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Ideally, your stool should be somewhere between firm and soft. Thankfully you can figure this out just by looking at it – there's no need to do a touch test. If your poop is a well-formed log and it wasn't too hard to squeeze out, it's probably the right consistency.
How often should I have bowel movements?
As far as how often to have a bowel movement, there isn’t an exact number. Bowel activity varies for each person. However, medicine and science will often use the “basic rule of three” to describe a typical movement, meaning you have bowel activity anywhere between three times a day and three times a week.
You’ll poop more or less each day (or week) depending on a number of factors, such as your:
Pooping shouldn’t be painful. If you frequently have bowel movements that are painful to pass or result in cramping after you make them, it’s time to speak with a doctor. You could have a condition like:
What is the cause of diarrhea and constipation:
Constipation and diarrhea both involve concerns with the passage of stool. But while constipation is infrequent bowel activity or difficulty passing stool, diarrhea refers to loose or watery stools. Different factors can trigger either symptom, such as:
A person has to poop to survive because the body doesn’t have a way of getting rid of these wastes otherwise. If a person doesn’t poop for many days, the stool can back up in the intestines. If this goes on for too long, it starts to pose a risk to your safety and can damage your organs. This is why pooping is so important for your health.
Even if you don’t have a footstool to raise your feet, you can still try adjusting your posture. While you’re sitting on the toilet, try planting your feet on the ground so that your knees are higher than your seat or higher than usual.
How often should I have bowel movements?
As far as how often to have a bowel movement, there isn’t an exact number. Bowel activity varies for each person. However, medicine and science will often use the “basic rule of three” to describe a typical movement, meaning you have bowel activity anywhere between three times a day and three times a week.
You’ll poop more or less each day (or week) depending on a number of factors, such as your:
- diet
- age
- physical activity level
Pooping shouldn’t be painful. If you frequently have bowel movements that are painful to pass or result in cramping after you make them, it’s time to speak with a doctor. You could have a condition like:
- irritable bowek syndrome
- Cron's disease
- uncerative colitis
What is the cause of diarrhea and constipation:
Constipation and diarrhea both involve concerns with the passage of stool. But while constipation is infrequent bowel activity or difficulty passing stool, diarrhea refers to loose or watery stools. Different factors can trigger either symptom, such as:
- diet
- food intolerances
- medications
- conditions affecting the gastrointestinal tract
Tips for incontinence or diarrhea
- Avoid foods known to irritate the stomach and cause loose stools (especially caffeine, dairy, and alcohol).
- Drink plenty of water or electrolyte-containing beverages to stay hydrated.
- Increase your fiber intake to add bulk to your stool.
Tips for constipation
- Try to get at least 25 to 30g fibre per day.
- Increase your physical activity level.
- Always use the bathroom when you get the urge to go — don’t try and hold it.
What bowel movements are for
Bowel movements (sometimes called BMs for short) are your body’s way of getting rid of waste that doesn’t have any use in the body. While it may not look like it, poop is about three-fourths water. The remainder is a collection of materials that includes:- bacteria
- fats
- fiber (undigested foods, including nuts and seeds)
- food wastes
- mucus
- salts
A person has to poop to survive because the body doesn’t have a way of getting rid of these wastes otherwise. If a person doesn’t poop for many days, the stool can back up in the intestines. If this goes on for too long, it starts to pose a risk to your safety and can damage your organs. This is why pooping is so important for your health.
Extra help:
Pooping is part physical, part mental. If you aren’t pooping as easily or often as you’d like, addressing these aspects can help.Drink water
Water and fiber: These are two major components of poop that are part of your diet. Making efforts to drink more water daily can help make your bowel movements easier to pass.Eat fruits, nuts, grains, and vegetables
In addition, it’s important to eat foods with plenty of fiber. This adds bulk to your stool, which stimulates the bowels to move and propel your stool forward. Foods that contain fiber include:- fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries, and apples
- nuts and seeds, such as pistachios, almonds, or sunflower seeds
- vegetables, such as broccoli, lima beans, and carrots
- whole-grain breads, such as seven-grain, cracked wheat, or pumpernickel
Add fiber foods slowly
Don’t incorporate too much fiber into your diet at a time — it can have an opposite, constipating effect. Instead, try to add a serving every 5 days to allow your digestive tract time to acclimate itself to the increased fiber.Cut out irritating foods
In addition to constipation that makes stools harder to pass, some people experience stool that’s too loose. When this is the case, cutting out foods that can irritate the stomach can help. Examples to cut from your diet include:- alcoholic beverages
- caffeinated drinks, like tea, coffee, and sodas
- fatty foods
- foods that contain sugar alcohols that end in the letters -ol (such as sorbitol, mannitol, and xylitol)
- spicy foods
Move more
Your intestines have a natural motion that moves stool forward. If your body isn’t moving stool through fast enough, then you can help it out with increased exercise. Physical activity, such as walking, running, or swimming, can all promote motion that helps you poop better. Even short amounts of activity — 10 to 15 minutes — can help.Change your bathroom posture
Another tip you can try has to do with your posture on the toilet. Changing the angle of your legs changes the angle of your colon. Toilet footstools are one accessory that you can use in the bathroom to do this. Some people find that it helps them have a more comfortable and effective bowel movement.Even if you don’t have a footstool to raise your feet, you can still try adjusting your posture. While you’re sitting on the toilet, try planting your feet on the ground so that your knees are higher than your seat or higher than usual.
