How normal is your poo routine?

This blog post is from the article Is your poo routine normal? Originally published in GoodFood magazine by Vicky Chandler on August 15th, 2024.

How frequently you go to the washroom and how long it takes can provide important clues about your gut health, which has an overall effect on your entire health. Experts explain what to take notice of, and how to know what’s normal.

Discussing toilet habits isn’t something most of us generally do, even with our closest friends. But the seemingly taboo nature of the subject means we might be missing out on key information about our digestive health, and not paying attention to how important understanding our poo routine actually is.

The frequency of your bowel movements is an important indication of your digestive system, and your overall health. Regular bowel movements signify that your digestive system is functioning properly, and that your gut transit time is healthy. On the flipside, infrequent bowel movements (aka constipation), or loose, watery stools (aka diarrhea), can be an indication of infection, food intolerances, parasites, liver congestion, or other underlying health problems. And completely irregular bowel movements can potentially be a symptom of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), thyroid issues or, in some rare instances, cancer.

A variety of external factors can also affect your bowel schedule. For example, a low fibre diet, dehydration, medication or supplement side effects, and stress and anxiety can all have negative impacts on your bowel movements.

How often should you poo?

As with most things, a single ‘normal’ schedule doesn’t exist here, and it will vary from person to person. “Everyone is different when it comes to how often they open their bowels,” says Dr Alasdair Scott, gut specialist doctor and science director at Selph. “It’s often said that ‘normal’ can be anywhere from three times a day to three times a week, with studies showing that the single most common pattern is once a day.”

But don’t panic if this isn’t you. As Dr Scott points out, if you’ve opened your bowels four times a day without any other issues for the last 10 years, then that’s likely to be your normal. Conversely, if you open your bowels a lot less, that could also just be your normal.

As well as how often you’re going to the toilet, understanding your gut transit time is important too. Gut transit time simply means the time it takes food from being eaten to coming out of the other end.

“A slow transit time generally suggests constipation, which can be caused by things like an imbalance in your gut microbiome or chronic stress,” says NHS GP and gut health specialist Dr Leke Asong. “On the other hand, a fast transit time suggests imbalance in your gut microbiome, IBS, or inflammatory bowel disease like ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease.”

While you can get a medical test for this, known as a colonic transit study, there’s a simple test you can do at home too. Eat some food that’s distinctive in colour (such as beetroot), or hard to break down (such as sweetcorn or sesame seeds). Record the time you eat it, then also record when you see it reappear in your stool (whether that’s the undigested corn or seeds, or a change in colour from the beetroot). By calculating the time between these events, you’ll be able to understand your gut transit time.

Transit times can vary widely from person to person, however an extremely slow transit time of several days may indicate a wider gut issue, while a very fast transit time of a few hours is likely related to underlying gut pathology – such as IBD, IBS, celiac disease, diverticulitis, gastroesophageal reflux disease, food allergies, infections and other conditions.

“This is particularly true if it is accompanied by other symptoms,” adds Dr Asong. “However, a sudden change in transit time is probably a more important factor to consider.”

Understanding changes to your habits

So, let’s look at how to track and when you should take more notice of your bowel habits. Understanding your natural baseline, and then knowing when you’re deviating from that, is a useful indicator of when your body might be trying to tell you something.

Sudden and unexplained changes in how often you poo is something you should bring up with your GP – especially if you find yourself with constipation or diarrhea, or have other associated symptoms including abdominal pain, stools which look red, black, bloody or tarry, unexpected weight loss, fatigue or changes in stool consistency.

A good bowel movement is regular, pain-free and consistent in shape and colour, with one to two daily bowel movements being optimum, says nutritionist Michaella Mazzoni.

“Bowel movements remove estrogen and toxins from the body,” she explains. This is especially important for someone with estrogen-dominant conditions such as endometriosis, fibroids or PMDD – a severe form of premenstrual syndrome.

“A daily bowel movement is particularly important because it’s a large part of how we remove estrogen from our bodies. When we don’t have regular bowel movements, the estrogen in the stool is ‘uncoupled’ and must go through your detox organs a second time,” Mazzoni adds.

Think of it like forgetting to dry your laundry and having to wash it again – all while more and more dirty clothes accumulate in your laundry basket. “Each movement should take five minutes or less and be without pain or cramping before, during or after,” she says.

How to be a better pooper

At the end of the day, you need to remember that poo is a waste product that your body needs to get rid of. It helps to remove indigestible substances, regulates your gut flora, encourages good colon health and even helps the body absorb essential nutrients effectively. So, if you’re good at applying your SPF, brushing your teeth and getting a good step count in, looking after your gut health and poop schedule should be on your list too.

Happily, there are plenty of easy changes you can make to promote regularity in your pooing.

A general guideline would be to pack your diet with a range of different fruit or veggies like apples, berries and leafy greens, as well as good wholegrains such as oats, brown rice and wholemeal bread, and legumes including lentils and chickpeas. Healthy fats are also excellent if you struggle to poo, as they essentially lubricate the intestines and initiate bowel movement – so look at incorporating avocados, nuts, seeds, and healthy oils such as coconut, olive and avocado oils into your diet.

Caring for your general gut bacteria is important too, and probiotics (live ‘friendly’ bacteria) and prebiotics (non-digestible foods that help the friendly bacteria) should be a big part of your diet. Fantastic sources of probiotics include Greek yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented foods; prebiotic-rich foods include garlic, onions, bananas, asparagus and leeks. Of course depending on your food sensitivities or health conditions you may be working with, adding all these suggestions may not be right for you. Consulting with a holistic nutritionist for support can be helpful to knowing what is best for you.

Drinking plenty of water throughout the day is crucial too as it helps keep stool soft and easier to pass, while regular exercise – especially walking, swimming and yoga – is great for stimulating intestinal contractions or peristalsis.

Finally, it goes without saying but if you experience persistent constipation or diarrhea or have sudden or significant changes in your bowel habits, it’s really important to consult your GP to rule out any underlying health conditions. If you have irregular bowel movements already, consult your doctor before making big changes to your diet or routine.