Researchers linked pooping frequency with markers tied to the development of certain diseases.
The scientists found a very clear range of pooping frequency that’s ideal for good health.
There are certain signs that you should get your pooping schedule checked out by a doctor.
How often you poop is highly personal, but there is a range that’s considered “normal.” Now, research suggests that the range should be a little narrower than doctors previously thought—and that how often you poop could be an indicator of your risk of developing several serious diseases.
To be fair, previous research has already linked regularly dealing with constipation or diarrhea to a risk of having a serious illness. But it’s been hard to tell if the bowel movement issues came first or if the diseases caused them, given that the studies were in people who were already sick, says Sean M. Gibbons, Ph.D., study co-author and associate professor at University of Washington’s Institute for Systems Biology. So, his study looked at people who were perfectly healthy.
Meet the experts: Sean M. Gibbons, Ph.D., study co-author and associate professor at University of Washington’s Institute for Systems Biology; Rudolph Bedford, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA; Ellen Stein, M.D., a gastroenterologist and associate professor at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
The findings are fascinating and really dive into why some people who are on the lower and higher end of bowel movement frequency may be more likely to develop health issues. Here’s what the research found, plus what your own pooping schedule suggests about your health.
What did the study find?
The study, which was published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine, analyzed bowel movement and health data from 1,400 healthy adults and put them into four groups:
Constipated: one to two BMs a week
Low-normal: three to six BMs a week
High-normal: one to three BMs a day
Diarrhea: more than three bowel movements a day
From there, the researchers looked at the link between pooping frequency and a person’s gut microbiome. The researchers discovered that people in the high-normal group had higher levels of “good” bacteria in their guts than those who pooped less often.
But people who were in the constipated group were more likely to have toxins in their blood that are linked to the development of serious conditions like kidney disease and Alzheimer’s disease. On the flip side, people in the diarrhea group also had markers of inflammation, which can also raise the risk of developing certain diseases.
As a result, the researchers concluded that bowel movement frequency could be an important indicator of future health issues. Still, Gibbons says that bowel movement frequency doesn’t come up enough in regular doctor’s visits. “We’re trying to change that and push doctors more toward managing this,” he says.
What do doctors currently consider a “normal” pooping schedule?
The current definition of a “normal” pooping schedule is really broad. Doctors generally say that pooping anywhere from three times a day to three times a week falls into a normal range.
“That’s a really wide range,” Gibbons says. “We suspected that there was a narrower range that might be optimal.”
Why might pooping a lot be bad for your health?
There are a few things that happen in your body when you poop a lot. “People who have diarrhea tend to have higher levels of inflammation,” Gibbons says.
Chronic inflammation in the body is linked to a slew of serious health complications and diseases, including autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular disease, and neurogenerative diseases, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS).
But people who poop a lot also had markers of liver stress. Gibbons says this “makes sense” given that the liver helps to produce bile, which is released into the intestines to break down fats and support digestion. “If we poop fast, we lose more of that bile, so it puts stress on our liver,” he says.
Why can pooping less be bad for you, too?
It comes down to what happens in your body before you poop. “Microbes in our guts prefer to ferment dietary fibers and turn them into organic acids,” Gibbons says. “They’re very good for our health and, if we’re under-exposed to them, we tend to have poorer outcomes.”
But if poop hangs out in your gut for too long, the microbes will eat any dietary fiber that’s there and then switch to protein fermentation, Gibbons says. “That leads to a bunch of toxic byproducts, and they have all been associated with chronic disease,” he explains.
Gibbons points out that this study found these toxic byproducts in the system of slower poopers, even if they weren’t classified as being constipated. “We suspect that being exposed to them for longer periods of time could increase your lifetime risk of various chronic diseases,” he says.
Why is every other day to two bowel movements a day good for you?
A lot has to do with the above—pooping every other day to twice a day puts you in a sweet spot of not going too often or too little, Gibbons says.
But your pooping schedule tends to be a reflection of other things that are happening in your life, says Ellen Stein, M.D., a gastroenterologist and associate professor at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
“Bowel movements are often associated with a few features of a healthy lifestyle—greater amounts of vegetable and fruit intake, more exercise and more baseline daily activity, and good hydration,” she explains.
Dr. Stein says that while your bowel movement frequency isn’t a traditional marker of health “it is becoming more apparent that gut health is critical to overall health.”
Rudolph Bedford, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, agrees. “It’s all about the gut microbiome,” he says. “It impacts the digestive system, brain health...various aspects of your body.”
How to poop more
If you’re not pooping as much as you’d like, doctors recommend trying to do a few different things:
“Going too little could be a sign that you are missing something—daily exercise, hydration, fiber from healthy plants and fruits,” Dr. Stein says.
When to see a doctor
Doctors generally recommend that you see your healthcare provider when you have a change in your usual pooping habits. “If your frequency changes, if you have more than three bowel movements each day, if you have urgency or accidents or leakage, those are good reasons to check in with a provider,” Dr. Stein says. And, if you have any blood in your poop, she says that you shouldn’t hesitate to call your doctor.
“If you have less than two bowel movements each week, or there is blood in the stool, weight loss, or you are straining a lot to get the stool out, talk with your physician about changes to your lifestyle and medications, and if you are in need for screening or evaluation for colon cancer,” Dr. Stein says. It’s also important to flag if you have a family history of Celiac disease or irritable bowel issues, she says.
Finally, Dr. Bedford says it’s important to speak up if you’re dealing with uncomfortable symptoms linked to your pooping habits, like bloating, gas, and stomach pain.
If you’re within the “normal” range of pooping, Gibbons says there’s no need to worry about your bowel habits, unless they suddenly change. But if you find that constipation or diarrhea is a common issue for you, it’s important to get it checked out.
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