Why Are You Pooping So Much?

You might not typically think about how often you poop. However, there might be times when you're pooping so much that you start to take note.

A sudden change in how often you poop does not necessarily mean you have a medical condition. You might be pooping more because you've changed your diet suddenly to include more fiber, are pregnant, or have your period.

Sometimes, though, pooping can be a sign of a medical condition. An infection, celiac disease, and inflammatory bowel disease are just a few examples of conditions that could be causing an increase in your bowel movements.

Depending on what the cause of your increased pooping is, you can make changes or get treatment to bring your pooping habits back to normal.

How Often Should You Poop?

There isn't a specific number for how often a person should poop in a day or week. This varies from person to person.

A 2018 study assessed the frequency of bowel movements in over 4,000 U.S. adults and found that 96% of participants reported having between three to 21 bowel movements per week. This means the typical amount of bowel movements falls anywhere between three bowel movements per day to three bowel movements per week.

Anything above or below that amount can be a concern—you may be experiencing diarrhea or constipation. Diarrhea is defined as having loose, watery stools at least three times a day. Constipation is defined as having fewer than three bowel movements a week. Both conditions can be uncomfortable and lead to complications.

As long as you aren't experiencing diarrhea or constipation, how often you should poop depends on what's normal for you.

Possible Reasons You're Pooping So Much

You can consider yourself as pooping too much when you start noticing you are having more bowel movements than you normally do. Here are some of the reasons you may experience an increase in bowel movements:

Diet Changes

How much or how often you poop can be directly impacted by the nutrients you eat. The protein, fat, and carbohydrate content play a big role in the frequency of bowel movements.

Fiber is one type of carbohydrate that can particularly impact bowel movements. If you have recently incorporated more fiber in your diet, you might experience changes in your pooping patterns. A high-fiber diet has many health effects, including helping maintain consistent bowel movements.

High-fiber foods include vegetables, fruits, grains, legumes, and nuts.

Another diet change that might affect your pooping frequency is how much coffee you're drinking. Coffee is known to have a laxative effect, causing people to poop soon after drinking. A 2021 review found that coffee brings on the urge to make a bowel movement for at least a third of people who drink it. That urge can happen as soon as four minutes after drinking coffee.

If you have recent increased your coffee intake, this might explain why you have seen an increase in pooping frequency.

Pregnancy

Pregnancy can impact the frequency of your bowel movements. Pregnancy is often related to constipation, which is when stool passes too slowly through your intestines.

However, that constipation can then lead to increased bowel movements in the form of diarrhea during pregnancy and after giving birth. Some of the factors influencing these different bowel patterns are hormonal changes, the use of certain prenatal vitamins, and sudden pregnancy-related diet changes.

Additionally, episodes of fecal incontinence, which is when you can't control your bowel movements, can happen after pregnancy. This can be a result of a weakened pelvic floor due to a vaginal delivery.

Menstruation

Your period can cause you to have more bowel movements.

After abdominal pain, diarrhea is the second most common gastrointestinal symptom related to menstruation. It is estimated that a third of women experience changes in bowel movement frequency while menstruating. These changes can be even more pronounced if the person also has a condition like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

A 2018 review suggests that decreased levels of the hormones estrogen and progesterone during early menstruation might be related to changes in bowel movement frequency. Although, more studies need to be done to assess how hormones affect bowel movement frequency during menstruation.

Medications

Some medications can affect the frequency of a person's bowel movements. Specifically, antibiotics used for the treatment of infections have been associated with increased bouts of diarrhea. It's estimated that about 20% of people taking antibiotics will develop antibiotic-related diarrhea.

Antibiotic-related diarrhea happens because antibiotics can sometimes kill some bacteria that normally live in your intestines. This leads to a decrease of bacteria in the intestines that are needed for digestion. Taking probiotics, which are live bacterial supplements that help improve digestion, can decrease the effects of antibiotic-related diarrhea.

Other medications that have diarrhea as a side effect include antacids that contain magnesium hydroxide, some medicines used in cancer treatment, the stomach ulcer preventative Cytotec (misoprostol), and laxatives.

Gastrointestinal Conditions

There are many gastrointestinal conditions that affect how much a person poops. Some gastrointestinal conditions can be triggered by specific dietary allergies. Other conditions can affect a person no matter what they eat.

Some gastrointestinal disorders that change how often people experience bowel movements are:

• Lactose intolerance: This causes diarrhea as a result of not being able to process lactose.
• Celiac disease: This causes diarrhea as a result of your body not being able to process gluten.
• IBS: This is a group of symptoms that cause abdominal pain and changes in bowel movement frequency. That could mean constipation, diarrhea, or a mix of both. Stress may worsen the symptoms.
• Crohn's disease: This is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that causes inflammation along any part of the digestive tract. It often results in cramping, abdominal pain, and increased diarrhea.
• Ulcerative colitis: This is another form of IBD. It causes inflammation and sores in the large intestine. It can cause bloody stool and increased diarrhea.
  

Infection

Bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections are a common cause of increased bowel movements. Having diarrhea is commonly seen as a symptom of an infection.

You can develop an infection by eating food or drinking water contaminated with bacteria, viruses, or parasites. Common bacterial infections that cause diarrhea include Salmonella and Escherichia coli. There are several viruses, including the norovirus and rotavirus that can cause the stomach bug (viral gastroenteritis) and lead to diarrhea.

When to Contact a Healthcare Provider

It is important to remember that every person experiences bowel movements differently. What might seem like a lot of bowel movements for one person might not be for another. That being said, you should contact a healthcare provider if you notice a stark difference in the amount of times you are pooping lately. A departure from your normal pooping habits should be evaluated.

Some other signs that indicate you should contact your healthcare provider about how often you are pooping include having:

• Diarrhea that lasts longer than two days
• Diarrhea alongside a fever of 102 degrees Fahrenheit or more
• Diarrhea consistently after consuming lactose or gluten
• Six or more loose stools in 24 hours
• Increased pooping alongside severe pain in the abdomen or anus
• Increased pooping frequency and stools that contain blood or pus

Treatments for Frequent Pooping

There are many ways to treat frequent pooping. How you approach it will depend on the cause. For instance, if you have a lactose or gluten intolerance, cutting out those foods from your diet can lessen the amount you poop. If you find that coffee is causing you to poop more than you'd like, you can consider reducing the amount you drink.

Sometimes dietary changes alone won't help. Many people with IBD will need to take medication like corticosteroids or aminosalicylates to reduce the inflammation in their digestive tract.

Someone with diarrhea might find that antidiarrheal medications like Imodium (loperamide), Lomotil (diphenoxylate/atropine), or bismuth subsalicylate (sold under brand names like Pepto-Bismol, Bismusal, and Kaopectate) might work. Fiber supplements and bulking agents like Metamucil and Fybogel could also help.

How to Prevent Frequent Pooping

It may be possible for you to prevent frequent pooping.

In terms of keeping you regular, make sure to drink plenty of water. Proper hydration has been associated with promoting healthy bowel movements. High-fiber foods can also keep bowel movements regular. The trick is introducing the foods into your diet at a gradual pace.

You should avoid consuming any foods to which you are allergic or sensitive. If you have been diagnosed with lactose intolerance, avoid dairy. If you've been diagnosed with gluten intolerance or celiac disease, avoid gluten.

If you have IBD, you should take whatever medication you are prescribed on a regular basis. Some foods, such as carbonated drinks, alcohol, and spicy foods, have been shown to increase symptoms of IBD. If that's the case for you, then consider avoiding those triggers.

To avoid infections that can lead to frequent bowel movements due to diarrhea, make sure to practice proper hand hygiene and food handling.

A Quick Review

Everyone poops at different frequencies. At times, you might notice that you are pooping more than you usually do. In many cases, the increase in bowel movements can be due to dietary changes. It might even be due to having your period, taking certain medications, or being pregnant. In other cases, pooping more can be a sign of a condition that might need to be addressed, such as an infection, IBS, IBD, lactose intolerance, or celiac disease.

Consider reaching out to a healthcare provider to see what might be causing you to poop more frequently. You should especially seek advice if you experience increased amounts of bowel movements in combination with a fever or blood in your stool.

Depending on the cause of your increased pooping, dietary changes alone might help you slow down your pooping. Otherwise, there are many medications available that might be able to help. You can talk with a healthcare provider about the best options for you.