"Squirts, I'm Irritated": How My Friends And I Keep Track Of Our Bowel Movements And Reasons Why You Should, Too

Hi, my sanction is Zoe, I'm 23 years old, and I person a confession...

My friends and I enslaved successful a mode that immoderate whitethorn telephone strange, gross, oregon conscionable level retired dumb: We way our poops together.

When we were bored successful 2020, we decided to articulation Poop Map. Now that I'm penning this, it feels ridiculous to accidental that we've been doing this for SIX years already. Nevertheless, we make a caller "league" each twelvemonth and vie to spot who poops the most.

Poop Map's conception is simple. It's an app wherever you tin complaint your poops, remark astir your poops, person your friends articulation successful connected the poop action, and spot each of your poops dispersed crossed the map.

I mean, we each instrumentality a spot of other clip to doomscroll portion taking a dump. Might arsenic good enactment it to bully usage and springiness your poop a review.

Here are a fewer examples of reviews my friends and I person given:

There's adjacent an "Achievements" tab that gives you badges for definite accomplishments. They're ever coming retired with caller ones, too, truthful you tin beryllium deed with 10 antithetic badges 1 greeting and consciousness similar a king. It's a large mode to marque pooping consciousness productive.

You whitethorn beryllium thinking, Zoe, what's the constituent of doing each this? To that, I'd accidental it whitethorn beryllium a small dumb, but it definite is funny. And it really does assistance maine announcement erstwhile my bowels are going done a unsmooth play and erstwhile I request to get my fare successful check.

If you don't privation to instrumentality it from me, instrumentality it from a mates of my friends:

"I similar the leaderboard we person (even though I don't win), and they're comic to work backmost and unlock each of the achievements."

—"Em Dog", 22

"I similar to spot however often my bowels are moving, and it's comic to comparison to your friends due to the fact that I beryllium shitting mode much than y'all."

—"Molly", 22 

If that doesn't person you convinced, Dr. Rabia De Latour, a gastroenterologist and subordinate prof of medicine astatine NYU Grossman School of Medicine, validated this practice: "Getting accusation astir consistency, color, and frequence tin assistance your doc and you recognize if and wherefore determination mightiness beryllium a change."

So, yes, logging a "squirt" tin beryllium helpful. But however tin we archer our poops are "normal"? Normal is specified a subjective word.

Dr. De Latour informed me, "Everybody is different, truthful it makes consciousness that the mode idiosyncratic excretes discarded would besides vary! As agelong arsenic your bowel movements are solid, soft, and passing smoothly without strain, they are normal. In presumption of frequency, 'normal' tin scope from 3 times a week to 3 times a day."

So present that we person a unsmooth thought of what "normal" is, however bash we cognize erstwhile thing is off? What does "normal" vs. "abnormal" look like?

Types 1 and 2

Both of these thin toward the constipation category. If you're dropping 1 of these pebble-looking poops, devour immoderate fibre and portion immoderate water! You're lacking nutrients, homie. 

Types 3 and 4

These are the epitome of mean poops. If you got those smooth logs, past you indispensable beryllium doing thing right. 

Type 5

Now these lumps are a challenge. They're the span betwixt mean and diarrhea explosion. While some say this is typical, others accidental it leans much toward the diarrhea side.

Types 6 and 7

Clench your cheeks due to the fact that THIS is the benignant of diarrhea detonation I was referring to. Call them "squirts" if you will. 

Now that you cognize astir textures, let's speech poop colors:

Brown

I mean... I don't deliberation I adjacent person to accidental it, but this is your Average Joe™️ poop. 

Red

Now, this could be that reddish Gatorade you conscionable drank, but beryllium connected the lookout for hemorrhoids oregon rectal bleeding. 

Green

Again, this could beryllium related to the colour of the foods you're eating, but it could besides beryllium related to irritable bowel syndrome oregon an infection.

Black

If you aren't taking robust supplements, Pepto-Bismol, oregon eating a crap ton (literally) of blueberries, past it could mean that you're bleeding successful your precocious digestive system.

Yellow

This could mean that you're eating excessively overmuch abdominous oregon foods precocious successful beta-carotene, but it could besides subordinate to bile duct issues oregon celiac disease. 

Gray/White/Clay

Either you're popping immoderate over-the-counter drugs, drinking dairy similar it's your job, or, similar the diagram states, you've got liver, bile, pancreatic, oregon gallbladder issues. Wow, not galore possibilities astatine each 😳

Now that you cognize what to look retired for, possibly you've travel to immoderate realizations. Maybe you're a predominant "Type 2" pooper, oregon possibly you devour wayyy excessively overmuch Red 40.

Either way, log it. Have amusive with it. I cognize I will.

Have you ever tracked your poops? Are you going to start? Or bash you conscionable deliberation I'm a weirdo? Let maine cognize successful the comments.