Pencil thin stool
"Everything lands in the stomach where it's all churned together, and when it's ready it's released into the small intestines together," he says.Ģ. Contrary to popular belief, Levy says, foods do not digest in the order they are eaten. The stomach takes in the food, then churns it and breaks it into tiny particles called "chyme." The chyme are then released in small batches into the small intestine, where most digestion occurs, he says. The major part of the digestive process takes place in the small intestine.
Myth or Fact: Digestion takes place primarily in the stomach.Īnswer: Myth. How much do you really know about your stomach?ġ. When it comes to the tummy, experts say myths abound. So although it's no bed of roses, it is normal for your bowel movements to stink. They are also the reason why poop smells - a direct result of the bacterial activity in your GI tract. Your intestines are swarming with trillions upon trillions of bacteria that enhance digestive and metabolic processes. It’s normal, and probably a good sign that your gut is abundant with bacteria that is working hard to keep you healthy. But is it normal if your trips to the bathroom mean that the rest of the family has to avoid that part of the house for an hour or two? The answer is yes. “But recent research indicates that this is actually not true.” Size and shape are irrelevant, Aserkoff says, if what’s coming out is normal for you. Size and shape: “We used to believe that size was indicative of a problem if the stool was ‘pencil-thin,’” Aserkoff says. Although it doesn’t happen often, very light-colored stool can indicate a block in the flow of bile or liver disease. Stool that is light in color - like grey clay - can also mean trouble if it’s a change from what you normally see. However, black stools are common when taking a vitamin that contains iron or medications that contain bismuth subsalicylate. Stool that is black due to bleeding is also "sticky" (tarry) and smells bad. “If stool is black, it can mean that you are bleeding internally, possibly as a result of an ulcer or cancer,” he says. Color can be a red flag when it’s a drastic change, Aserkoff says. If it takes a shorter time, the result may be greener stool because green is one of the first colors in the rainbow of the digestive process. The food you eat typically takes three days from the time you eat it until it finishes its journey in your toilet, Aserkoff says. As long as you feel comfortable, you don’t need to give your BMs much thought.Ĭolor: “Bowel movements are generally brown in color because of bile, which is produced in the liver and important to the digestion process,” Aserkoff tells WebMD. It’s average to go once or twice a day, he says, but many people go more, and some go less - maybe every other day, and or as infrequently as once or twice a week. But being knowledgeable about your digestive process can help you identify when normal goes awry.įrequency: “There is no normal when it comes to frequency of bowel movements, only averages” says Bernard Aserkoff, MD, a physician in the GI Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
When it comes to frequency, color, shape, and size, a general rule of thumb is that normal bowel movements are defined as what’s comfortable for you. “Bowel movements are important for your health because they are the body’s natural way of excreting waste from the body,” says Eric Esrailian, MD, section head in general gastroenterology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Here's the scoop on poop.īowel movements are the end result of your body taking the nutrients it needs from the food you eat and eliminating what's left. But asking some important questions about your bowel movements might give you some insight into your gastrointestinal health. We don't generally discuss it in our daily conversations. We have a lot of silly names for it: BMs, caca, doo-doo, turds, and of course, poop.