In fact, research suggests the duration of your 'gut transit time' could ultimately have significant implications for your health. In their review, which analyzed dozens of published studies, the researchers explain that a great variety of factors can affect people's gut transit time. Physical activity, stress, medication, and genetics are all thought to influence gut transit time too, which can also vary within individuals. These variations may add up, creating conditions where either sustained prolonged or shortened gut transit times might have knock-on consequences for people's health, the researchers say. Diet affects gut transit time by promoting certain types of microbes that produce metabolites, which can, in turn, alter the gut environment and affect health.