How long does it take for food to pass through you?

Sorry for possibly 'gross' subject but since we eat somewhat similarly and exercise somewhat similarly, I wondered if you would share how long it takes food to pass through you?

I am pretty sure about 13 hours for me. I usually pass some waste within 5 minutes of waking then again about two hours later. From that two hours later one, I can usually tell it was what I ate the night before, about 13 hours earlier.

I can not find a 'normal' time frame, searching the internet. There are many estimates but none really as quick as I experience. So maybe 12 to 13 hours is good or maybe bad (worried about not properly difesting food if it goes that fast.)

Since most do not eat as much fiber as we do or exercise as much as we do, maybe 13 hours is normal for us?

Others?

Here is a link to a german scientific tv-show. Verweildauer (written below the animation) means duration in that part of the digestive system.

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i've heard that 1 or 2 bowel movements a day is common/natural/whatever you want to call it.

i usually have 1 a day, unless i've eaten a lot like last night (half a pizza and a root beer float -- hello indulgence )

to further the gross factor... i personally think that if it comes out clean (which it usually does), things are going well.

I usually have three or four.

Always within 5 minutes of waking, in the morning (small to medium amount).

Again mid morning (large amount)

Again between lunch and dinner (small to medium)

And usually after dinner (small to medium)

Maybe it is good or bad - I am worried if digesting so quickly maybe I am not absorbing nutrients well.

3 or 4 times a day might be annoying in some respects but it is really much healthier for you.

When I first became vegan I also went 3 or 4 times a day and first thing in the morning I would just about shit myself getting to the bathroom. Now two years later I'm kind of constipated and only go once a day and.. let's just say my health has suffered. The only thing I changed was I quit running, I guess I'll start that back up.

I go at least twice a day, normally 3 times I guess, but I stopped keeping a diary of it.

wow what are you guys eating that makes you go more than once a day? I am pretty regular once a day, unless i'm eating unhealthily (is that a word?) and i havent gotten enough fiber. Its very rare i go more than once a day unless i'm doing some kind of clense

just did a quick search on this and found...

source and link to press release: American Academy of Neurology

 

...Constipation is defined as less than one bowel movement per day and is thought to afflict about 5 percent of the general population. In this study, men who were constipated were 2.7 times more likely to develop Parkinson’s as men who had an average of one bowel movement per day. As bowel movement frequency increased, the risk of Parkinson’s decreased.

 

Constipated men were 4.1 times more likely to develop Parkinson’s as men with an average of two bowel movements per day and 4.5 times more likely to develop the disease as men with more than two bowel movements per day. ...

interesting. i almost never feel constipated with my one per day, though.

like Jay said, more may be healthier.

How do you know how long it takes for food to go through, unless you are tracking a specific food (like corn!) that comes out in a recognizable state?

I have no idea how long it takss for thiings to pass, but I have 1 BM a day (sometimes two). And I 've had to get a new toilet plunger, to make sure my plumbing can handle the bulk (huge!--yes, I know, TMI!)

wow what are you guys eating that makes you go more than once a day? I am pretty regular once a day, unless i'm eating unhealthily (is that a word?) and i havent gotten enough fiber. Its very rare i go more than once a day unless i'm doing some kind of clense

apples, soy, beans, brown rice, brown pasta, grape juice, nuts, water, corn, grapenuts, soy milk

s e

Note: stray from subject but something interesting that I learned:

Fiber (indigestible carbohydrates) does not cause you to pass waste it is the waste.

The fiber is the bulk of your waste. The brownish color is waste from the gallbladder I think (or it might be from a different organ), also other toxins and impurity your body is wasting is in the bulk.

The bulk of this fiber waste then presses on nerves at the end of your rectum, which gives the sensation to need to eliminate it an your involuntary muscles prepare to do this.

What happens to people on diets with little fiber, there is not much bulk and the little bulk there is and the toxins etc. stay at the end of intestines a long time because they are not of a size to trigger that process. They get compressed more and more from movements and become little lumps until enough collect to trigger the process. That is why for most people, on low fiber diet, it is very messy and needs much tissue paper clean-up.

For high fiber diet eaters, it is not only more frequent but should be a lot less messy.

I hope I did not gross anyone out but I found that interesting and wanted to share it.

How do you know how long it takes for food to go through, unless you are tracking a specific food (like corn!) that comes out in a recognizable state?

Ugh, I hate that about corn. I always make sure to chew it really well before swallowing.

Anyway I'm having surgery tomorrow for an anal fissure. I've gotten pretty good at seeing how long it takes foods to make their way from one end to the other these lasts 4 months as some foods cause extreme please let me just die pain while others just hurt real bad.

jay, i hope your doin' okay.

i feel like i go all the darn time. At least 3...at least. I eat alot of fiber.

I go 3 to 4 times a day, but I get a lot of fiber and drink plenty of water, I've felt better after I started going a lot more, though I'm still thinking about a cleanse soon.

Thanks, I was worried I was abnormal and might not be fully digesting nutritional content of food.

Based on the responses, the amount of fiber I eat and exercise I get, it is working well.

i have to actually time what time i get up in the morning and what times i eat before i go out so i can have ample time to go at least twice before i go anywhere.

One thing about eating plenty of whole, fiber rich plant foods--when you have to go, you REALLY have to go. But elimination is easy, nothing like it was in my omnivore, junk food laden days...

One thing about eating plenty of whole, fiber rich plant foods--when you have to go, you REALLY have to go. But elimination is easy, nothing like it was in my omnivore, junk food laden days...

Exactly. It's no big deal. It's not a gross thing.

Clean, high-fibre food rocks.

Nuff said.

I've been taught my my naturopath that one bm for each meal is good, so you aren't letting food stagnate inside you encouraging nasties to grow, and besides, who wants loads of old meals

I usually have 2-3 per day, any less and I feel bloated.

What must these omni's intestines be like as many people think its normal to go several days without visiting the bog!

i have to actually time what time i get up in the morning and what times i eat before i go out so i can have ample time to go

Ditto.... it truly is a pain in the a**, ain't it? No more sleeping in for me!

I have one every AM (and it takes forever) and I find that the MORE fiber I eat, the more constipated I am.... same goes for water: the more I drink, the less I go. I know, I'm a medical anomaly. lol

Ok, this was quite embarrassing... lol. However, I feel so much more close to u all! hahahaha