Elvis Presley Health Issues Worsened? Why The King Looked Bloated Before Death Revealed

Elvis Presley's appearance changed drastically months before his death.

From being a fit, hunky singer and actor, Presley shocked fans when he began to show massive changes in his appearance and physique. Videos and photos captured him looking fat while sweating profusely during his concerts.

Apart from those issues, his fans also noted that his bloated appearance lingered until his death.

Why Elvis Presley Was So Bloated

Elvis Presley's cause of death was listed as heart failure after he was found unconscious in his master suite's bathroom. At that time, an ambulance took him to the Baptist Memorial Hospital where he received multiple CPR and was pronounced dead.

However, it was also suggested that his gluttony led him to embrace an unhealthy lifestyle that resulted in more health problems, including constipation which caused his bloated appearance.

According to The Mirror, the "Love Me Tender" singer spent months inside his bedroom devouring platters of cheeseburgers. His diet soon led to chronic constipation, which was prolonged after his death.

The post-mortem examination even found out that he had a compacted stool in his bowel and estimated that it had been there for at least four months.

Chief investigator for the Tennessee Office of the State Chief Medical Examiner Dan Warlick attended the autopsy and created the theory that Presley passed away due to his chronic constipation.

"Presley's chronic constipation - the result of years of prescription drug abuse and high-fat, high-cholesterol gorging - brought on what's known as Valsalva's maneuver," he went on. "Put simply, the strain of attempting to defecate compressed the singer's abdominal aorta, shutting down his heart."

How Serious Elvis Presley's Constipation Was

The health issue regarding his constipation became one of the most popular theories about Presley's death; others even alleged he died from an overdose, something coroner Joseph Davis tagged as impossible when the investigation reopened in 1994.

Meanwhile, Presley's longtime friend and personal physician, Dr. George Nichopoulos also spoke about the severity of his constipation after discovering about it after the autopsy. He noted that they thought his constipation was secondary to the medicines he took for insomnia and arthritic pain.

Presley's colon was 5 to 6 inches in diameter at the time of his death - the numbers were double the normal 2 to 3 inches. It was also 8 to 9 feet long instead of the standard 4 to 5 feet.

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