Integrative Health Blog

A Nation With Constipation?

Posted by on Wed, Feb 17, 2016

What does opioid-induced constipation (OIC) have to do with the Super Bowl?

Not much, I would have imagined, but thinking broadly, after the 112 million people who tuned in1 finished laughing, maybe a few hundred thousand viewers might connect the dots.

That’s because, in 2014, an estimated two million people in the United States suffered from substance use disorders related to prescription opioid pain medicines2. And nearly half of those on long-term opioids experience OIC3.

At a recent continuing medical education event, I was surprised to find an entire 90 minute session (plus a non-credit mini-session provided by a pharmaceutical company) devoted to opioid-induced constipation.

Apparently, as a nation, we are such avid users of prescription drugs like oxycodone, hydrocodone and codeine, that we must now be concerned about people blowing out their colons because of severe OIC3. This goes far beyond stool softeners and every-so-often laxative use. Bowel perforation is certainly no laughing matter.

But the topic made me think of the common complaint of garden-variety constipation, and so I polled my colleagues at NIHA for their favorite approaches to constipation. 

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Tags: holistic health, constipation

Why I Love Being a Colon Hydrotherapist

Posted by on Tue, Nov 19, 2013

First, All Colon Hydrotherapy Jokes Aside... 

Patients ask me all the time, “Sharon, why do you do THIS?  How did you get into THIS? ” 

I always know THIS means COLON HYDROTHERAPY.  Patients wonder why I’m so excited and intrigued by, as one patient says, “watching people poop all day.”  One patient lovingly calls me the “Poop Lady.”   When people ask my 40 year-old daughter what I do for a living her response is, “my Mom helps people get the mess out of their lives.”  Yes, she’s a comedienne; the woman definitely has jokes.    Needless to say, my chosen career is the butt of many jokes (pun intended)!

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Tags: colon hydrotherapy, constipation

Symptoms of Constipation

Posted by on Wed, Sep 04, 2013

Part II : Some Symptoms of Constipation

In my article last week, The Truth About Constipation, you discovered a new definition for constipation. 

In summary, you discovered if you’re not experiencing a one to one ratio between the meals you’re taking in and the waste that’s coming out, you’re probably constipated. 

 

Some Symptoms of Constipation

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Tags: colon hydrotherapy, constipation

The Primary Cause of Constipation

Posted by on Mon, Feb 20, 2012

Chas Gant MD, PhD

I appreciated the article Got Constipation?  by Debra Graugnard, a Certified Colon Hydrotherapist at NIHA, and I plan to photocopy it and provide the copy to all of my patients who suffer from constipation.  Constipation as a symptom is not taken seriously by many healthcare practitioners, including me at various times in my career, which is in my opinion constitutes negligence.  Constipation is a serious and deadly symptom and should be aggressively cured.  

I have some good news to add to these nice suggestions about managing constipation in the article Got Constipation? by Debra Graugnard - the actual, primary cause of chronic constipation has been discovered. Anytime in history when the causal factor is discovered for a symptom or a disorder, clinicians have been able to zero in on the cause and be more effective in achieving positive outcomes.  Knowing the primary cause of chronic constipation helps us understand why colon hydrotherapy is so effective.  Knowing the cause also should help clinicians and patients alike take this symptom very seriously.

Constipation and  Neurotoxins

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Tags: colon hydrotherapy, functional medicine, constipation

Got Constipation?

Posted by on Tue, Jan 17, 2012

If your answer is yes, you’ve got a lot of company – over 4 million “friends” in the US alone! 

In fact, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services, constipation is the most common gastrointestinal complaint, responsible for over 2.5 million annual doctor visits and over $725 million of spending on laxatives each year.

What is constipation? 

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Tags: colon hydrotherapy, constipation