Needless to say, drugs have no meaning unless they are used properly. Some people have diarrheal stools by taking laxatives because they assume that it is good to evacuate even diarrheal stools. However, this is incorrect. It is also not good to take a laxative as part of a diet. Such laxative use will ultimately have a detrimental effect on the anal area and functions. Persons who have watery stools, regularly taking laxatives over the long term, misunderstand that they have constipation if they have a slight sensation of inadequate defecation. An ideal bowel movement is that stools as soft as toothpaste are evacuated smoothly, with a sensation of urgency to defecate. At our hospital, the "Bristol stool form scale," which is an indicator for the form of human stools, is used to give an explanation to patients. Refer to the scale for understanding ideal stools.

Bristol Stool Form Scale

Director, Nihonbashi Ladies Clinic Dr. Makiko Baba

OTC laxative drugs are widely available; however, it is recommended not to take irritant laxatives every day. Caution must be exercised not to “increase the doses of laxatives due to lack of bowel movements.” Always follow the specified dosage and administration. Attention must be paid to the fact that not only drugs but also diet tea contains irritating ingredients. If you drink too much diet tea, the intestines may become dark in color and intestinal motility may decrease, which is also detrimental to the anal region. Although diet tea is convenient, excessive intake of it poses risks. Caution should be exercised.
Among patients who take prescribed irritant laxatives, there are some patients taking more than one irritant laxative or an irritant laxative at a dose higher than the specified dose. At our hospital, we experienced a case in which constipation was cured 2 weeks after a patient, who had been taking five types of irritant laxatives, reduced the number of laxatives from five to one. First of all, drug dependence must be broken.

Kawahori Hospital Dr. Haruka Takeda