As functional diagnostic nutritionist, I get very excited when it comes to poop.
The reason why is because, having our patients poop for the first time is a huge milestone! As a practitioner, we are just as excited to discuss the importance of regular bowel movements with our clients.
A large majority of my clients do not poop daily or even come close to daily bowel movements.
I’ve heard it so many times during the intake process—my clients claim they don’t have any digestive issues. But, when we ask if they are pooping daily, they may say something like “oh no, I’ve always been constipated… sometimes I go a week without going to the bathroom”!
You may not have heard this from your doctor, but this is not normal!
HUMANS NEED TO POOP EVERY DAY BECAUSE THIS IS HOW WE GET RID OF WASTE AND TOXINS FROM OUR BODIES.
You can talk about detoxing all day, but if you’re not having daily bowel movements, you are not detoxing.
Detoxification comes in 3 phases. The first phase occurs in the liver, and involves the oxidation of harmful toxins to break them down into less harmful metabolites.
Phase two is called the “conjugation” phase, where the metabolites are converted into water-soluble molecules that can easily be excreted via the bile, urine, and stool.
The third phase involves actually excreting waste in the bile, urine, and stool. This key phase is all about elimination, which is why it’s so important to get those bowels moving so that the waste isn’t just sitting in your colon for days.
NORMAL BOWEL MOVEMENTS LOOK LIKE:
- Daily frequency
- 1-3 movements per day
- Formed and soft
- Brown-ish
- Not painful, no straining
- Spending less than 5 minutes on the toilet
- No blood, no mucus
- Slight odor, but not foul-smelling
According to the chart, we want to see types 3 and 5. Anything else points to a potential issue.
I am crabby if I do not poop!!
WHAT ARE SOME STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO START MOVING YOUR BOWELS REGULARLY?
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Get enough fiber in your diet (veggies and starches count)
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Drink enough water— aim for half your body weight in ounces (and don’t forget the electrolytes)!
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Eat fermented foods, such as sauerkraut, kimchi, or yogurt kefir.
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Take a probiotic.
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Consume prebiotic-rich foods (cue the garlic and onions)
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Take a magnesium supplement. Our bodies need magnesium for a multitude of functions, including moving the bowels.
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Handle your stress. Often, constipation is a symptom of unresolved stress in our lives. In order to poop, our parasympathetic nervous system needs to be activated. Magnesium is a helpful stress reduction tool as well.
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Try a 7-day reset.
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Heal your gut! Start by avoiding foods that cause inflammation, e.g. alcohol, rancid oils, sugar.
If you’re having bad gastrointestinal symptoms, signs of high estrogen, skin issues, or brain fog, you may have a gut issue.
To get to the root of it, I work with you to create a customized protocol to help you address any underlying issues.
Here are some key points on your journey of discovery.
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Poo is mostly water
Poo might look solid (unless you’ve got a dose of the runs) but in fact your stools are up to 75 per cent water. And of the solid matter, around a third is dead bacteria. Another third or so is indigestible food matter (which includes the outside of corn kernels you see in there). The rest is cholesterol and fats, protein, and inorganic substances like iron phosphate. These are all collected along the digestive tract from your mouth to your bottom.
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Poo is like Christmas
No, we’re not talking about the colloquial term for the effect your in-laws have on your mood when they arrive on Christmas Day. But poo does come from something red and green. Poo gets its brown color from a chemical that gets released when red blood cells are broken down in our bodies. The chemical travels to the gut via bile, a green digestive fluid produced by the liver. But during the digestion process, bile mixes with what we have eaten, and it changes color from green to brown as it is modified by bacteria as it travels to our colon.
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Poo can be like a rainbow
What you eat can affect the color of your stools, though. So can certain health conditions and medications. The result can be green, pale yellow, grey, black, or maroon. A bright green poo can indicate a quick transition through the bowel where the bile has had no time to change to brown. This can happen if you have diarrhea, for instance. Pale brown or yellowish poo may indicate you are producing too little in the way of bile salts. Persistent greyish white or very pale-yellow poo can also indicate problems with organs like the liver.
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If you see red, it’s a red flag
The most important thing poo can let us know about our health is whether we have a bowel tumor. Bowel tumors often bleed so you should always talk to your doctor if you see any blood after you poo – either on the outside of stools, on toilet paper after you wipe or in the bottom of the toilet bowl.
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But not all red flags mean bowel cancer
Hemorrhoids, anal fissures, bowel polyps, peptic ulcers and a range of other digestive diseases can also cause bleeding on toilet paper or in the toilet bowl. Likewise, black, dark red or maroon poo may also be the result of taking iron tablets or gorging yourself on licorice or blueberries. Sometimes you can have more than one thing going on. Your doctor is the best person to investigate.
I can almost guarantee, if you practice these simple steps every day, your belly fat will start going away in 30 days (or less!).
And if you still feel stuck with belly fat that just won’t budge, let’s test so you don’t have to guess about it anymore!
To get your hands on the right lab tests and resources so you can find the missing pieces to your health puzzle and start feeling like yourself again (or for the first time!),
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TO BOOK YOUR FREE 45 MINUTE DISCOVERY CALL TO SEE IF THIS IS A TEST THAT WOULD HELP YOU. I WILL HELP GO OVER THE BEST PLAN TAILORED JUST FOR YOU TO OPTIMIZE YOUR HEALTH.
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