What Really Happens to Your Body If You Don’t Poop Every Day, Doctors Say
Do you scurry into the bathroom every morning after having your first sip of coffee? Or maybe you always poop when you’re done eating dinner. Having regular, daily bowel movements is what most people assume they should be doing. But what happens to our bodies if we don’t? We decided to put the question to some experts in the field.
“No matter how frequently or infrequently we go, what we all have in common is that we are thinking about our poop!” Colleen Cutcliffe, PhD, CEO at Pendulum Therapeutics and a gut health expert, tells Best Life. “Deep in the recesses of our caveman and cavegirl brains, we know our poop is telling us whether we are healthy.”
However, Cutcliffe notes that only half of people in the U.S. go once every day. Read on to find out what it means if you’re a member of the more infrequent group.
RELATED: 10 Safe and Easy Ways to Poop Instantly.
No, you don’t have to poop every day.
“There is no exact number of times a person has to poop. For some people, every other day is normal, and for others, three times a day is normal,” says Joseph Shami, MD, a gastroenterologist at Gastroenterology Associates of New Jersey. “The important thing is how a person feels if they do not go. As long as there are no other symptoms… they are normal.”
In fact, a 2018 study published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology promoted the theory of the “3 and 3” metric of normal frequency, meaning it’s “normal” to have anywhere from 3 bowel movements a day to 3 bowel movements a week.
However, physician Esteban Kosak, MD, a medical writer, advises seeing your doctor if your bowel movements are consistently outside this range.
“Less than three movements per week is generally considered constipation, while three or more loose stools per day is considered diarrhea,” he notes. “Most healthy adults will experience diarrhea or constipation at some point, but a consistent change in bowel habits should always be discussed with your doctor.”
RELATED: Doctor Reveals Why You Have to Poop Right After Eating—And What to Do About It.
How to know if your pooping habits are abnormal:
When it comes to identifying if something is off with your pooping habits, gastroenterologist Kenneth Brown, MD, host of the Gut Check Project podcast, says, “The most important thing is that you are comfortable with your bowel movements, you feel fully evacuated, and you do not have discomfort.”
He suggests that the following symptoms may indicate you’re not pooping enough (i.e., you’re constipated):
- Abdominal pain or cramping
- Bloating or a feeling of fullness
- Swollen hemorrhoids
If this persists, Brown says you may experience more serious side effects, such as:
- Anal fissures (small tears in the anus)
- Fecal impaction (a hard dry stool that cannot be passed)
- Overflow diarrhea (liquid stool leaking around hard dry stool)
Shami adds that serious constipation can also cause “a general feeling of sickness because of toxic substances released by fermenting bacteria.”
In speaking with The New York Times, Folasade P. May, MD, a gastroenterologist at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, explained, “If you’re regularly straining, having pain, needing more than 10 minutes on the toilet, or feeling as though you can’t evacuate your bowels completely, you may benefit from seeing a doctor.”
RELATED: Doctors Discover the #1 Diet If You Suffer From Constipation.
You should also pay attention to how your poop looks.
We’re sorry to break it to you, but most doctors recommend taking a peek in the toilet bowl after you’ve had a bowel movement.
For example, Leann Poston, MD, a contributor to Invigor Medical, says that abnormally light colored stool could signal “an obstruction or problem in the bile duct.”
As Best Life previously reported, greasy, yellow stool may indicate fat malabsorption, celiac disease, or damage to the pancreas. White, chalky stools may point to a gallbladder issue, while mucusy stools could mean you have intestinal inflammation.
Of course, if you ever notice blood in your stool, you should call your doctor. This can be caused by harmless hemorrhoids, anal fissures, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), or colorectal cancer, notes Cleveland Clinic.
Finally, if you consistently have watery stools (diarrhea), it’s also something to take note of.
“Diarrhea is defined as a loose or watery stool that happens three or more times in a day,” says Poston. “Infections caused by bacteria, viruses, or parasites are commonly the cause of diarrhea. Food intolerances or taking medications that contain magnesium may also cause diarrhea.”
RELATED: Doctors Share 9 Signs You Have “Healthy Poop”—And What to Do If You Don’t.
Tips to maintain healthy pooping habits:
If you’re struggling with chronic constipation, Brown has a few suggestions.
“When you feel the need to have a bowel movement, try to go as soon as possible,” he advises. “If you delay or ignore the urge, your stools can become harder and more difficult to pass.”
He also emphasizes the importance of not straining too hard, as it “can lead to hemorrhoids and fissures.”
A diet high in fiber and low in processed foods and saturated fat is also ideal for healthy bowel movements, as is staying hydrated and physically active.
Finally, Brown recommends using a stool in the bathroom to change the angle at which you’re sitting: “Use a Squatty Potty or stool to get your knees above your hips and lean just slightly forward. This is a more natural position to defecate and helps the stool evacuate.”