CONSTIPATION

in physiology, delayed passage of waste through the lower portion of the large intestine, with sometimes the ultimate discharge of relatively dry, hardened feces from the anus. Among the causes cited for the disorder are lack of regularity in one's eating habits, spasms of the large intestine, an infectious disease such as typhoid, diseases of the central nervous system, the taking of such drugs as morphine and codeine, the lack of sufficient bulk in one's food, and the excessive use of laxatives. Constipation may also be caused by intestinal obstruction or by weakness of the abdominal muscles. Temporary constipation most often occurs in conjunction with a change or interruption in one's usual activities, as in travel, temporary confinement to bed, or a change in eating or sleeping habits.