[Biology Class Notes] on Feces Pdf for EXAM

Feces and faeces meaning are the same just spelling is different, and it is also known as excrement. It is a kind of solid bodily waste discharged from the large intestine via the anus during defecation. It is removed from the body one or two times a day depending on the individual condition. Feces excreted from the human adult body weighs about 100 to 250 grams ( Which is equal to three to eight-ounce).   

Faeces Meaning – It is the waste matter eliminated from the bowels; excrement.

Feces are generally made of three-quarter of water and one-quarter of solid matter. In one-quarter of solid matter, it consists of about 30 percent of dead bacteria and 30 per cent consists of indigestible food matter like cellulose. And 10 to 20 per cent is cholesterol and other fats and another 10-20 per cent is an inorganic substance such as calcium phosphate and iron phosphate, finally leftover 2 – 3 per cent is protein. 

The colour of the feces is brown due to the action of bacteria on bilirubin, which is the end product of haemoglobin (red blood cells) breakdown. The main reason behind the bad odour of the feces is caused by the chemicals indole, skatole, hydrogen sulphide, and mercaptans, all these chemicals are produced by bacterial action. 

The function of the bowel is affected by many diseases and disorders that produce abnormalities in the feces. Constipation is characterized by one among them, in which infrequent evacuation of the feces occurs due to the production of excessively hard and dry feces. while diarrhoea results in frequent defecation and excessively soft, watery feces.

Some you can see blood in the stool, which is due to the bleeding in the stomach or intestine. The appearance of the stool containing blood appears dark red, tarry, or black. And when the stool is fatty or greasy it indicates pancreatic or small intestine afflictions. Some of the diseases like typhoid, cholera, and amoebic dysentery spreads by the contamination of food with the feces of the infected person. 

Human Feces

The feces of the human depends on the individual and the several circumstances, human beings may defecate several times a day, every day, or once every two or three days. When the person is unable to poop for several days due to extensive hardening of the feces is known as constipation. 

The faecal matter of the human being changes in appearance depending on the diet and the health of the individual, normally, the human feces are semisolid with a mucus coating.  The typical brown colour of the feces is due to the combination of bile and bilirubin, which comes from the red blood cells. 

Impacted Feces

When a person consumes the food, it is broken in the stomach and passes through the intestine., this process is also called digestion. The nutrients are absorbed from the body 

And the remaining rate passes along with the colon and rectum. 

In some rare cases, things might go wrong and the waste becomes stuck in the colon. assume, when you have an impacted colon, feces will become dry and won’t budge.  Which makes it impossible to excrete them from your body,  Impacted feces block the way for new waste to leave the body, causing it to back up.

Uses of the Animal Feces 

• Animal feces of some animals like guano and manure are often used as fertilizers.  

• In some of the places, dry animal dung is used as a fuel source. Some of the examples are camel, bison, and cattle, which are the source of fuel when dried. 

• Some of the animals like giant pandas and zebras produce biofuel from feces due to the presence of gut bacteria.

• In rare cases, animal dung is also used as cement to make adobe mud-brick huts.

• In places like northern Thailand, elephants are used to digest coffee beans in order to make black ivory coffee.

• Feces of dog is used in the tanning process of the leather known as  “pure”, “puer”, or “pewer”, during the victoria era. 

• There are many beliefs of cow dung and urine having medicinal value, a belief of healing properties or as a food staple, and as told by politician Shankar Bhai Vegad in 2015,  “I am witness to it, cow dung and urine is a 100 per cent cure for cancer“. 

Do You Know?

What are the reasons for the green feces?

1. You’re taking antibiotics.

2. You’ve had an infection, especially involving diarrhoea.

3. You have a liver or gastrointestinal illness.

4. You’re eating a ton of green veggies.

5. You’ve been consuming green dyes (think: frosting and ice cream).

6. You’re taking iron supplements.

7. You’re on the birth control shot.