Inquiring minds.. wanna know

Ever wonder how much poop can accumulate in the colon?  Glad you asked.  The average person's colon can often hold 8 to 25 lbs of accumulated fecal matter.  So.... some people really are:  Full of crap.

How long is the average colon?  Glad you asked.  It's average length in an adult human is 65 inches (166 cm) for males, and 61 inches (155 cm) for females.

Who invented the Ostomy pouch?  Glad you asked.  In 1954,  Elise Sørensen, a Danish nurse, invented the disposable colostomy bag.  Attachable through an adhesive ring, and very similar to the devices used today.

 Coloplast, which has its headquarters in Humlebæk north of Copenhagen, was founded in 1957 on the basis of Elise's ostomy pouch production. Today Coloplast is a world-wide company with more than 7000 employees. 

Have a nice day. 😉

Hello Beachboy.
Thanks for this information. It feels satisfying to think that we may be less 'full of crap' than the average person without a stoma.

Best wishes

Bill

G-Day Mr Information.   IGGIE

My colon was 1.5 ft longer than it should have been.. not fun when you don’t have much real estate space to spare. 😝

Hi IGGIE,

I knew I forgot something in my "wanna know" compilation.

Ever wonder where the IGGIE clip originated? Glad you asked.  Australian Ostemate IGGIE devised a way to secure pouch drains utilizing a paper binder clip.  😉

I use the clip every day.

Thanks IGGIE.

Stories of Living Life to the Fullest from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

Hi Bill,

I was amazed to discover... 8 to 25 pounds. Even more amazing... humans can live just fine without a colon. 😎

I always take the time to read your poetic rhyme. 😉

Hello,

I read my surgical report and discovered that 12.5 inches of my colon was removed. I wondered, "Is that a lot?" I researched colon statistics, which was very interesting. Each colon section has an average length: the ascending colon is about eight inches long, the transverse colon is usually over 18 inches long, the descending colon is usually less than 12 inches long, the sigmoid colon is about 18 inches long, and the rectum, the last segment before the anus, is about 6 inches long.

The colon's diameter varies by segment, with the cecum being about 3.5 inches, the transverse colon about 2.5 inches, and the descending colon about 1.2 inches.

Your colon was too long by 1.5 feet. Did that, by itself, cause trouble?

Interesting read, BB

Laughing - : ) ) ) )

Now where are those emojis... Windows key and period... not on this old machine... nothing happens.

And when it overflows... then it streams out... Yeah, I know - TMI / too many words from me.

:-)

But I will check to remedy.

;-)

:-)

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM - interesting - it takes so much research to find this specific data elsewhere -

Thanks for this summary and relevant question as to what happens to what extent when 'which' bit is removed or reduced.

Stats like that make me even more grateful to have no colon anymore!  I feel positively light as air!  I have no doubt about the numbers at all.  When I was in hospital with my first bowel obstruction, and had my colostomy, so still had my colon, the amount of stuff that came out of me when it was finally draining, was unbelievable.  

Terry

It contributed to a lot of later issues up until the colon was removed. The colon probably stretched out from a ‘typical’ length to a ‘how did she live like this’ length within the last 3 years it took up residential space in my body. Based on what I could feel & symptoms, I think there was complete paralysis then the final years it tried to adapt by stretching beyond its capacity and got pushed up way too high in my abdominal cavity. My surgeon knew going in would be a bit trickier thanks to it being up in the spleen’s business… she & her team had not anticipated that extra 1.5ft. I asked for pictures 😁

Thanks for your reply. I'm amazed at all the different ways our digestive systems can cause trouble. I've watched a few videos of surgeries... How do surgeons do it? Looked like a bunch of mush to me.

Thank you BB, I hope the IGGIE Clip has helped a lot of our friends. It's a cheap and easy way to not only secure the end of the bag but also allows you to shorten the bag as much as you wish. Regards, IGGIE

Used to be, my bag bottom would peek out from under my shirt.  Now, my wife no longer points and says "hey.. hey.. hey."  😀

How interesting! Thanks