Why are my stools getting thinner and thinner?

The stool becoming thinner and thinner is a manifestation of constipation, which is also a very common phenomenon. It will pose a great threat to human health. If it is not relieved in time, it may even cause some other health problems in the human body. There are many reasons for constipation, the most common of which are dietary factors, lack of defecation motivation, bad habits such as delaying defecation, excessive water loss, organic damage, colon diseases, drug effects and mental factors.

1. Dietary factors

Some people eat too little, and their food is too refined and fine. The food does not contain enough fiber and water, which cannot provide a certain amount of stimulation to the intestines. Intestinal peristalsis is slow, and food residues cannot be pushed into the rectum in time. The retention time in the intestine is prolonged, and excessive water is absorbed, resulting in dry stool. The fecal residue that enters the rectum is small in amount and cannot form enough pressure to stimulate the nerve receptor cells to produce a defecation reflex, causing constipation.

2. Lack of power to defecate

When defecating, not only does the anal sphincter need to relax and the levator ani muscles need to be pulled upward and outward, but the diaphragm also needs to be lowered, the abdominal muscles contracted, and the breath held to push the feces out. The elderly, the weak, the bedridden due to long-term illness, the postpartum period, etc. may have difficulty in defecation due to the weakened contraction of the diaphragm, abdominal muscles, and anal sphincter, and the reduced abdominal pressure, which may lead to insufficient defecation power, incomplete feces, residual feces, and difficulty in defecation.

3. Delaying bowel movement

Some people regard defecation as an unimportant matter that can be done early or late, and ignore the habit of regular bowel movements;

Or due to being too busy at work, being stressed, traveling, etc., the stool is delayed, causing the stool that has reached the rectum to return to the colon;

Or the time between bowel movements may be prolonged due to anal diseases such as anal fissures and hemorrhoids, fear of pain, fear of bleeding, and fear of defecation.

This may cause the nerve cells on the rectal wall to become less responsive to the pressure generated by feces entering the rectum, causing feces to stay in the rectum for a longer time without causing the feeling of defecation, resulting in habitual difficulty in defecation.

4. Excessive water loss

Excessive sweating, vomiting, diarrhea, blood loss and fever can all cause water loss, compensatory causes of dry stools.

5. Organic obstruction

When stenosis occurs inside the intestine or compression occurs outside the intestine, such as benign and malignant tumors of the intestine, intestinal stenosis caused by chronic inflammation, rectal spasm and stenosis caused by megacolon, intestinal adhesions after surgery, partial intestinal obstruction, or huge tumors in the abdominal cavity, such as ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, as well as pregnancy, ascites compressing the large intestine, etc., the controllable passage of feces is hindered and stays in the intestine for too long, resulting in difficulty in defecation.

6. Colorectal disease

Diseases such as allergic colitis, diverticulitis, and Hirschsprung's disease can cause large intestine spasms and movement disorders, resulting in poor stool passage and difficulty in defecation.

7. Difficulty in defecation caused by medication

Taking calcium carbonate, aluminum hydroxide, atropine, propantheline, morphine, phenelzine, bismuth carbonate, etc., and metal poisoning such as lead, arsenic, mercury, and phosphorus can cause difficulty in defecation.

Long-term abuse of laxatives reduces the responsiveness of the intestinal wall's nerve receptor cells. Even if there is enough feces in the intestine, normal peristalsis and defecation reflex cannot occur, thus leading to stubborn defecation difficulties.

8. Difficulty in defecation caused by mental factors

Strong mental stimulation, panic, emotional tension, sadness, anxiety, or high concentration on a certain task can make the urge to defecate disappear, resulting in difficulty in defecation.

In addition, nervous system disorders, endocrine disorders, vitamin deficiency, etc. can also cause difficulty in defecation.