Ranging from Ex-lax to suppositories, Metamucil to enemas, laxatives are commonly used to relieve irritating bowel symptoms, such as constipation. Some, however, are using laxatives for the wrong reasons, abusing it to the point of death. So what are laxatives, the appropriate and inappropriate ways of administering them, and why misuse of it can lead to death? Learn about this commonly-used drug and how it works, along with the correlation between laxative abuse and eating disorders, steps to take if you abuse laxatives, and what manufacturers are doing to address this problem.
What are laxatives?
Laxatives are medication (available in different forms) that produce a bowel movement when a person cannot naturally. Doctors often recommend that patients attempt other means of producing a bowel movement before taking laxatives, including a change in eating habits, drinking lots of water, eating enough fiber, and exercising regularly. If this doesn’t work, a doctor will prescribe laxatives, although laxatives can be bought anywhere.
What are some forms of laxatives?
There are four types of laxatives:
Bulking agents. This adds water to your stool in order to stimulate a bowel movement. Metamucil is an example of a bulking agent.
Stimulant laxatives. A stimulant (such as senna, usually found in diet teas, or bisacodyl, common in most laxative pills) that you orally digest, which triggers muscle contractions in the intestines, promoting bowel movement.
Osmotic agents. Similar to bulking agents, they draw water from nearby tissues in your bowel, which softens your bowel and stretches the walls of your large intestine. This stimulates contractions and makes it easier to produce excrement. Osmotic agents are often in liquid form.
Stool softeners. This adds moisture to your stool, softening it and making it easier to go. These are usually administered orally.
Enemas and suppositories are not listed in any category, although they are usually considered a laxative. The reason why some don’t consider it a true laxative is because it is administered through the anus instead of the mouth. Enemas would be considered to be similar to osmotic agents, whereas suppositories are closely related to stool softeners.
What are the appropriate and inappropriate ways of administrating it?
Laxatives are used for very few appropriate reasons because of how stressful it is on your system. It is normally used to relieve constipation or severe irregularity. Bowel problems are often fixed by making dietary changes and “waiting it out”, but if the problem persists it is recommended to meet with a doctor. A doctor will make a recommendation afterwards, and you may either be prescribed an over-the-counter laxative or a laxative available in stores, depending of the severity.
One other use of laxatives is to empty the bowels before an important medical procedure, such as a colonoscopy, gastric bypass, or organ transplant.
Some inappropriate ways of administrating laxatives are to lose unwanted weight, to get rid of food eaten before, to get rid of unwanted calories, and to fix minor irregularity. A common myth about laxatives is that it will cause you to lose weight or get rid of calories (purging) eaten, but this is not the case. The only drop in weight is the initial weight you lose from excrement and water weight, but this will return once you resume normal eating and drinking practices. Since most calories are absorbed in the small intestine, where all excrement passes, the calories are still digested.
For minor irregularity, a change in lifestyle is suggested instead. Eating more vegetables and fruits aids in digestion, along with eating lots of fiber. Taking laxatives to fix this problem may actually promote more irregularity and constipation.
Why misuse can lead to death
Although the problem is less serious for bulking agents such as Metamucil, misuse and abuse of laxatives can be damaging to your body. It causes numerous problems if misused, such as:
– Painful cramps
– Vomiting
– Increased constipation
– Dependence
– Lazy bowel syndrome, when your digestive system cannot produce a bowel movement without the aid of laxatives.
– Hemorrhoids
Misuse can easily turn into abuse and addiction, which leads to often fatal, irreversible consequences. These consequences are:
– Severe dehydration, which sometimes can lead to death.
– Irritable Bowel Syndrome
– Ulcerated bowel
– Edema, where the body retains extra fluid because of the constant loss of fluid from laxative abuse. This can be sometimes painful.
– Bloody stool
– Unpleasant odor
– Fainting and dizziness
– Loss of vital minerals
– Muscle cramps and spasms
– Permanent inability to expel or control bowel stools. Some people must wear a diaper for the rest of his/her life because of this.
– Kidney damage
– Irregular heartbeat
– Severe electrolyte imbalance. This can cause instant death at any time, and was responsible for the death of Melissa Booth, a bulimic who died from a heart attack. The coroner contributes her death to her abuse of laxatives, along with her obsession with magazines.
Laxative Abuse and Eating Disorders
Laxative abuse is more common in eating disordered individuals than non-eating disorders individuals, specifically people with Bulimia Nervosa. Bulimia Nervosa is an eating disorder where a person eats a large amount of calories (varying from 800 to 20,000 calories) and expels it to get rid of unwanted calories. Along with self-induced vomiting, using laxatives is another way of “purging” the calories, although this is an ineffective way. Laxative abuse can be severe with bulimics, sometimes administrating the drug up to 3 times a day. Bulimics are often at a normal or a heavier weight, so their disorder is often hard to detect.
How manufacturers are addressing the issue
They’re not. This may be because laxative abuse has not been talked about regularly, or at least not a persistent problem for manufacturers. It is very rare to find any manufacturer that addresses this problem, and if so, do not directly address the issue of laxative abuse, only misuse. An important thing to note: Dulcolax sells their laxatives in counts of 100, when the prescribed dose is 1 to 3 pills. Some see this as purposely selling their product to people with laxative addictions.
I think I have an addiction to laxatives, what should I do?
Talk to someone. Laxative abuse is a serious problem that can lead to death, and is a precursor to Bulimia Nervosa. Talk with someone who trust, such as a friend, family member, or teacher, and ask for support. It’s important to have someone to support you with this addiction so it is easier to quit.
If you want to quit, don’t quit cold turkey. This is hard on your system and causes complications also, such as severe constipation and bloating. Slowly decrease your dosage so that your body adjusts, and take extra measures to take care of yourself, such as adding more fiber to your diet, eating lots of vegetables and fruits, drinking 6 to 10 glasses of water a day, and eating regularly. See a doctor if you have trouble quitting – you may need additional help, such as therapy.
Abusing laxatives is a serious problem that can turn fatal if you’re not careful. See your doctor if you truly have bowel complications, and if you misuse laxatives, stop. There are more safer ways to lose weight than to take laxatives – laxatives often make you gain weight. To find out more about the dangers of laxative abuse, read ANRED’s section about laxative abuse, http://www.anred.com/lax.html or visit something-fishy.org.
