Healthy bowel movements sink to the bottom of the toilet bowl.

The next time you go number two, you should take a peek in the toilet. (You should actually be doing this after every bowel movement, doctors say.)

While certain things such as blood in your poop and frequent diarrhea are known red flags, it turns out that whether your poop floats or sinks in the toilet bowl matters for your health.

Generally, stools that sink mean one thing while stools that float can mean a whole host of other things (and most of these things aren’t good).

Below, doctors share what to know about floating and sinking stool:

Your poop should sink to the bottom of the toilet bowl.

Simply put, stool is denser than water, so it should sink, said Dr. Supriya Rao, a gastroenterologist at Integrated Gastroenterology Consultants in Massachusetts.

Dr. Sophie M. Balzora, a gastroenterologist at NYU Langone Health and president of the Association of Black Gastroenterologists and Hepatologists, agreed — “generally, stools tend to sink like a brick in the toilet bowl.”

While stool should fall to the bottom of the toilet, it should also come out of your bottom in one piece and have a good, solid consistency, added Dr. Rucha Mehta Shah, a gastroenterologist in Arizona.

“This means that you have adequate fiber, adequate water and that your gut flora is digesting what you’re feeding it,” Shah said.

If your poop floats, there could be a few things to blame.

While sinking is ideal, an occasional floating poop isn’t cause for concern, experts........

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