Not too long ago, a confused Redditor asked strangers on the internet what was the best way to wipe after a trip to the toilet. Most people advised that they should keep wiping until the toilet paper comes back clean. Although these suggestions did not offer a specific number, a pelvic floor expert says anything more than three wipes could be a bad idea.
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One…two…three…stop!
In a video posted on TikTok, an Australian based pelvic floor physiotherapist, cranked the numbers, explaining why three wipes is enough after doing number two. George, the name of the expert started the video with a promise to teach viewers a safe alternative to multiple wiping. In the 57-second clip, George explained:
When you are wiping more than two or three times, that is called faecal smearing. So it is essentially when too much faecal matter stays at the entrance of the anus even after you have finished your poo.
Best practice
Now that you know what faecal smearing is, you might want to know how to avoid it to reduce the number of times you wipe. The pelvic floor physiotherapist offers an alternative that you could try the next time you wipe your bum.
A technique that you can use to reduce the number of times you wipe is by squeezing your pelvic floor in a waterfall formation. So start by squeezing the anus 20 percent, then 50 percent, 80 percent, and 100 percent so that you have squeezed it four times at the end of your poo.
She added that this technique works by helping to close off the anus sphincter, the reason you keep having little bits of poo around the entrance of your rectum. Apart from this weakness from the external sphincter, George explained that haemorrhoids or any 'scar tissue around anus' could be causing the excessive wiping.
Sources used:
Lad Bible: Pelvic floor expert explains why you should never wipe more than three times after going for a poo
