You can't live without your morning dose. You love the smell of it. It makes you friendlier. More awake. And more importantly, for some, it helps them to take a dump. Why does coffee make you want to shit?

Some people experience that sort of effect on their pooping habits.

But what's going on here? Apparently, experts aren't entirely sure why coffee has this effect on some people.

It might be that it causes more movement in the colon for some, but not others.

And that it can stimulate contractions that send your poop coming out. It releases gastrin, a hormone that plays a role in the motility of the intestinal tract.

But wait, there's more. If your poop habits usually happen in the morning, it might not be due to the coffee.

It could actually be your gastrointestinal tract waking up after being inactive all night, and when food enters an empty stomach, your gastrocolic reflex is triggered, sending a hormonal message to the colon to do its work.

Which means, you don't really need coffee to shit if your shit is regularly in the morning. But if you take coffee with cream or milk, and you're sensitive to dairy, that might explain it.