What a Stool Sample Can Tell About Your Health
What a Stool Sample Can Tell About Your Health
Poop, stool, feces, number two, whatever you want to call it, we’re often a little squeamish to discuss the intricate details of our bathroom lives. We shouldn’t shy away from this discussion, in fact, your poop tells you a lot about your gastrointestinal health and overall health as well. It’s important to take a gander at your stool after you do your business so you can see if there’s anything strange you should be reporting to your Naturopathic Doctor. Here are some things you should be looking out for in your poop:
Shape and Consistency
Is there such thing as the perfect poop? Ideally stool should be formed in a log or sausage shape, be smooth, soft, easily passed and it should sink. If your stool is hard and pebble like, it is a sign that you are not getting enough fibre and/or not drinking enough water. This is often the type of poop associated with constipation and can involve straining. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you’re having watery poops with little solid pieces it is most likely diarrhea. Diarrhea can be caused by a variety of factors such as food poisoning, food sensitivities or even stress. What about floating stool? That means that you’re consuming too many fatty foods or there is a fat malabsorption problem. If your stool is constantly pencil thin it could indicate a narrowing of the colon, which is a symptom of colon cancer.
Colour
The colour of your stool can vary depending on what you eat: beets cause red stools, and lots of leafy vegetables can cause green stools. Even certain medications can cause colour changes, for example, Pepto Bismol and iron supplements turn stools black. Other medications can cause white or grey stools, or it could be an indication of a bile duct obstruction. Yellow stools can be a sign of a pancreatic or gallbladder condition. The colours that raise red flags are jet black and bright red stools. This could indicate that there is bleeding in your gastrointestinal tract and it can be a symptom of ulcers or colon cancer. If food and medications can also cause these colour changes how do you know when it’s serious? Consistency. Look for consistent changes that are unrelated to diet and medication.
Smell
It’s normal for your poop to be a little smelly but when it is really putrid it could indicate an infection. A giardia infection, often from contaminated water consumption, is known for especially smelly poops. Certain conditions can also cause smelly poops, such as celiac disease, ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease.
Frequency
Lastly, how often should you be having a bowel movement? There really is no “normal”; some people go once a day, others twice a day, and some others every other day. The important thing is that you have a consistent pattern. However, if you are having less than 3 bowel movements a week that would be considered constipation and if you’re having more than 3 loose bowel movements in one day it would be classified as diarrhea.
Now that we’ve gone through the nitty gritty, what can naturopathic medicine do for your poop? A Naturopathic Doctor can guide you through making the proper dietary and lifestyle changes to optimize your stool. Sometimes an acupuncture protocol, supplements or botanical medicine can be used in conjunction with these changes to help you have the ultimate pooping experience!