Everyone has that one circle of people in their life who they’ll happily discuss their bowel habits with like the daily news.
And if you don’t, I guess I’ve just exposed myself. But going for a poo is obviously completely normal, it just might be how often you go that isn’t.
So strap in for some proper sh*t chat LADs, as we discuss who has the apparently healthiest habits with the help of an old fairy tale friend – Miss Goldilocks herself.
Yeah, she’s graduated to having a ‘zone’ nicknamed after her as scientists look at how often people are doing a drop off.
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Long-term issues around how regular you are could indicate something is seriously wrong. But if it’s temporary, there could be a number of factors at play such as diet, stress or women’s menstrual cycles.
A study by the Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) in 2024 looked at how often people poo and the influence it has on their overall health.
On the lowest end of the scale was the constipation category with just one to two bowel movements a week.
We then graduate to the low-normal range with three to six a week.
Next up is the high-normal’ with one to three times a day, with anything more than that being classed as diarrhoea.
Mixed in with all of this is the aforementioned ‘Goldilocks zone’, AKA of course, just right.
The researchers found the healthiest of the 1,425 participants went for a poo once or twice a day (or an average of between seven and 14 times a week).
It was said that this group of Goldilocks had higher levels of ‘good’ gut bacteria which are known to lower inflammation. And this is of course thought to be a driving factor behind the likes of cardiovascular disease, Type-2 diabetes and cancer.
It was previously suggested that anywhere between doing a poo three times a day to three times a week is ‘normal’. But leader of the study, microbiologist Sean Gibbons, said: “Based on what we were looking at, pooping every other day to a couple of times a day is probably a better window to be healthy.”
When to see the GP
It’s important to see a GP is you experience persistent changes in your bowel habits for three weeks or more.
The same goes for blood in your stool, regular bloating, stomach pain, unexplained weight loss or extreme fatigue.
If you’re constipated and it doesn’t get better with treatment or are regularly constipated, it’s important to seek help.
And you should always see your GP if you have diarrhoea for a long period of time.
Topics: Health
Jess Battison