The ick factor, plus questions over its reliability as a diagnostic tool, mean it goes in and out of fashion. In the noughties, television presenter Gillian McKeith encouraged people to look at and even prod their poo on the show You Are What You Eat. Her qualifications were later questioned and the practice passed out of public consciousness once again. For most of us, gazing into the toilet bowl looking for answers was about as much use as reading tea leaves.
Now, stool-gazing is back, promoted by growing interest (both popular and scientific) in the human microbiome. Gut health is an active area of research, with new papers constantly being published, linking the bacteria that live in our guts to a wide spectrum of health issues, from dementia to depression, and heart disease to chronic inflammatory diseases.
In January, Prof Tim Spector published a paper in Nature Medicine that found you can pick out the ratios of good bugs and bad bugs in a person’s gut.
This story is from the May 2021 edition of BBC Focus - Science & Technology.
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This story is from the May 2021 edition of BBC Focus - Science & Technology.
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