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Causes of Piles & Advice

If you've got piles, you're not alone. Far from it, in fact. Piles will affect one in two of us at some point. That's nearly every second person at work, on the train – even at the pharmacy.

Piles are caused by increased pressure on the blood vessels in your bottom. These blood vessels stretch and swell, and before you know it, you've got one or several symptoms, including itchiness, pain and maybe even bleeding. Ouch.

Wondering what may cause this increased pressure? A few things:

• Constipation – Never fun, is it. Worse, the straining creates pressure in all the wrong places. What can you do? Try upping your intake of fresh fruit. More fibre will keep things moving as they should.
• Closely related: spending too much time on the toilet, and holding it in when you have to go.
• Pregnancy and childbirth – The extra weight of that lovely bump and the constipation that often comes with pregnancy can put a lot of pressure on your lower organs. Not to mention all that pushing during labour.
• Lifting heavy loads – Whether it's hitting the weights at the gym, hoisting your toddler about or moving boxes at work, you want to take care and avoid putting undue strain on those delicate tissues.
• Being overweight – If you're carrying a few too many pounds, you're putting your abdomen under unnecessary strain. Combine that with a poor diet and you've got a recipe for piles.
• Family history – You may not even know if your parents ever suffered from piles. But if so, you've got someone else you can blame! At least a little.