Human feces

Main article: Human feces Human fecal matter varies significantly in appearance, depending on diet and health. Normally it is semisolid, with a mucus coating. Its brown colouration comes from a combination of bile and dead red blood cells. In newborn babies, fecal matter is initially yellow/green after the meconium. This colouration comes from the presence of bile alone. In time, as the body starts expelling excess dead red blood cells, it acquires its familiar brown appearance. Throughout the life of an ordinary human, one may ...

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Feces, Feces - Related terminology, Feces - Fecal contamination, Feces - Human feces

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Main articles: Toilet, Latrine, Sewage. The problem of efficient feces disposal existed since the times when people started to live in permanent settlements, primarily for the reasons of cleanliness and odor. Toilets were known in ancient India (dated as early as 2,500 BCE), in Ancient Rome, Egypt and China. Over time it has become clear that the disposal of feces is an issue of hygiene, since feces contribute to spreading of diseases and intestinal parasites. It is a matter of at ...

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Human feces, Human feces - Feces disposal, Human feces - Tourism, Human feces - Laboratory testing of feces

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Feces (American English) or fæces (Commonwealth English) are semi-solid waste products from an animal digestive tract expelled through the anus (or cloaca) during defecation. In humans, defecation may occur (depending on the individual and the circumstances) from once every two or three days to many times a day. Hardening of the feces may cause prolonged interruption in the usual routine and is called constipation. The word faeces is the plural of the Latin word faex meaning "dregs". There is no sin ...

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• Feces - Related terminology
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• Feces - Human feces

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Feces are also known as scat and scatology is the study of feces. Informally, the word "excrement" has become synonymous with feces; a usage based upon the incorrect belief that feces are a product of excretion. The words shit and doodoo are vulgar terms for feces in English. Coprophagia is the practice of eating feces. This is unusual, but some herbivores with a high-fiber/low-protein diet (such as rabbits) eat their own feces as a normal part of metabolism. Plant matter the animal consumes is digested in two passes, wi ...

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Feces, Feces - Related terminology, Feces - Fecal contamination, Feces - Human feces

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A quick test for fecal contamination of water sources or soil is a check for the presence of E. coli bacteria performed with the help of McConkey agar plates or Petri dishes. E. coli bacteria uniquely develop red colonies at temperature of approximately 43 °C (110 °F) overnight. While nearly all strains of E. coli are harmless, their presence is indicative of fecal contamination, and hence a high possibility of ot ...

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Feces, Feces - Related terminology, Feces - Fecal contamination, Feces - Human feces

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In the medical profession, feces are referred to as stools. This comes from the Anglo-Saxon word stol, which means "seat". The word stool was originally used to describe the seat one sat on to defecate. So, an euphemism was that they were "going to stool". By the end of the 16th century, the word stool was used to mean the same thing as feces. Feces will usually be required for microbiological testing, looking for an intestinal pathogen. Biochemical tests done on feces include fecal elastase and fecal ...

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Human feces, Human feces - Feces disposal, Human feces - Tourism, Human feces - Laboratory testing of feces

Read more here: » Human feces: Encyclopedia II - Human feces - Laboratory testing of feces