Author: Maria Alfano
So many things change as we age so staying on top of your poop health in midlife is vitally important. This is stinky business but we need to talk about it. Poop can tell you so much about your overall health. You can’t ignore it anymore.
As gross as it sounds, look into the porcelain throne every once in a while to see what is going on inside. Your stools are hiding all the secrets that lie deep within the center of your core. Examine them carefully to discover your truth before it’s too late.
Way too many adults ignore what their bowel movements are telling them, partly from ignorance and partly from fear of what they might find out. Wouldn’t you rather figure it out sooner rather than later? Figure out what is happening quickly and avoid heartache in the future. While we were growing up, my parents told us that talking about poop is a no-no and we should not be discussing it with anyone. How wrong this misconception was then and still is today.
Our ancestors suffered in silence from the shame associated with bad pooping. Shed that shame handed down from generation to generation and start paying attention. It is a matter of life and death – literally.
This post is all about your poop health at midlife & beyond, the importance of poop colors, the significance of poop shape, and the impact on your body of bad bowel movements.
What You Need To Know About Your Poop Health in Midlife And Beyond
My gastroenterologist described the poop cycle like this. The magic happens while you sleep. All the food you ingest throughout the day moves through your digestive tract. The intestines take all the nutrients they need from the food. Unwanted food moves along through the small and large intestine to be passed through the colon. When you wake up in the morning and you start moving about the house in your normal routine, the colon gets the signal that it is time to release its passenger. You can sit on the throne for up to 10 minutes under normal circumstances to completely evacuate. A healthy human will go anywhere between every couple of days to 3x per day.
The Bristol Stool Scale
66 people took to a study along with Dr. Ken Heaton at the University of Bristol to review and understand the various types of stools and the impact poop health has on people. In 1997 the Bristol Stool Scale was born. It looks at the shape of your bowel movements to determine what is happening in your gut biome. They determined there are 7 main categories of poops anyone can experience.
Type 1 – Little Rocks – these are hard, dried pebble-like pieces that are difficult to pass. Definitely constipated
Type 2 – Beaded Chain – these are a bunch of little rocked stuck together like wooden beads on a chunky fashion necklace. Mild constipation happening.
Type 3 – Logs – pretty normal poops easily flowing. They look like brown cigars.
Type 4 – Snakes – also pretty normal. These are longer brown poops that easily pass.
Type 5 – The Blob – a bunch of soft, easy-to-pass pieces that have a definite shape. They result from the lack of fiber to bulk up the poop and give it some weight.
Type 6 – Mush – think of porridge consistency. These are easy to pass because they are so soft and are a clear indication of mild diarrhea.
Type 7 – Splat – this is all water and no shape. Full-blown diarrhea.
Everyone would love to live at Type 3 and 4 forever but that is not possible. Bodies change, our diets change, and sometimes we are too lazy to do the right thing so we snack on junk food and eat at the local fast-food joint. These impact our poop health. Type 1 and 2 result from a lack of exercise and not consuming enough fiber and water. Blocked bowels and an underactive thyroid also contribute to constipation. Types 5 through 7 are associated with a lack of fiber and the inflammation that results from too much water and too little fiber to absorb it.
Poop Colors
Yup, I said it. Poop comes in many colors. Some colors set off alarm bells. Are you paying attention? Don’t be disgusted. Be curious. Your poop health determines your overall health. Trust me. You will want to know sooner rather than later if something is going on. Your stool colors are heavily influenced by the color of the food you eat. For example, if you consume a lot of carrots, butternut squash, or pumpkin, your stools will likely be orange. This is normal and expected. The bile produced by the liver is used to break down fats. This what turns poop the usual normal brown color. However, if your stools are any of the following colors you may want to pay attention.
What Do They All Mean?
Yellow – stools are greasy and contain too much fat. This is the kind that is difficult to flush and wants to go nowhere. This is often a sign of celiac disease, pancreatitis, or pancreatic cancer.
Light Green – generally a result of eating dark leafy green vegetables and is considered normal.
Super Dark Green – means you are passing your stools too quickly and the bile has not had time to turn the poop brown. This could be a sign of bowel incontinence.
White/Clay – colorless or very pale poops are a result of a blocked bile duct. This is an early sign of gallstones, infection, and inflammation.
Red – if it’s not the food you ate, then it is definitely bleeding in the lower intestines, rectal area, or stomach lining. This needs to be attended to quickly to avoid any serious problems.
Black – this is not good as it is a sign of bleeding high up in the intestinal tract. Because the poop flows along a canal that is approximately 25 feet long, the blood caught in the poop at the top of the track dries out as it moves along to exit your body. This is often a sign of tumors or cancer.
These colors are no joke. While you might think this is a topic better left alone, don’t keep it to yourself. You could be passing on genetic traits that your loved ones need to know.
CONSTIPATION & Poop HeaLth
The worst feeling in the world is needing to go but not being able to. This happens to everyone on occasion but happens more often as we age. WHY!! Did you know there are physical reasons for this unnatural phenomenon that is affecting your poop health?
Constipation is the direct result of irregular bowel movements resulting from changes in your diet, changes in your daily routine, not eating enough fiber, or not drinking enough water. As we age, we become less active. Our metabolism slows down. We have weakened stomach muscles that used to push the poop down the digestive tract. With everything slowing down, so does the flow of the poop, thus making it harder to push it out.
Because unwanted food is passed down the line to the colon, the moisture and water are drawn from the food as it moves along. The slower it passes due to the weakened muscles, the more of the water is absorbed into the intestines and eventually the colon. Your poop is now dried up in the colon and it rests there until your body has had enough of this unwelcome orb. By then it’s too late. You are officially constipated and getting rid of this guest will prove to be very difficult.
SYMPTOMS of COnstipation
The first sign of constipation is the infrequency within which you are able to go to the bathroom. If three or more days pass between bowel movements, you are constipated. Pain when going is often a direct result of constipation. Swollen, bloated, nausea, and stomach cramps are more often than not due to lack of pooping and constipation. Ladies, I know this sounds like the good old days of your monthly cycle. The symptoms are very familiar.
If these symptoms persist and you are not able to go for a period of three weeks call your doctor right away. This blockage is very bad for your overall health and you need to get this taken care of right away. Personally, I would not wait that long. I would want to get it fixed as soon as possible to avoid any future issues.
Contributors To Constipation
Believe it or not, the top three contributors to constipation are the easiest to rectify.
Your Own Doing
1 – Dehydrated – the body is more than 60% water. The brain and heart use up most of the water you drink. When you don’t consume enough throughout the day, the body will use what it gets to protect the brain and heart first. That leaves little to no water to be used by the intestines to keep your poop soft as it travels to the exit door. A good rule of thumb is to drink 1 oz of water for each lb. of body weight. Someone weighing 150 lbs should drink 150 oz of water.
2 – Lack of fiber – this carbohydrate is not digestible by the body. It becomes the carrier to transport all the gunk from the digestive tract into the colon and into the toilet bowl. The more water your drink, the more fiber you should add to your diet. The two are the perfect dance partners. Fiber bulks up your stools like a bodybuilder bulks up his muscles. Stools become heavier. As a result, they move faster to their final destination. A simple and fast way to increase your fiber intake is with Metamucil.
3 – Lack of exercise – our bodies lose strength from the hormone imbalance driven by age. Exercise is a good way to keep the muscles strong. Engaging your core muscles, helps the intestinal tract stay strong and healthy. The stomach muscles have the ability to work that poop down the line and nudge to the endpoint without any major hiccups along the way.
No Outside Help
4 – Not going – so many people have a phobia of using a public restroom. When they need to go and they are not comfortable with the location they will hold it in. That is the worst thing you can do. You are telling your body that you don’t want to know the signal. It eventually stops telling you that you need to go. The signals stop coming and you stop going. The good news is you can train your body to start sending these signals back to you. Sit on the toilet at the same time every day. Do it in a place where you feel most comfortable. If you feel like you gotta go, then go!! Don’t concern yourself with where you are. The importance is getting the job done.
5 – Too much cheese– the proteins in cow’s milk can be too strong for some people to absorb into the body and makes it difficult to process. Milk causes mucus in humans that is detrimental to good health. Mucus has been shown to contribute to many diseases as mild as constipation and as severe as cancer.
6 – Medications – some prescribed medications like antibiotics can cause constipation. Your body will eventually become accustomed to the change and will typically regulate itself. If it doesn’t help it along with items 1 to 3 above.
Constipation Health Issues
Constipation is the number one contributor to some of the following health issues.
Hemorrhoids – soft fleshy tissue that forms around the outer edge of the rectum. When you strain to poop, the tissue gets engorged with blood making it more difficult to have a bowel movement by closing the passageway. The best thing for hemorrhoids is to stay regular. That keeps them soft and loose and allows stools to pass normally.
Fissures – tears within the lining of the rectum and colon. These are painful reminders of your lack of excretions and are a result of the hard dry poops. Bleeding happens along with the pain.
Diverticulitis – is a small pouch that forms in the intestinal tract that can collect fecal matter and causes infections. This is very uncomfortable and needs to be medically treated.
Fecal Impaction – think of a garbage compactor. Everything goes into one spot and it gets smushed together into a small space. The same thing happens when you have too much poop that can’t come out. You become backed up like a clogged drain. The longer the bowels hold onto the stools the harder it becomes to expel them.
This post was all about your poop health at midlife & beyond, the importance of poop colors, the significance of poop shape, and the impact on your body of bad bowel movements.