How to Determine if You Have a Digestive Problem

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If you are having digestive problems, there is a good chance that it is affecting your hormone function. Bloating after meals, gas, cramping, loose stools, constipation, burping, heartburn, and inconsistent stool formation can all be signs of a digestive problem. You can begin to see if you have digestive problems by doing an easy test at home. This is known as the transit time test.

Performing the Transit Time Test

Food should pass through your intestines in 18-24 hours. If it takes longer than twenty-four hours, there is something wrong with your digestive tract. This easy to do test can be done at home to measure food transit time.
Purchase a product called “activated charcoal” which is an inert substance and will turn your stool black or dark gray.
Swallow four capsules with a meal and write down the day and time that you take the capsules.
Observe your stool until you see black or dark gray stool appear. At this point, write down the day and the time. Look at the time that you originally swallowed the capsules and the time that you see the dark stool and write down the total time it took for this to happen. If it took longer than twenty-four hours, you have some work to do on your digestive tract. If it took less than 18 hours, that may also be a problem meaning that there is something irritating the digestive tract causing increased peristalsis.