Yesterday, I consumed a large amount of mooncakes alone, without any vegetables, whole grains, etc. At night, I was covered tightly with a quilt and did not catch a cold. This morning, I had a strong urge to defecate, and the stool was normal and soft, banana-shaped, likely recent accumulated stool (no bowel movement for two days), about 5-8 cm long. Afterwards, the stool became loose, sticky, and viscous, difficult to flush, with a volume similar to what I usually experience after catching a cold and having loose stools.
Additionally, two years ago, I ate a large amount of Oreo cookies alone, also refined grains, without catching a cold. The next morning, I had a similar strong urge to defecate. The first stool was a normal banana-shaped soft stool, about 2-3 cm long (I had one bowel movement per day at that time). The following stool was loose, sticky, and dark black in color. At first, I thought I had upper gastrointestinal bleeding, but then I recalled that I had eaten a large amount of black Oreos the day before, and only then did I feel relieved.
Combining these two cases, I have the following reflections:
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I deeply realize the effect of refined grains on stool formation. This effect is probably because refined grains lack dietary fiber, so the stool cannot maintain its shape.
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It takes about 12-24 hours from ingesting food to defecation. If one does not have a bowel movement for a long time, the stool formed from earlier food will continue to lose water and harden in the large intestine (the main function of the large intestine). Therefore, some people’s stool first becomes hard then loose, which often indicates constipation for many days. If one has daily bowel movements, the stool is likely loose. This type of constipation is different from completely hard stool or pellet-like stool. The former is likely due to qi deficiency failing to propel the stool and should be treated with both laxative and tonic methods, while the latter is true yin deficiency with heat, treated by nourishing yin and clearing heat. For more information, see 便秘头干后软（先硬后稀、便头硬
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Sugar and oil mixtures are difficult to digest. When consuming, these are cookies or mooncakes, but when excreted, it is almost like a paste. I have not yet found data on whether the human body truly absorbs sugar and oil mixtures consumed alone. From a visual perspective alone, I believe not much is absorbed.
- In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), loose stools are generally associated with spleen deficiency. Seeing loose stools and diagnosing spleen deficiency, I think the underlying meaning is loose stools = almost unchanged excretion = poor absorption (poor spleen and stomach digestive ability) = poor food intake = inadequate postnatal generation and transformation, making it difficult to nourish the whole body. For the two cases in this article, loose stools indeed reflect “almost unchanged excretion,” but can it really reflect “poor absorption”? Or in other words, does loose stool truly mean spleen deficiency?
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“Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.” My clinical experience is lacking, so the above reflections may just be empty talk. Next, I will try treating several constipation cases before making further comments.