WHAT YOUR "POO" SAYS ABOUT YOU!
Funny title aside… Have you ever found yourself wondering “do I have gut issues?”
Digestion is a trendy topic right now and perhaps rightfully so. We’ve shied away from talking about our bowel movements for so long that no one has any idea what normal is. And frankly, it's been the cause of some major issues across a good portion of the population.
Over 70 million Americans suffer with at least one digestive issue and over half of those have visited the hospital due to their condition. Many of these people are diagnosed with IBS.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (C - constipation or D - diarrhea) is a common and catch-all disorder affecting the large intestine that includes cramping, abdominal pain, bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation or both. “The cause isn’t well understood” often appears when you Google this disorder. Which then leads to the question, “WHAT exactly is irritating the bowels”?
When we're aware of the accelerant, so to speak, that we are pouring onto our gut, we're better able to make choices to address it.
Do we have an overgrowth of yeast or bacteria? (SIBO, SIFO, or Candida)
Do we have food intolerances or allergies?
Do we have dysbiosis, an imbalance of microbes in our gut?
Do we have intestinal permeability, often known as “leaky gut” syndrome?
Do we have a stress management problem?
Do we consume the Standard American Diet (SAD)?
SO WHAT IS NOT NORMAL?
Going to the bathroom a few times per week is not considered “normal”. Believe it or not, we want to be passing bowel movements 1-3 times per day!
Too soft… or too hard. We are looking for a #4 on the Bristol Stool Chart (chart below). This chart is a great guideline to get familiar with if you’re not already!
You’re bloated, gassy or uncomfortable after eating. It is normal to feel full and satisfied after a meal - but it is notnormal to be uncomfortable to the point that your clothes no longer fit.
You experience frequent burning or reflux. This may be an issue of too much acid, food intolerance, or likely an underproduction of stomach acid. Needing TUMs after each meal isn't normal (and likely isn't helping the root cause of your reflux!)
You’re sluggish, tired and lethargic after meals. Food should energize us. If you’re feeling sluggish after meals, it could mean we’ve eaten too much in one sitting, we didn’t eat a balanced meal of carbohydrates, dietary fats and proteins, or perhaps we’ve eaten something we have a temporary intolerance to.
Your weight fluctuates dramatically. If we're not having regular bowel movements, we're often simultaneously seeing issues with water retention and inflammation. While it is normal to see the scale fluctuate one, two, even three pounds in one day, it isn’t normal to be fluctuating four, five, six, seven, plus pounds in one or two days.
You can’t sleep through the night. If you’re rudely awakened by your bowels in the middle of the night, this could be indicative of a deeper issue. Bowel movements shouldn’t cause urgency or panic.
You’re exerting a lot of effort to “go”. Maybe even more important than the number of bowel movements you’re having per day is the ease in which we are having them.
SHADES OF POO
Brown - good to go, your poo is naturally brown due to the bile produced in your liver.
Green - food may be moving through your large intensive too quickly, or you’ve just eaten a ton of green colored foods.
Yellow - this is usually do to excessive fat which could be due to malabsorption.
Black - Some vitamins, like iron can cause your stool to appear black but this could also be dried blood. Speak to your doctor.
White or Light - This could be a bile duct obstruction or a result of some medications, speak to your doctor if you’re concerned.
Red - Beets or blood, always contact your doctor if you’re experiencing blood in your stool.
WHAT CAN I DO TO IMPROVE MY POO?
Hydration: There are many reasons to stay hydrated from regulating body temperature to keeping your organs functioning properly. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommends women consume 91 ounces of water per day (just over 11 cups) and Men consume 125 ounces per day (just over 15 cups). If you’re not consuming enough water your large intestine will soak up water from your food waste, leaving you with hard stools that are typically difficult to pass.
Fiber: The average American consumes 10 to 15 grams of fiber per day however, it's recommended to consume a minimum of 25g (we often recommend 25-40 with our Level TEN clients). Interestingly, Indigenous people who still live the hunter and gatherer lifestyle typically consume upwards of 100g per day! Due to the lack of dietary fiber and overall diversity of whole, plant based foods in the standard American diet, many of our gut microbiome's have lost this level of diversity. A variety of fruits, veggies, and whole foods is great for the gut from a fiber standpoint! (NOTE: Start slow in working your fiber intake up!)
Eat the Rainbow (80/20 Rule): Like fiber, which we get from plants, eating a diet rich in whole foods with lots of diverse plants and phytonutrients is not only good for the body, but the gut as well. Coach Ariana wrote an informative email on the benefits of eating each specific color when it comes to food (linked below!)
Walking: There are many benefits to walking like lowered blood pressure and sugar, mindfulness, fresh air, increased focus and productivity and exposure to natural light. But did you know that walking will help increase blood flow and can speed up the digestion of your food? Moving your body after a meal can help to get the digestive process going and reduce the sluggish feeling you may feel after eating. This is also important if you’re eating later in the day to give your body a chance to digest your last meal before bed.
Stress Management: As much as the Standard American Diet is an issue for our digestive system, so is our fast paced go go go, do do do lifestyle. It's reported that 77% of people experience stress that affects their physical health. The gut is often referred to as the second brain, or you may have heard of the gut/brain connection via the Vagus Nerve. The gut actually has more neurotransmitters than the brain, so it is no surprise that the stress we experience can directly impact our digestive health. Stress can lead to a reduction in stomach acid production, it can slow (constipation) or drastically speed up (diarrhea) digestion. We can also experience a loosening of the tight junctions in our intestinal walls which are supposed to keep toxins, bacteria, and undigested food within our digestive tract.
Sleep: Last but not least! We now know that having time to digest a meal before bedtime can help us improve overall digestion and lead to a more likely bowel movement first thing in the morning. Getting enough sleep is important for our overall health, stress management, and improved muscle recovery, but it is also imperative for gut health. Actually, we now know that sleep affects our microbiome and our microbiome can actually influence our sleep. Even short periods of reduced, disturbed or loss of sleep can result in metabolic disturbances, including insulin resistance. And on the flip side, studies show that our microbes are regulated by circadian rhythms and are affected by diet and feeding times which then can significantly impact the host's immune and metabolic function.
REFERENCES
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5123208/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27793218/
UNTIL NEXT TIME - COACH ALEX