Any number of jokes aside, we really should talk poop! Why? Because just like nails, hair and skin, your poop can be a great way to flag up certain health issues and can be used as an indicator of hydration and your wider health. 

Check Out Your Poop! 

When you use the bathroom, resist the urge to flush and go. Take a quick look at your poop (it’s okay, it’s just undigested food, bacteria, skin cells and water after all) and use our handy chart to get an idea of what’s happening inside your body and get the heads up on any poop problems! 

In other words, is your poop trying to tell you something?  

1. Narrow, Smooth

Don’t shoot the messenger, but the answer is a definite maybe.

Among the cocktail of contaminants currently flowing through America’s waterways, is fecal pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has estimated that municipal water contains around 0.3 grams of poop per person, every day. In a city of millions of people, that’s a lot of poop.

Animal Waste in the Groundwater

It’s not just human sewage either – the fecal matter of livestock and other animals ends up in the groundwater as well. Waterways near large cattle or hog farms and dairies can be more heavily polluted than others.

But how does poop end up in tap water?

There’s Raw Sewage in the Water

It’s a combination of …

We’re aware of some of the visual signs of how we’re doing, health-wise: our skin, eyes, tongue and fingernails are often barometers of wellbeing that we can see and assess, albeit with a layman’s eye.

But what about our poop? Measured according to the Bristol Stool Scale, our poop tells us how our digestive system is doing, whether we’re properly hydrated, and all manner of other things.

So, what is your poop trying to tell you?

1. Pellets

If your poop takes the form of small, separate pellets, then drink more water – it’s a sign of dehydration.

2. Solid, sausage shape but with lumps

Another sign of being dehydrated, and possibly lacking in essential …