Your poop frequency and quality say a lot about your health.
You may wonder if your poop is normal or comes out frequently enough.
Getting that gunk out of you is not only essential, but it’s key to better health and longevity.
Healthy poo means your digestion is working as it should, and there are a lot of signs in your poop that uncover the truth about your health.
Many factors go into healthy poop, including your diet.
There is also exercise, medications you might be taking (including vitamins), stress and how much fibre is in your diet.
What’s normal & abnormal poo?
What a great question to ponder and observe daily
(I’m not joking here, lol).
Colon cancer is exploding at the moment, and one of the obvious signs are bowel movements (or lack of them), pain, and the colour of your poop.
As gross as it is, looking at your poo after you do your business is a good idea.
It’s a very healthy habit to get into, even if it might initially seem strange.
Think of it as being in line with observing your wee for dehydration.
Do I check out my poo too?
Well, I have to because of my food intolerances and digestive issues. It’s something my gastroenterologist taught me to do many years ago.
Poop varies in colour, and I’ve attached a chart here to help you look for the signs of both healthy, could be ok or see your doctor, not ok colours.
In saying that, here is a small rundown of the selected shades for your information
Black poop
You might be taking iron tables (in which it’s normal to have black poop),
But it could also mean you have blood in your poop (internal bleeding). So see your doctor urgently if you don’t take iron supplements or medication that might cause the colour.
Brown poop
Brown Poop is the most typical colour in the toilet bowl, and it’s relatively normal.
Green poop
Green might be in line with the number of vegetables you eat, or that food might be moving too fast out of your digestive system.
Neon green colours could be some artificial naughties eaten, such as frosting on a cake or a drink. I would not recommend eating these items.
Red poop
Please don’t be alarmed, as eating beets, cranberries, red gelatine, tomatoes, or juice could be the case.
If you have blood in the toilet bowl or when you wipe your bottom — please see your doctor immediately.
It may not be anything, but it could be something sinister.
Yellow poop
Greasy, smelly, or very yellow-like poo indicates that you eat a lot of fat, which might be a sign of malabsorption.
If you have been sick lately, it could have occurred because of this food intolerance or some form of the disease that affects your intestinal lining.
Check it out with your doctor if you have any pain or discomfort (or losing a lot of weight).
White or pale poop
Chalk-like colour in your poo is a bad sign, guys.
It means your body isn’t producing bile, which may be blocked.
It could also mean you are experiencing the side effects of medication used to induce diarrhea.
Be sure to check it out with your doctor.
Here is the poop colour chart
Poop colour chart courtesy of healthline.
Keep your eye on the shape of your poop.
Colour is one part of a healthy or unhealthy digestive system.
It’s important to be conscious of the consistency, shape & smell of what comes out of us too!
To help you along, I have included a poop shape chart with a small snippet of its description.
Explaining bowel movements to your doctor may feel weird, but if you are experiencing some real issues, it will help push your diagnosis through much faster.
Diarrohea and constipation are the two key poop you should look out for.
Please look at the chart above to cross reference these short descriptions.
Type One
Small balls mean constipation, or they may have been sitting around your intestine for a while.
Food takes about three days to complete its journey. If you are constipated, drink lots of water, eat more vegetables and try a chia water drink such as this to help you go to the bathroom a lot easier.
Beat Constipation, Eliminate Bloating and Get Flatter Abs With this DrinkPerhaps a lifesaver for many peoplemedium.com.
If you keep experiencing problems, please seek the advice of your doctor.
Type Two
A poop that comes out like this is healthy.
Congratulations. You win first prize in the poop war. Keep up your water quota and add some extra fibre to make the journey a lot easier (if you are struggling slightly).
Type Three
Normal poop number two is this shape and consistency.
Your digestive system is working as it’s supposed to, so congratulations.
Type Four
Normal poop shape number three! Whatever you seem to be doing is working well -so keep up the great work.
Type Five
A shape such as this might mean you aren’t having enough fibre in your diet as the food seems to be pushed through your digestive tract very fast.
Type six
Mushy poop like this is diarrhoea; perhaps you are sick or have a medical condition at the time.
Chronic diarrhoea could mean you aren’t absorbing the nutrients from your food.
Type Seven
A poop such as this is diarrhoea. Triggers range from diet, illness or food poisoning.
You may also have a food intolerance to gluten or dairy.
Use food elimination to see if this occurs, and chat with your doctor.
Usually, a specialist can help you with allergies or intolerances.
Key takeaways
Poop can vary depending on your eating, stress and activity levels, and an impending disease.
I have written about poop because of my passion for uncovering cancer or disease markers before they become huge problems.
Colon cancer is on the rise worldwide, and if we stopped to pay attention to the signs our body is giving us, we could eliminate most of the hard road to recovery that awaits us.
Observing how your body reacts is always a good practice for those with no disease, illness or underlying health issues.
It’s just a good habit to get into and keep.
A small change can cause an onset of problems, and the best way to stop this from escalating is through prevention.
If we can prevent something larger from occurring, we can take control of our health a lot faster.
Does anyone else check out their poop for their health’s sake?
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