Good news for people who check their loo roll after wiping: according to Dr Karan Rajan, you’re doing your gut health justice.
And in a new video, the doctor ― who’s known for getting into the nitty-gritty of gut health on social media ― says there’s one sensation you shouldn’t experience when going number two.
In an Instagram Reel, the doctor followed up on a video from a woman who claimed “no-one’s gonna tell you this, but I will, poop isn’t sharp.”
Doctor Rajan responded, “If you feel your poop is sharp, it’s probably nothing to do with your poop.”
Why?
Well, as the initial comment says, poop isn’t sharp ― a sharp feeling when passing stool can only be created by the flesh surrounding the area.
So if you have a tear in the “soft squishy lining of your anus, AKA an anal fissure, this will be agonising and give you the sensation that your rectum is being massaged by sandpaper every time you take a dump,” the doctor says (weaponised incontinence?).
Your anal sphincter, a ring of muscle that usually keeps poop in or out of your guts, tends to spasm when you have an anal fissure too.
“This causes severe, sharp pain, which can actually worsen constipation,” the doctor said.
Meanwhile, haemorrhoids, also known as piles, are less likely to cause sharp pain but can create itching, burning, or dull throbbing pain.
Internal haemorrhoids tend not to cause pain at all because they’re in an area with fewer nerve endings.
Sometimes, skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis can cause that “sharp poop” feeling as the skin breaks when you pass a BM.
What if it’s none of those?
If you only experience “sharp poop” once in a while and it’s not repeated, Dr Rajan says you could be constipated.
The longer your stool stays in the system, he says, the more dehydrated it becomes, turning into what Dr Rajan calls a “poop knife” (I would have gone with sh*t shiv, but hey).
Other issues can include a tight pelvic floor, IBS, and even endometriosis.
“If you have bleeding or pain around your balloon knot or there’s a change to your normal bowel routine, go get it checked out,” the doctor ended his video.