Laxatives and Antidiarrheals

Laxatives and antidiarrheals represent two therapeutic categories with opposite goals: promoting bowel evacuation or reducing excessive stool frequency. Laxatives include bulk-forming agents, osmotic agents, stimulant laxatives, emollients, and chloride channel activators, each enhancing colonic transit or softening stool through distinct mechanisms. Antidiarrheals include opioid receptor agonists, adsorbents, bile acid binders, and agents that reduce intestinal secretion or motility. These medications manage conditions such as constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, postoperative bowel dysfunction, infectious diarrhea, and malabsorption-related diarrhea. Proper selection is essential to avoid complications such as electrolyte imbalance, dehydration, or rebound constipation. Laxatives and antidiarrheals play key roles in maintaining bowel regulation and improving digestive comfort.