesting well” or something that is “good for the colon” so to speak. Similarly, the word for difficult or hard would essentially mean, difficult to digest or something like “bad for the colon”.

I think this is very apt and the Greeks knew what they were doing when fashioning these words.

When someone is constipated, or more generally, is suffering from poor digestion, slow bowel movements, or backed up waste, their mood and overall health and well-being can suffer greatly.

It's common to say, “You’re not you when you are hungry,” but it is even more true that “You are not you when you’re constipated.”

As such it is crucial for people to go to the washroom at least 2-3x a day, a good heuristic being that you should have a bowel movement after every meal. This may be shocking to some, as it’s quite common for people to go less than 1x a day.

The Problem

I do want to emphasize the immense importance of having regular bowel movements as chronic constipation does not just result in a poor mood and other relatively trivial-sounding afflictions, it is actually linked to many serious diseases if left unresolved for many years, including Parkinson’s Disease. That may sound far-fetched, however, you would be surprised how many diseases and disorders were effectively remedied, to some extent, with the use of certain laxatives and other “purgatives” in the past. (Check out my article on Parkinson’s Disease here)

An obvious effect of constipation is that someone feels sick and “backed up”. However, a more scientific specific impact of chronic constipation is that substances that should not be in the colon in high amounts or should not be in the colon for long, or intestines in general, will linger and not be removed. This can include different pathogens. For example, chronic constipation can possibly lead to a build-up of too much bacteria that can lead to many issues. For example, if chronic constipation prevents the effective movement of bacteria out of the colon, then too much bacteria will build up and can move into the small intestine. The colon should have bacteria, but just not too much. However, the small intestine should have no bacteria and be effectively sterile. If bacteria are too populous in the colon and move up into the small intestine, over time one can develop “SIBO” or “small intestinal bacterial overgrowth”. This by itself comes with a host of problems.

Too much gut bacteria (whether “good” or “bad”) can lead to a plethora of issues. Bacteria can activate what is referred to as “toll-like receptors” such as “TLR4” which activate many inflammatory pathways throughout the body. So, constipation doesn’t just simply result in issues directly in the intestines, but it instead creates issues all over the body - including the possibility of contributing to mental and behavioural issues. People who are experiencing constipation are not just “moody” simply because they have an upset stomach or feel clogged up, they can be physically experiencing brain inflammation due to an increase in various inflammatory markers that are being increased as a result of constipation.

Causes and Solutions

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