A survey conducted by Zoe Health, a UK-based health startup founded by doctors and researchers, found that while women are more constipated than men, men spend more time in the loo. The one-of-a-kind survey called 'The Big Poo Review', which recorded the bowel habits of around 142,768 people in the UK, aged 18 or older, also reported that men tend to fart more than women. Further, they found that women reported having more diagnoses of Irritable Bowel Syndrome than men did. More than 23 per cent of women in the survey reported suffering from constipation, as opposed to around 13 per cent of men, and 19.1 per cent of women said they had IBS more than 10 per cent of men, as per the official website of Zoe Health. To understand this stark difference in gut health issues among men and women, we reached out to the experts who delved deeper into the topic. According to Karishma Shah, Nutritionist, Integrated Health Coach and Counselling Psychologist, women tend to gain weight towards their hips and thighs due to physiological reasons like child-rearing. "Women generally face more gut health issues because of hormonal changes. In their menstrual cycle, they go through different phases like luteal, PMS and menstrual phases, that can exacerbate these issues," Shah says. Dr Shrey Srivastav, Assistant Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, Sharda Hospital, Greater Noida, agrees with the assessment, explaining that when the level of ovarian hormones drops, GI tract issues can get played up in women. Women have slower colonic emptying than men because hormones like progesterone can slow bowel motility, he adds. Vishnupriya Bhagirath, Psychologist, Softminds Counselling Centre, Trivandrum, attributes these findings to psychological reasons. "Women feel sensitive about using public bathrooms, or even spending more time in the bathroom, as compared to men," she says. Due to this, women tend to withhold their stool and that may lead to constipation and other serious bowel issues, Bhagirath adds. Adding that women undergo more stress than men, Bhagirath says, "Because of familial and societal pressure, women tend to face much more stress than men do." Dr Srivastav concurs and says that the mind-gut connection makes it so that women have chronic GI-tract issues due to continued stress and anxiety. "Men also tend to smoke in the loo before pooping so that could be one of the reasons why," the expert notes. Further, he cites wanting space as one of the reasons men might be spending more time in the loo. Agreeing, Shah says that earlier men would read the newspaper in the washroom, now they use their phones, like the rest of us, which can increase the time you're spending in the toilet. 📣 For more lifestyle news, follow us on Instagram | Twitter | Facebook and don't miss out on the latest updates!
