Poop Talk: Size and Shape of your Stool

 Some rights reserved by origami_potato

Let's talk a little bit about poop, shall we? It's a normal part of our lives, and oftentimes, it's used as a subject to test how healthy we are. So, yup, it's OK to talk about it and be informed about it.

Personally, I used to think I am healthy even though I was often constipated. There are times that I am unable to move for 5 days. It was the worst! And pooping was always a struggle, and literally, a pain in the ass!

I've tried pretty much everything from pitchers of water, probiotics to yogurt, but nothing worked to help me with my constipation. Until I discovered that a hot cup of coffee in the morning makes it easier for me to move my bowel. I was OK with it aside from the fact that my pee smells like coffee, which I find odd. But that's just normal, doctors say. Anyway, nothing much has changed, except that it allows me to poop whenever I needed to.

Then, I decided to limit my coffee intake. I just had to find another way, a healthier way. Thank God, I did! And it changed my life since then!

Good news is, I only drink coffee whenever I like to, like once in a while. But I regularly do my morning ritual now with ease before taking a shower. Bye bye pain! And even the shape of my poop has changed! That's when I knew I'm not constipated anymore.

You can refer to the Bristol Stool Chart, also known as Meyers Scale, to determine the shape and type of your poop, or stool as doctors would call it.

Now, you can describe the kind of poop you have without bringing a specimen for your doctor. This would help them determine how long it take for food to pass through your body and leave as waste. Its form would also lead your doctor toward a diagnosis if you have some digestive problems.

In fact, you, yourself can tell. The normal stool is type 3 or 4, that is easy to pass but not too watery. Type 1 or 2 may indicate that you are constipated and types 5, 6, or 7 would lean towards diarrhea.

So would you like to know how I have been having regular bowel movement with ease? Well, it all started when I took nutritional supplementation, the USANA Essentials. But it took me about a couple of weeks until I finally noticed that I am not constipated anymore. Sometimes, I can even move twice a day, which is a great relief!

Thank God, we found USANA! This is just one of the great changes we felt when we started taking USANA's Nutritionals.

Do let me know in the comments below if you find this article helpful. Thank you for your time to read through. Have a wonderful day!

Bristol Stool Chart Image Credit:  Some rights reserved by DrJohnBullas