Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

Please don't laugh, this is a serious matter. I eat 3000kcals every day from high fiber whole foods and go to #2's once a day. The problem is on this diet my #2's are HUGE. It usually takes about three big flushes before the toilet clears and this uses a lot of water and where I live, water ain't cheap! Is there a trick to get the toilet clear with just one flush or how could I save money instead of using three big flushes every day just for one #2? I live in city so I can't go outside and take a dump...

I have system where I see how much water everything uses and one big toilet flush is 5 liters and small one is 3 liters. It's very expensive just to flush toilet.

Glad somebody posted this - it happens more often than people might think, if you're whole food plant based especially!

One issue, as you've probably gathered, is a lot of toilets (especially the older models) are designed unfortunately around fiber deficient people. They didn't pass as much faecal stool mass as they should - aka, folks on the standard Western diet. With more modern toilets, they tend to be designed with a more international feel and technology, and can handle with more efficient design and suction a wider variety of stool sizes.

If replacing or upgrading the toilet right now isn't an option, or installing suitable water saving devices, because of cash: do you have any publicly available toilets near you that you can use, that are newer, some of the time? Otherwise, it's probably a case of spending a bit more time in crushing up the stool mechanically first, so it's more fluidic and flushable in one, with a toilet brush or similar. Icky, but I've done that on a number of occasions. You can pour a bit of water extra into the basin in most toilets, if it makes this easier, if necessary. However, obviously check beforehand that by doing so, any extra water won't lead to overflow when trying to flush.

One thing is - don't feel at all ashamed, at larger stools. It's obviously a health saver, and could save much larger bills in health care down the road. Pity that more people aren't thinking about this - they're thinking about haemorrhoids and varicose veins instead! :S

Hey Barry, thanks for answering!

Yes, sometimes I've had to mechanically crush the stool with toilet brush, but then the toilet brush gets really dirty and it takes a lot of water to clean it. The best tactic I've found is you have to look when the poop is coming down and right when it's about to hit the water you press the large flush button and if you get it right it's gone in one flush. SO it's like a game, you have to get the timing right.

Go twice a day.

I’ve never experienced this problem and I’ve never seen anyone post on this topic, although it is so personal perhaps no one else was brave enough to post. Mine are huge too and over the years since I started eating this way I have used many different toilets In many different countries, commercial and residential, old to modern.

Do you have this problem with other toilets or is it just your home toilet? I do agree with others, perhaps changing your toilet will solve the problem. There are some very sophisticated low water usage choices.

Are you healthy and lean? Dr McDougall does recommend some lower fiber options such as juice instead of a whole fruit for people who have trouble gaining weight. Perhaps following his suggestions you could lower your BM volume while still benefiting from this way of eating?

I would suggest focusing on how Many Quality Lifestyle days you are living and adding vs the financial cost you will be paying in medical bills. It's a problem now, but when the body knows what foods create satiety, volume eating becomes less. I have found adapting to this lifestyle everything works out where the benefits justify the inconvenience. Food and Money are the last two seats on the addiction bus, no one gets thrown off the bus. Hang in there YOU are what is of value. Know this too will pass. My favorite book of Dr. McDougall is Dr. McDougall's Digestion Tune Up", where he shares animals, poultry and fish don't have fiber. In his book you realize it is the Fiber. The body doesn't lie.. you will figure it out. There are certain foods that tigger digestion.. some that slow it down.. there is a learning curve.. food and money work together. This lifestyle is too expensive not to learn the on going learning curve.. stay open minded and teachable.

Aloha patty

Hello friends!

I wanted to do an update on my incredible humongous stool size problem. So before I had so big stools that it would almost fill the whole toilet bowI and I would have to mechanically crush it with a stick, I'm not even kidding. I found the reason for my big stool problem and it was low stomach acid! I used to have lot's of undigested food in my stools and decided to start supplementing with betaine HCL and I also increased my salt intake because salt increases stomach acid too. After month of doing this I have very well formed very dense stools that no longer fill the whole toilet bowl and I don't even have to crush the stool with a stick anymore. I hope this helps if someone else is suffering with the same problem.

Glad you found a solution.