What is your BM trying to tell you?

I’m going to get close-up and personal today and have a heart to heart talk with you about what goes on behind the closed door of your bathroom.

Specifically your bowel movements, aka feces. 

Although it might seem a bit strange, it's important to take a good look behind you after sitting on the toilet and see what your BMs may be trying to tell you.

You see, many people may be under the mistaken impression that their bowel habits are normal, healthy or OK when in fact they are not (which can mean some serious health problems--more on that below).

Now, in order to examine whether your bowel habits are what they ideally should be, we need to get personal...and talk about the frequency, amount and texture of your excrement.

Bear with me here...I'll try to make it fun.

So what's this crap all about anyway?

Many people think their feces is just what's left after everything they've eaten is broken down and nutrients are absorbed.

Not exactly.

About two-thirds of your stool is made up of water, undigested fiber and food residue.  The remaining third is living and dead bacteria.

Also in your "output" are waste products like medication residue, toxins, hormones that have been broken down by your body and old, worn-out cholesterol. 

Knowing everything that’s in your "end products" gives you a clue why it's SO important to have regular bowel movements!

For example, many harmful bacteria are eliminated when you "go." So if you're not “going” as often as you should, the dangerous bacteria can be absorbed into your bloodstream and wreak havoc throughout your body.   (This is a process called autointoxication.)

They can also fester in your colon and encourage a diverticulitis attack for those of you who already have the "pouches" of diverticulosis going on.

Same goes for dangerous toxins that you ingest from your food or the environment.  Your intestinal tract is the exit ramp for those toxins and if your body isn't getting rid of them like it should, you could end up with food poisoning or other poisoning as a result. 

Also, hormones that your body's trying to get rid of can get reabsorbed and increase your risk of things like estrogen-dependent cancers.

Plus getting rid of old worn-out cholesterol is crucial because if it's not eliminated, it can get back into circulation and trigger elevated cholesterol levels.

How often does Nature call YOU?

If you are a reasonably healthy person with a decent diet, Nature should call at least once a day, and ideally 2-3 times a day. 

I know what you might be thinking. "But I've NEVER gone every day!  Every 2-3 days or so is normal for me."

Well, it might be "normal" for you, but as you can see from the dangers I described above, it isn’t healthy.

Also, do the math.  If you eat 3 meals a day, 7 days a week yet only "go" 2 or 3 times a week, unless you're majorly plugging up the toilet each time you go, you've likely got some serious waste buildup going on.

And you now know precisely what that can lead to.

Size DOES matter

Research has shown that most people eating a typical low-fiber Western diet eliminate about 5 ounces of stool each day.

But Africans eating their traditional healthy, high fiber diet produce at least 16 ounces (one pound) or more--over three times as much!

Do the math again on this one.  Unless you're starving yourself to lose weight for a wedding or class reunion, you're eating WAY more than 5 ounces of food a day. 

And while you certainly can't expect the volume of what you eat to equal the volume of your feces, looking at the comparison I quoted above, it certainly appears that size does matter...and many people’s BMs in the Western world are on the small side.

Get the magnifying glass

OK, now it's time to take a close look into YOUR toilet bowl.

I know this will probably cause eruptions of laughter in a lot of you, but hear me out because this is important.

A normal healthy bowel movement should look like a brown banana with a slight point at one end, and appear to be moist or well-hydrated.  It should glide out easily with no significant grunting required.

On the other hand, if your stool looks like a bunch of balls all wadded together, or worse yet, rabbit pellets, it's been hanging around inside of you way too long.  Chances are excellent that a significant amount of grunting and grabbing the toilet seat was needed to get the job done and constipation is a regular thing for you.

If your stool has undigested food particles in it on a regular basis (aside from the occasional hard to break down food like corn on the cob), that's a sign that digestion isn't being accomplished efficiently, and may mean you're low in digestive enzymes.

Same goes for if your stools are floaters instead of sinkers.  BMs that float are indicative of poor digestion of fats, which can suggest a gallbladder issue or enzyme challenge.

If your feces is very loose or watery, that means that it rocketed through the digestive tract too quickly and not enough water was absorbed by the colon like it should have been. 

This too suggests inadequate digestion and may mean you're not absorbing nutrients like you should.  Poor nutrient absorption can make you prone to conditions like anemia and osteoporosis, among many others.

How to build the perfect BM

Now that you know the importance of normal, healthy, regular bowel movements, it's time to start making sure yours measure up!

First of all, if you suspect an underlying issue or disease, it’s important to see your doctor to rule out any conditions that may need medical attention.

Then start by taking a look in the toilet bowl and being honest with yourself.  Look at the frequency, size, and shape and take note of what doesn’t look so good.

Then to help ensure that your "grand finale" of digestion is what it should be, you need to make sure that the digestive process is accomplished efficiently.

And that, my friend, is a function of your diet, your intestinal flora and your digestive enzymes.

Here's the scoop on each of those:

1) The diet piece--make your meals easier to digest to begin with

Eating meals that are easier on your system to break down and that have a good balance of foods that are alkaline and natural sources of fiber is the best way to finally start encouraging normal, regular BMs.

In my health systems, Great Taste No Pain and for gluten-sensitive people, Great Taste No Gluten, I show you how to put together meals that are not only delicious (thanks to the recipes in both systems), but are MUCH easier for your body to digest. This results in things "moving along" more like they should...and a much healthier YOU as a result!

2) Help balance your intestinal flora

Your beneficial gut bacteria help break down certain foods and fiber, so having a proper population of them is crucial for thorough digestion.

Trouble is, thanks to our typical diets and toxin buildup like I mentioned above, many people are walking around with harmful bacteria overgrowth (also known as dysbiosis).  When the "good guys" are overrun by the "bad guys," they can't do their job properly.

And your bowel movements (as well as your immune system functioning) can suffer as a result!

 But Super Shield multi-strain probiotic formula can help turn that around for you.

Super Shield can help you achieve and maintain the ideal balance of at least 85 percent beneficial bacteria and 15percent or less harmful bacteria.  This is critical to digestive health and a strong immune system.

Super Shield's 13 strains of high-quality, potent probiotic bacteria will help crowd out the "bad guys" in your gut, enhance your digestion and help keep things moving along a whole lot easier for you.

3) Give your enzymes a boost

Your body uses up an enormous amount of enzymes trying to break down today's typical modern diet (which is heavy on fast food, processed food and smorgasbord-type, hard to digest meals). But it can only produce so many enzymes.

That means sooner or later, you can get to the point where you can’t produce enough. 

Inadequate enzymes = poor digestion = constipation, diarrhea, and anything-but-normal "Products of Nature."

But Digestizol Max digestive enzyme formula can be a tremendous help for people with enzymes challenges.

Digestizol Max's blend of 15 plant-derived enzymes will give your body the help it needs to break down proteins, fats, carbs, fiber and dairy. Whatever you eat, Digestizol Max can help you handle it!

Don't ignore your bowel movements or make the mistake of thinking as long as you “go now and then,” that's all that matters. 

Your health is dependent on regular, normal bowel movements and they're NOT something to take lightly. 

So...take a look in the bowl, do the math, examine the texture and size it up…

Then do what you need to do to help YOUR body build the perfect BM like Nature intended.

And likely feel great into your golden years as a result!

To your health,

Sherry Brescia

PS: Always be sure to let your doctor or healthcare provider know what supplements you are taking.