Even after consuming thousands of calories and massive amounts of laxatives, the laxative abusers managed to remove only about 100 extra calories from their bodies, the amount found in one small cookie. You can upset your electrolyte balance. Electrolytes are minerals like sodium, potassium that are dissolved in the blood and other body fluids. They must be present in very specific amounts for proper functioning of nerves and muscles, including the heart muscle. The resulting dehydration can lead to tremors, weakness, blurry vision, fainting spells, kidney damage, and in some cases death.
Severe dehydration requires medical treatment.
Drinking fluid may not hydrate cells and tissues quickly enough to prevent organ damage or death. Laxatives irritate intestinal nerve endings, which in turn stimulate muscle contractions that move the irritant through the gut and out of the body. After a while the nerve endings no longer respond to stimulation. The person must now take greater and greater amounts of laxatives to produce bowel movements. Laxatives and enemas strip away protective mucus that lines the colon, leaving it vulnerable to infection.