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Yes that is right POO! Poop, excrement, stool, feces, (insert other inappropriate words) or whatever you prefer. In our house poo seems a little less scary when your 3 year old starts yelling it in a crowded room. Don’t worry that is as provocative as it’s gonna get, I think. Yesterday I saw someone in a Plant-based/vegan Facebook group mentioned how much more regular her family is, especially her kids who are going through a ton more diapers everyday. Oh honey, I can sympathize. Until just a few months ago I had two Plant-Strong Pooping Machines in diapers. Thankfully the 3 year old is (mostly) done with diapers. My 1 year old still turns our 2-4 poopy diapers in a typically morning, ah the good life of a diaper changing momma.

We talk about poop a lot at my house. What can I say, I have little boys . Besides, poop is an interesting subject. My three year old is constantly talking about how big, how much, what color, what shape and what he sees in it. He also talks though not getting it on his clothes, the floor, his hands, and the lights, I’m not sure why that one ALWAYS comes up but it does.

In my early 20s I had a friend who sold a line of  supplements and one was a probiotic. During the sales demonstration they talked about how some people, especially women would go days to a week without having bowel movements. Of course I saw no problem with that, who wanted to poo more? Wasn’t I silly?

My Pooping Habits (Feel free to skip this part)

I wasn’t regular until my first pregnancy. Wow, what a relief, I looked forward to that moment of the day. After going plant-based things really took off. You will often hear plant-based eaters talk about feeling lighter, that is because they are having multiple bowel movements a day and their food is digesting faster. Meat and oil both slow down digestion, if you eliminate those from your diet you will process your food faster. My “potty times” are typically quicker and cleaner than they used to be, there is no struggling because things are moving well.

Start Reading Again 🙂

Beans and grains along with a variety of fruit and veggies will help anyone wanting to “lighten up” and be more regular. I can tell when I eat something that is not so good for me because my digestion slows down. Imagine your digestive track like a highway. Vehicles move toward their destination at various speeds but they are essentially going the same direction. Some cars are fast, others are bigger but slower, and some just cause problems. During rush hour there are more cars but they are moving slower, other times of day there are fewer cars traveling quicker. Get the picture?

I imagine some things like fruit to be like sports cars or motorcycles, moving quickly. Bigger cars and small trucks are like some veggies, while larger trucks are like higher fiber foods. Occasionally there are hiccups or events that cause backups on the road. To much traffic, barricades, an accident that everyone has to stop to look at. Several months ago while driving the highway was closed, a semi with hazardous chemicals had collided with another vehicle. Both sides of our divided highway was closed for hours. If I went out and ordered fried chicken my digestive system would respond in a similar fashion, complete closure. Even now if we go out to eat and my food is cooked with oil I can fill the “traffic” slow down.

Please don’t hold the above example to scientific or medical scrutiny, it is just a picture to make a point. The food we eat isn’t really racing to the finish, it is getting mixed up and broken down together.

Everytime I change my 1 year olds diaper the 3 year old likes to see the poo, he talks all about it. It goes like this, “I need to see his poo” so I show him the diaper. He then says, “wow, that’s a lot of poo” then in an almost desperate voice he exclames, “it’s on his bottom.” He then talks about other “parts” but that is a subject for another day.

Another important part of the pooping process is water. You need to drink plenty of water for all of your bodily processes to work the way they were designed, pooping is no different. Water will help flush toxins and waste out of your system. If you are not having regular bowel movements you may really be full of poop, no offense!

Some people need probiotics to get their digestive system healthy. All probiotics are not created equally. I am not an expert on them so I wont recommend any specific type.

The moral of the story: Pooping is Good! More pooping is usually better!

Happy pooing!