Allright, let's do this shit

A couple weeks ago, I invited you to send in questions for Dr. J. And boy oh boy, did you have questions! You ladies are not shy at all. Truly, shameless women after my own heart.

Dr. J was away on vaycay (*love the rhyming!*) but he's back and has all the info you could ask for in the Departments of Poop and Fiber (I actually minored in this back in college). Behold, more than you ever wanted to know about fiber, bloating, menstrual cramps and why a runner's poop might be different from a speedwalker's.

Intestinally Fortitudinously Yours,
Leslie

You: "What does it mean to be regular? For my body, regular is when I poop once a day, but my husband considers himself regular if he poops after every meal (3 times a day). I read somewhere that 2-3 times a day is normal. How do I reach that goal?"
Dr. J: "Normal bowel movement frequency ranges between 3 BMs per day and 3 BMs per week. If you fall between these extremes, there is no need to do anything to have more or less frequent BMs. However, if you have symptoms of abdominal pain or discomfort, straining or difficulty expelling the stool, you may have a problem even if your BM frequency is normal. If this is the case, I would recommend discussing your symptoms with your family doctor."

Bottom line (heh heh): If you're dropping kids off at the pool three times per day, call me and I will arrange some sort of magazine subscription for you to help pass the time at the toi-toi.

You: "Can a girl get too much fiber?"
Dr. J: "It is theoretically possible to get too much fiber but in practice this is quite difficult. Fiber intake is associated with gas and bloating as the bacteria in the colon break down the fiber and use it for food.
However as a byproduct, gas is given off. The more fiber you consume, the more gas is produced. Even if you are used to eating large amounts of fiber in your diet, too much fiber will produce significant gas which
will limit the amount that you can ingest. Furthermore, it is quite difficult to harm yourself by eating too much fiber. The only caution is that fiber may interfere with the absorption of some medications and you should check with your doctor regarding the timing of fiber ingestion if you are on any medications.

Consuming large amounts of fiber is not like abusing laxatives because there are a number of medical benefits of fiber such as healthy bowel function, colon cancer prevention and prevention of heart disease and diabetes. The only benefit of laxatives are if you are constipated."

Bottom line: Your biggest risk is farting yourself out of popularity.

You: "Are there different types of fiber? Metamucil works great for me, but I tried Benefiber and it was horrible--bloating, gas, awfulness. Is there a difference between getting fiber from food and taking a supplement?"
Dr. J: "There are two main types of fiber - soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber is the type that can be dissolved in water. Soluble fiber tends to be the form that is most beneficial for heart health, weight loss and diabetes prevention. One example is the All Bran fiber drink mix which contains 10 grams of fiber in each mix. Insoluble fiber is the type found in All Bran Fiber bars. This type of fiber works to maintain regularity of bowel habits. Although each person may respond differently, soluble fiber tends to be associated with less gas and bloating than insoluble fiber. The benefits of obtaining fiber from food sources is that you also get all of the vitamins and minerals which are present in foods. These are not present in supplements. Thus, the best way to get the fiber you need if you can't get it in your diet is to try food based alternatives such as All Bran bars or drink mixes."

Bottom line: Dr. J works for All-Bran

You: "Usually I'm as regular as a Swiss watch, but then I get PMS, and the constipation kicks in. Not bad, just enough to make me uncomfortable and (even more) bloated. Why does this happen, and what should I do about it?"
Dr. J: "It is common to experience changes in bowel movements at the time of menstrual periods. These changes are likely due to the normal fluctuation in hormone levels which occur at the time of menses and are also the cause of many symptoms of PMS. Unfortunately, constipation, or diarrhea for that matter, may be additional symptoms of PMS. As far as treatment goes, understanding that the constipation is associated with your periods allows you to intervene before the constipation becomes bad. Some considerations would include increasing fiber intake around the time of your period though this may make the bloating worse. Alternatively occasional use of a laxative during these times may help."

Bottom line: Being a woman stinks.

You: "How do I know if I have IBS?"
Dr. J: "Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a condition which is associated with abdominal pain or discomfort and changes in bowel function. It is diagnosed based on symptoms – requiring both the presence of abdominal pain or discomfort and a change in bowel habits (either a change in frequency or a change in consistency of stool). If the pain gets better after a BM this is another indication that you may have IBS. If you are concerned about IBS you should discuss this with your doctor as there are a number of options for treating IBS."

Bottom line: I don't wanna poke fun at IBS because I know it can be awful. No joke to be had.

Bonus Q!
You: "I'm so embarrassed, but I have to ask! How come my poop is big-ish and floaty when my main exercise is walking, but it's hard, small and sinks when I'm running a lot? Does running really compact it all together? I drink tons and tons of water to combat constipation...but I much prefer my once-a-day walking poops to my twice-a-week running poops - but I definitely prefer to run."
Dr. J: "This is an interesting question. The reason stool floats or sinks is based on the amount of air in the stool. I am not sure why your stool is big when you walk and small when you run, as running does not compact the stool. It may be that you get dehydrated when you run and the stool has less water hence appears more compacted. However, based on your question, you seem to be getting enough water. I would recommend adding fiber to your diet such as All Bran fiber bars or All Bran fiber drink mix to add bulk to your “poop” so that you can have more of the 'big-ish and floaty poops' you desire, even when you run."

Bottom line: Hearing a well-respected gastroenterologist say "big-ish and floaty poops" is the kind of fun you just can't buy.

Comments

Thanks, Dr. J! And thank you, too, Leslie!

Thank you so much! I'm glad my question could get some laughs. :)

Thanks Dr J and Leslie! I have been enlightened and learned a lot!

Thanks Dr J and Leslie for a very interesting post. I was very curious about the idea of too much fibre (my nutritionist has me adding All-Bran to everything it seems!) but can rest easy between toilet breaks :)

thanks for the info ;)

Great information with a side of giggles.

it is official, I am 12 years old! :)

What a wonderful resource! Thank you for the great information and for having such a sense of umor with it too.

I mean *Humor.* My laptop keys stick. Sorry.

I have no idea who Umor is but I don't think I want a sense of him, no matter how great he sounds.

Thanks again Dr J!

Thanks for giving us the scoop on the poop! Informative AND entertaining.

I'm actually really excited to know that I am regular. Thanks!

Thanks Dr. J! And just so's everyone's clear: don't sit next to me on the bus. 'Cause I love my fiber;)

LOL, I get a LOT of fiber in my diet and consequently, I do not usually have any regularity issues, but if I don't drink enough water, I do get gassy. Kinda sucks, but I usually get all the gas out when I run so it doesn't interfere with my personal life (thank God for that!)

Glad you got the scoop on the poop (thought you'd appreciate the rhyme there...)

TA x

I love the bottom lines. So no matter what, you're going to have gas if you eat fiber?! Even if you are used to larger amounts, since it is a by-product, you will just have it. That's too bad. I have never tried any of the gas-meds, like beano or whatnot, b/c often I feel like just putting "more" into me is just going to make it worse. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Is gas just inevitable? Mine's not awful, but it comes and goes, it would be nice if it never came...

So here's what bothers me. Everything I've read suggests getting fiber from whole food sources (beans, grains etc etc).
there was an article a while back in cspi that mentions fiber in isolated form won't necessarily have all the benefits of whole food fiber. It'll keep you regular but don't expect heart/prostate/colon benefits. Here's a link to something on colon health:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/74750.php

I can't find the cspi article though

So here's what bothers me. Everything I've read suggests getting fiber from whole food sources (beans, grains etc etc).
there was an article a while back in cspi that mentions fiber in isolated form won't necessarily have all the benefits of whole food fiber. It'll keep you regular but don't expect heart/prostate/colon benefits. Here's a link to something on colon health:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/74750.php

I can't find the cspi article though

gah! sorry about the double post.