Is using a LOT of toilet paper a sign something is really wrong with your gut health? How much do you use?

[weirdgrossbodies]

Not a poo troll, just at a loss as to where I can ask this. Can't imagine asking my friends. Have googled and somewhat alarmed to see that "on average" people use 6 - 8 sheets per visit to the loo, and that a number two takes an average person 3 wipes to be clean?

I thought my gut was healthy as no stomach issues, pain or anything else, regular habits etc. Things go out of whack before my period but assumed that was normal with the hormones.

But erm I use way more toilet paper for a number two? As in 15 - 20 sheets. I do have some OCD traits (as mentioned by NHS doctor not me, but not enough for an OCD diagnosis) so wonder if this is partly to do with it. But I definitely would not be properly clean at all with 3 wipes.

Is this a massive red flag my digestive system is actually sick and out of whack - that I must have "silent" food intolerances or an illness?

I have a lot of cancer in my family, including bowel cancer, and am just worried now my gut is damaged and I haven't been aware and should get a colonoscopy or something.

@MassageForLife same here, depends on how much crap I've been eating

I got fed up with how much I was using. I now get the worst off with loo paper (1 or 2 wipes) and then polish off with little dampened reusable (washable) cloths I bought from cheekywipes. Has honestly changed my life to get properly clean without using so much loo roll every time. I thoroughly recommend these wipes to anyone spending an age (and a huge quantity of paper) wiping and wiping…

No, it hasn't been great for some years now, but you get used to all sorts if you have to. I second going to your GP if you are worried. I'm old enough for the bowel cancer screening now, but I first did the test before I had reached screening age as a result of going to my GP about the IBS. My dh has had a colonoscopy, purely because he comes from a family with a history of bowel cancer (his was clear, fortunately). Although there is a blood test they can do now, measuring calprotectin, which indicates if the bowel is inflamed and can rule out the need for colonoscopies. Anyway, the point is, you should find your GP takes it quite seriously and there is lots that can be done to put your mind at rest.

Wow that sounds awful 😖

Without being rude, what were you doing for 9 hours? You'd have no bumhole left 🫣

I hate those toilet roll dispensers you often find in public toilets where you have to 'pinch' the sheets out one by one through an opening that, ironically, strongly resembles a bum hole.

I'm sure they reckon that it means people use less, but in actuality, it completely nullifies all the benefits that come from having one continuous length - so I end up just getting loads and loads, far more than I otherwise would.

I have a degenerative nerve disease similar to MS. Along with that came the delight of having a neurogenic bowel and bladder.

It doesn't matter how good my gut health is, when my nerves are in charge (or not), I have no idea what the gift of the day will be.

I'm in the loo for a minimum of an hour as every time I wipe it triggers another blob! My bum is like an ice cream machine as the texture is always like soft-serve.

After multiple wipes, I'll finish with a wet wipe (annoyingly, my continence clinic supplies the plastic types with my catheters so I buy my own 'flushable). It's always clean as I'll have sanded my bumhole (ouch btw) clean with paper first but it goes in a nappy sack.

I joke about it to family and friends but it's ruining my life. My body won't do a routine no matter how hard I try. I get anxious if I need to go out which in turn affects my bowel.

Like a few PP, I also get loo roll anxiety as I go through so much. I can no longer use a bath so I buy bulk and keep my stash in it.

I crave the good old days of having a normal dump as that would mean a normal life again.

I feel for anyone with toilet anxiety/problems.

Nope but sometimes the splash hits me up the bum

so many people use wet wipes and flush those when the shouldn't because the manufatueres say that they are flushable when they are not.

Yes and I bloody wish they wouldn't. Just last week the manhole in my driveway started seeping waste and I had to get people out to clear it. First DP had a go, then the drain cleaning company, then finally the water company had to come out. The stench was indescribable.

The two main culprits for the blockage were wet wipes and fat balls (all that grease people pour down the sink).

That manhole, by the way, is less than 2 metres away from my kitchen window.

Nope but sometimes the splash hits me up the bum

Aaaaahhhh, the old 'Poseidon's kiss'!!

If you're worried about the consistency I'd recommend adding psyllium husk tablets to your diet.
I'd ask if your GP would do a FIT test as well but psyllium husks have revolutionised my toilet time.

I have crohn's, so anything can happen, I use loo roll first, a few wipes, then I finish with a baby wipe (put in bathroom bin). I aways keep a packet on top of the toilet. My son has taken on this habit, minus the toilet roll. I like to feel clean and this is the only way for me to be sure.

Just counted- exactly 6 wraped around my hand, no second wipe necessary, my bum hole does a good job of " pinching" it off.

Any gastroenterologists on here?

I would try to improve my gut health - eat a spoonful of kimchi or sauerkraut each day, or live yoghurt, or kefir, or kombucha. Eat more veg and whole grains.

Just see if it makes a difference. Then seek medical advice if you’re still concerned.

I’m not an expert though.

I have IBS and can spend upwards of over an hour on the toilet sometimes, it’s really ruining my life 😕

I use much more than you.. l go a lot ( ibs/ diverticulitis/ adhesions) 5 times on average per day .
But l always wash too after a no2..
Thought everyone did( obviously not in public loos but at home).

I usually wash if it’s particularly bad, although like you I can go quite a lot in a day so washing after every single time is too much

Too many people are only using one side of the paper.
😉😁😁

And far too many people fail to make good use of the strongest bit - the tube in the middle; probably the same adults who always cut the crusts off their sandwiches

You need to install a shattaf. I really don’t understand why the UK has not embraced them.

The shits that barely need a wipe are known as "clean sweeps" in this house.

The ones that only need one wipe are called "one sheet wonders", although imo this is a misnomer imo. After all, you only know if one wipe was enough when you've done the second wipe.

I had to Google what a shattaf was. Assume you still need to use bog roll afterwards to dry off?

I only wipe once and there's never anything on the paper. I'm not sure why that is.

I had to Google what a shattaf was. Assume you still need to use bog roll afterwards to dry off?

They're actually a lesser-known product made by Ronseal - at their factory in Glasgow.

Never need more than three wipes. Usually two. And only two or three at most sheets each time.

I've found that I need fewer wipes since I started using bamboo loo roll. It's smoother yet somehow more efficient.

My sister says she uses a lot because she "doesn't want to get pee on her fingers".

I suggested she washes her hands instead 😀