do humans consume nutrution through their rectums or is their another reason?
2007-01-20 14:24:35 · 3 answers · asked by hello 2 in Health ➔ Other - Health
hello,
Well, you have it almost right. Glycerin is not a sugar, it's a sugar alcohol more closely related to propane than it is to sucrose.
The reason it is used as a suppository is that it is hygroscopic, which means that it absorbs water. One of the reasons that humans become constipated is a lack of water in their large intestine, and the addition of glycerin to the large intestine attracts water from teh body into the intestine, thus moistening the waste contained there and making it easier to expel.
It treats the constipation without causing diarrhea, and since it's an important substance in the body--it's part of our triglycerides--it's really hard to overdose on it. It's safe and effective and very mild without serous side effects. Not bad for a medicine..
2007-01-20 14:37:09 · answer #1 · answered by eutychusagain 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's used as a laxative in the case you're talking about. It's actually not pure sugar. It's a kind of alcohol sugar since it has the OH (hydroxyl) group on the molecule. By the way, I'm assuming you mean glycerin or at least a product that contains glycerin.
2007-01-20 22:30:13 · answer #2 · answered by tooqerq 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's so they can poop.
2007-01-20 22:32:07 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋