The Library

The Gut Motility Library

Clear, cited explanations of how digestion works and what to do when it does not. Written by Dr. Yaron Cohen, DAOM.
  • Every article cites primary research
  • Written by Dr. Yaron Cohen, DAOM
  • Practicing in MD, VA, DC, GA and NY
Schematic of the large intestine framing the small intestine: the ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon and the start of the sigmoid colon.

Start here

How Bowel Movements Actually Work

What normal bowel function looks like, how stool forms, the four motility patterns, and the mechanics of going, explained in plain language by Dr. Yaron.
  • 16 min read
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Latest articles

A clip-top glass jar of sourdough starter on a folded linen cloth, with a floured loaf on a wooden board blurred in the background.
  • Restoring Motility

What a Stalled Gut Does to Your Internal Environment

  • 4 min read
A slate-grey month calendar with white day letters and dates, mounted on a white-painted brick wall beside softly blurred wooden shelves.
  • Restoring Motility

Why Chronic Constipation Is Rarely Just a Gut Issue

Constipation is usually downstream of something identifiable: medications, thyroid, pelvic floor, routine. Dr. Yaron explains what to work through.
  • 3 min read
A white ceramic mug on a wooden table in front of a window at sunrise.
  • Restoring Motility

Are You Dependent on Laxatives? What Is Actually True

Laxatives are not damaging your colon. Dr. Yaron separates what the evidence supports from what it does not, and names the question that actually matters.
  • 5 min read
A young catalpa tree in a sunlit garden, held upright between two wooden stakes by black webbing straps bolted across them, with mown grass in the foreground and shrubs and a chain-link fence behind.
  • Restoring Motility

How to Retrain Your Bowels Without Relying on Supplements

If you need a pill every day to have a bowel movement, the driver has not been addressed. Dr. Yaron explains what a restorative approach with an exit looks like.
  • 4 min read
A short path of flat stepping stones curving across a lawn beside a dense flower border, the kind of unhurried route a walk after a meal takes.
  • Daily Rhythm & Movement

Using Breathwork and Movement to Encourage Motility

Exercise alone does not resolve constipation. Dr. Yaron explains the diaphragm as a pump, post-meal walking, and what breathwork actually does.
  • 4 min read
A kitchen windowsill in bright daylight, with wooden utensils in a cup, a potted lavender plant in a tin pot on the sill, and a clip-top glass jar beside it.
  • Daily Rhythm & Movement

Rebuilding Your Digestive System’s Natural Daily Clock

The colon keeps time. Dr. Yaron explains the morning window, the gastrocolic reflex, and the small daily anchors that restore a disrupted rhythm.
  • 3 min read
An office tower at dusk, its grid of windows lit from inside, with people still working at desks on several floors.
  • Gut-Brain & Stress

Why Your High-Stress Lifestyle Is Stalling Your Digestion

Stress slows bowel function through routes you can name: pelvic floor guarding, urge suppression, and a disrupted routine. Dr. Yaron explains each one.
  • 4 min read
A boat resting on a low, sunlit river, illustrating that a stalled digestive system needs the water level raised, not a bigger boat added on top
  • Nutrition & Fiber

The Moisture Strategy for Constipation: Stop Bulking, Start Lubricating

Drinking more water is not the same as softening stool. Dr. Yaron explains what actually governs stool consistency and which foods help.
  • 4 min read
Red warning flag raised on a beach, illustrating the clinical red flags that signal when constipation needs medical evaluation
  • Clinical Safety

Constipation Red Flags: When to Stop Self-Managing and See a Doctor

Which constipation symptoms need medical attention, and which are signals to stop self-managing and see a doctor.
  • 3 min read
  • Nutrition & Fiber

When Fiber Makes Constipation Worse (And What to Do Instead)

More fiber is standard advice for constipation, and for some people it backfires. The soluble and insoluble distinction, and what to do instead.
  • 4 min read