What Your Poop is Telling You! The Ayurvedic Approach to Healthy Elimination

Ayurveda teaches that improper digestion is the root cause of all disease. Yet, you may wonder, how am I to know if I am not digesting foods properly? Familiar symptoms like bloating, flatulence (gas), constipation, hyperacidity, indigestion, feeling sluggish after eating and/or nausea are some of the telltale signs that there is a disturbance in your digestive system, but did you know that the consistency of your bowel movements (BMs) and stool (poop) quality also offer insight into your current state of digestion? Although an often uncomfortable and taboo topic to discuss, the importance of looking at your poop and elimination patterns is necessary to stay aware of your digestive health. For example, Ayurveda shares that everyone should have at least one BM daily for proper detoxification of the body. If you are not, then your body is telling you it is experiencing constipation and that it requires hydration and restored balance for vata dosha. 

Today’s blog shares the Ayurvedic approach to assessing your poop. You will learn how to determine the difference between a healthy and unhealthy poo, how each dosha impacts BMs and stool quality and what you can do to achieve optimal daily elimination patterns that support healthy alignment in the body and mind.

The above image is of the Bristol Stool Chart. This chart is a helpful guide for identifying the 7 different types of stool that a person can experience.

Composed of the air and ether elements, people predominant in vata dosha or who are experiencing an imbalance in vata dosha are prone to dryness in the colon and, therefore, suffer more frequently from constipation when compared to pitta and kapha doshas. Vata types can also experience bloating, non-smelly gas and some pain during elimination due to the dryness in the colon.

When vata is imbalanced and in excess in the body, the stool will look like Type 1 on the Bristol Stool Chart, which are hard, small, dry pellets that are difficult to pass (think rabbit poop). Gas will be present when trying to have a BM and elimination will feel incomplete. A vata imbalance is also present in Type 2 stools, as the lumpiness of this stool displays a lack of moisture and hydration in the body’s tissues.

When a vata type has healthy poop, it will look dark to medium brown, be passed without gas or pain, no bloating will be present and a BM will happen once daily in the morning. The type of stool to strive for is Type 3 or Type 4 in the Bristol Stool Chart, with a floating Type 4 being the optimal goal.

• First thing in the morning, tongue scrape to spark digestion (by activating the taste buds) and improve elimination.
• After tongue scraping, drink warm lemon water to promote the downward flow of waste (feces) from the body.
• Even if you do not feel the urge “to go,” sit on your toilet each morning and gently massage the belly in a clockwise and downward motion, envisioning a healthy BM.
• To reduce strain, invest in a squatty potty to straighten out the colon during your BMs to mimic a squatting position so that you may eliminate as nature intended.
• Ingest a Triphala churna in the PM to help regulate elimination and encourage a daily BM.
• Stay hydrated by drinking at least half your body weight in ounces of water each day.
• Consume vata pacifying foods like root vegetables and healthy fats. Check out our Vata Balancing Foods List!
• Incorporate healthy, vata balancing oils into your diet.
• Integrate vata pacifying digestive spices like ginger, cumin and cinnamon, which you can find in our Vata Spice Blend.
• Incorporate a vata digestive churna 30 minutes before each meal. Learn about digestive churnas.
• Sip on a moisturizing, grounding and nourishing demulcent tea like our Hydrate Blend Tea.
• Focus on having meals at the same times daily.
• Eat while seated.
• Eat with awareness, free from electronic devices and without distractions.
• Slowly chew your food.
• Take 3 breaths at the beginning and end of each meal. Discover more Ayurvedic guidelines for healthy eating.
• Practice self-abhyanga, focusing on apana vayu (downward energy) and abdominal massage.
• Focus on seated and standing twists in your yoga practice to help move stool through the large intestine. Postures such as Ardha Matsyendrasana (half lord of the fishes) and Parivrtta Trikonasana (revolved triangle) are beneficial.
• Calm the nervous system and release tension through vata balancing pranayama (breathing exercises).

Containing mostly fire and some water, pitta dosha tends to provoke excess heat in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, which manifests in various ways, such as eliminating twice or more each day, feeling an urgent need “to go,” hyperacidity, inflammation and smelly gas.

When pitta is imbalanced and in excess in the body, the stool will look like Type 5, 6, or 7 on the Bristol Stool Chart due to pitta dosha in the digestive tract pushing stool more rapidly through the intestines. The stool can resemble soft serve ice cream (graphic, we know!), soft blobs, fluffy pieces, and even a watery and/or oily liquid. Additionally, pieces of undigested food can be present due to the food moving too quickly through an overheated digestive tract. There can also be burning upon elimination, smelly gas and a sharp odor associated with pitta type stools. Rather than suffering from constipation, pitta types or people experiencing a pitta imbalance are more prone to experiencing diarrhea and elimination several times per day.

When a person predominant in pitta dosha has healthy elimination, they poop 2-3 times daily, usually in the morning and after lunch. It will be yellowish brown and will be mildly odorous. The type of stool to strive for is Type 4 (floating), which is nicely formed and will pass easily.

• First thing in the morning, tongue scrape to cleanse the palate and spark the digestive system by activating the taste buds.
• After tongue scraping, drink a cup of warm water to help flush excessive heat from the digestive system.
• Ingest a Triphala churna in the PM to help reduce inflammation in the GI tract and improve the absorption of vitamins, minerals and nutrients.
• Stay hydrated by drinking at least half your body weight in ounces of water each day.
• Consume pitta pacifying foods that are cooling, sweet and heavy. Check out our Pitta Balancing Foods List!
• Include pitta pacifying digestive spices like coriander, fennel and cumin, which you can find in our Pitta Spice Blend.
• Incorporate a pitta digestive churna 30 minutes before each meal. Learn about digestive churnas.
• Sip on a cooling, digestive tea like our Cool & Calm Blend Tea.
• Say grace before meals.
• Have the largest meal at midday.
• Eat with awareness, free from electronic devices and without distractions.
• Eat in a calm environment. Discover more Ayurvedic guidelines for healthy eating.
• Focus on calming yoga, like restorative and yin.
• Reduce intensity and overheated emotions through pitta balancing pranayama.

Made up of the earth and water elements, people who are predominant in kapha dosha or are experiencing a kapha imbalance are prone to sluggish digestion, nausea and/or tiredness after eating and can incur constipation due to low peristaltic action.

When kapha is imbalanced and in excess in the body, it will look like Type 4 on the Bristol Stool Chart; however, it will not pass easily. Instead, it will be bulky, sticky and slow-moving. The sticky nature of imbalanced kapha poop is due to a build of ama (toxins) within the body and there may also be mucus within the stool.

A healthy kapha type poop is passed once in the morning and is a pale brown. It is well-formed and passes easily through the colon. In short, ideal kapha stools are like Type 4, floating and without any stickiness or congested mucus contained within them. Lastly, this stool can be sweet in odor or non-odorous.

• First thing in the morning, tongue scrape to stimulate agni (digestion) and remove excess ama.
• After tongue scraping, drink warm lemon water to detoxify and eliminate ama.
• Even if you do not feel the urge “to go,” sit on your toilet each morning and gently massage the belly in clockwise and downward motions, envisioning a healthy BM.
• Invest in a squatty potty to loosen the puborectalis muscle and improve peristaltic action.
• Ingest a Triphala churna in the  PM to cleanse and tonify the colon.
• Stay hydrated by drinking at least half your body weight in ounces of water each day.
• Consume kapha pacifying foods that are hot, light and dry. Check out our Kapha Balancing Foods List!
• Enjoy kapha pacifying digestive spices like pippali, ginger and cinnamon, which you can find in our Kapha Spice Blend.
• Incorporate a kapha digestive churna 30 minutes before each meal. Learn about digestive churnas.
• Sip on a spicy and light tea like our Rooibos Chai Blend Tea.
• Have the largest meal at midday.
• Skip snacking if possible. Allow 3-4 hours between meals.
• Slowly chew your food.
• Eat until 75% full. Discover more Ayurvedic guidelines for healthy eating.
• Practice self-abhyanga, focusing on apana vayu (downward energy) and abdominal massage.
• Focus on awakening agni through sun salutations, vinyasa and power yoga. Remember to incorporate yoga twists to improve peristaltic action!
• Warm, lighten, uplift and purify the senses with kapha balancing pranayama.

As you can see, your poop can say a lot about you. It is a visible indicator of what is happening within your body and is worth taking a peek at daily. Take note of when you eliminate, how often you go and which qualities seem predominant within your stool. You can even create an elimination journal to help keep track of your defecation patterns, any indigestion you may be experiencing and what foods you are eating so that you may better understand what is happening in your digestive system and which, if any, of the doshas require balancing.

Stool analysis is not taboo within the Ayurvedic community and is one of the many ways Ayurvedic doctors and practitioners can build a holistic understanding of their clients' unique blend of the doshas and their current state of balance. For a more specialized assessment of your Ayurvedic constitution, we invite you to meet with our Clinical Ayurvedic Specialist, Laurel Odom.