Laxatives and Colon Hydrotherapy

Constipation affects approximately 15-20% of the western population and the percentage rises to 40% in people over 65 years old. The medical world has turned a blind eye towards it, showing interest only when the evacuations are less than 2 or 3 per week.

It’s very likely that the percentage of people considered to be constipated rises significantly if we consider those who do not have at least one daily discharge, according to common sense and not what science suggests.

If we deem as normal a meal-induced evacuation in physiological response to gastro-colic reflex, i.e. 2-3 discharges per day, in relation to main meals, a lucky few would be saved, at least in the western world.

We can then understand why there is a huge market for laxatives that are used especially by those who are not considered truly constipated by scientific standards.

Despite the large number of individuals who suffer from disorders related to the malfunction of the intestine, who thus lead a life conditioned by their digestive problems, medicine is often not able to provide a satisfactory response. At the most, we wait for the constipation to become chronic and stubborn before intervening with palliative remedies. It would be enough to take a tour of some of the nursing homes to see how the management of intestinal functions of our dear elderly verges on abuse. (not for lack of professionalism of the operators, but for an objective difficulty of the operation)

The market for laxatives thrives because the buyer seeks a cheap remedy that resolves the problem immediately, often only to find it intensified. In fact, given that it is a business based on a disorder that the market does not want to eliminate, inadequate solutions are proposed, in the long run costly and frustrating.

Honestly, I would not say that Colon Hydrotherapy is the only solution to constipation, but I will say that it can be considered as a diagnostic tool to evaluate all the possible therapeutic avenues. The experience I have gained in this field leads me to say that there is no other type of investigation that would give, in a relatively non-invasive way, so much information on the functionality of bowel evacuation.

The experienced operator can easily assess and understand the difficulties of the colon by identifying issues related to anatomy, motility response in relation to water infusion, functional spasms, the type of material present, the influence that the psyche has on the descending portion of the colon, and so on. This information is then integrated with the medical history regarding the possible causes of constipation such as improper diet, insufficient chewing, difficulty in digestion and assimilation of food, sedentary lifestyle, the indiscriminate use of laxatives that are too irritating or, on the contrary, too mild.

In conclusion, common functional disorders of the intestine can be resolved, provided we do not look for a quick solution that only perpetuates the problem, eventually aggravating it.
Colon Hydrotherapy may be the rational approach to identify causes and appropriate treatment.
Intestines are not all the same and it's time to reserve special treatment to each of them.