CONSTIPATION AND BEHAVIOR

Sir William Arbuthnot Lane regarded as sound doctrine the view of the New Zealand Maori that when the bowels are clean the whole body is clean. And he made the comment: "Its ethical significance is far wider and greater than most of us imagine. The connection between the nervous system of the abdominal and pelvic region and that of the brain is so close and intimate that literally it is a fact that the state of mind and even of the character is largely governed by the state of the bowels." One need not accept this dogmatic statement nor Lane's ideas concerning chronic intestinal stasis; namely, "The whole body gradually becomes saturated with bowel poisons and this poisoning produces physical disease, mental depression and disorganization, and frequently moral disorder as well."

There is littledoubt that many primitive people, including the Maori, gave much attention to the bowels and placed various