What Causes Dark Brown Stool or Diarrhea?
- Dietary causes. Your diet can affect the color of your stool, such as the following. ...
- Medications and supplements. Iron tablets: Or vitamins containing iron. Anti-diarrhea medicines: These contain ingredients that can cause very dark stools.
- Illnesses. Illnesses can result in varying stool colors. ...
What makes your poop dark brown?
What causes dark stool?
- Food and medication causes of dark stool
- Digestive tract causes of dark stool
- Serious or life-threatening causes of dark stool. In some cases, dark stool may be a symptom of a serious or life-threatening condition that should be immediately evaluated in an emergency ...
- Questions for diagnosing the cause of dark stool
Why is my poop dark brown?
- hemorrhoids,
- bleeding in the stomach,
- bleeding in the lower parts of the intestines or colon,
- certain vegetables with deep colors, green foods,
- food dyes (especially red, green, purple),
- iron pills,
- bismuth-containing medications (such as Pepto-Bismol ),
- biliary obstruction,
- tumor,
- cystic fibrosis,
Is dark brown poop healthy?
Most shades of brown, even a greenish-brown, are considered normal and healthy for poop. The shades of brown can vary from one day to the next, based on the foods you eat and the amount of bile in your system. But if your poop’s color is significantly different than it’s normal brown, it could also be caused by a health condition or medications.
What does dark brown almost black poop mean?
Very dark brown stools are often caused by dark foods, food pigments, or medications. However, almost black stool can be a sign of bleeding inside your gastrointestinal tract. Common causes include: Dark-colored foods such as blueberries, blackberries, plums, …etc. Iron-containing foods such as spinach, red meat, …etc.
Why does diarrhea turn black?
Image Credit: Westend61/Westend61/GettyImages. Black diarrhea should not be ignored. It is often a sign of bleeding in your digestive tract, which can have numerous causes depending on where the bleeding is coming from. The source of bleeding can be located anywhere from your nose or mouth to your large intestine.
Why does my stomach turn brown?
In this case, stomach acid breaks down the blood, producing a dark brown color. The vomited material typically resembles coffee grounds. Stomach ulcers are a common source of bleeding from the stomach. These ulcers may be caused by infection with the bacteria Helicobacter pylori, excess stomach acid or stomach cancer.
What causes melena in the small intestine?
Bleeding in the small intestine may also produce melena. Ulcers are a common cause of small intestine bleeding. They usually occur in the first part of the intestine, known as the duodenum. H. pylori infection is the most common cause of duodenal ulcers, according to Merck Manual.
What to do if you have black stools?
If you have black stools, see your doctor promptly unless you have eaten a food or taken a supplement or medicine known to cause black stools. Seek immediate medical attention if you have a large amount of black diarrhea or your black stools are accompanied by abdominal pain, vomiting, lightheadedness or fainting.
Why do my stools turn black?
Brisk bleeding from any problem in the mouth, nose or throat may be swallowed, producing melena. As blood travels through the digestive tract, acid in the stomach, other digestive juices and bacteria break it down, changing it from red to black. When mixed with stools, this will make the stools appear black, like tar.
What is the condition that causes a slow bleed in the large intestine?
Colon cancer and angiodysplasia are two conditions in the large intestine that usually produce slow bleeding. Angiodysplasia is an area of abnormal blood vessels that can occur anywhere in the digestive tract. These blood vessels are weak and have a tendency to bleed.
What is the name of the tear that causes a bleed in the esophagus?
Sometimes bleeding results from a tear in the wall of the esophagus -- called a Mallory-Weiss tear.
What causes dark brown stools?
Dark brown stool. Many foods or medications may naturally cause your stool to change colors, including dark brown or black. Common foods known to do this include licorice, blueberries, beets, anything with food coloring , and food made with blood (i.e., blood sausage).
Why does my poop turn brown?
The slow bleed may eventually cause anemia, which causes fatigue, shortness of breath, and dizziness. Once the blood goes through the digestive system , it turns the stool a darker brown and eventually looks black or tarry.
Why does my stool have a color?
It may also be affected by your nervous system. Sometimes flare-ups are due to stress, diet, or other changes. IBS can have different symptoms depending on the person, but most experience abdominal cramps or discomfort. IBS may affect the color and consistency of your stool.
Why is my GI bleed red?
Lower GI bleeds tend to be bright red, bloody stools because there’s not enough time for the blood to be digested to turn the stool a darker brown, black, or tarry. The most common causes of lower GI bleeds are diverticular disease and hemorrhoids.
What does it mean when your stool is dark?
Symptoms. If your stool is a darker color than normal, it may indicate internal bleeding. You can have both upper and lower gastrointestinal (GI) bleeds. Upper GI bleeds tend to be from gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining) or ulcers but there are other causes as well.
What causes a stool to turn black?
Many foods or medications may naturally cause your stool to change colors, including looking dark brown or black. Common foods known to do this include licorice, blueberries, beets, red-colored gelatin or food made with blood (ie blood sausage).
Why is my stool dark?
But stool that simply seems darker than normal may be the result of dehydration, constipation, or eating dark-colored foods or iron-rich foods or supplements.
Why is my stool dark brown?
Foods, Drugs and Supplements. Various consumed substances, including foods, drugs and supplements, can cause darker brown stools. In this instance the dark brown color is not due to bleeding in most cases. Rather it is a result of ingredients, such as colorants and dyes, that cause the stool to be discolored a darker brown color.
Why is my poop brown?
What makes feces brown? It may be surprising to know that the brown color of stool has more to do with red blood cell breakdown in the body rather than the foods or beverages that are consumed. It is important to understand the process of red blood cell breakdown that influences stool color.
What causes bowel movement to be discolored?
Poisoning. A host of different toxins can cause gastrointestinal bleeding or discolor the stool when it is not digested and absorbed higher up the gut. Lead and certain other metals can cause bleeing within the gut or remain in the stool where it alters the natural color of bowel movement. It can sometimes be difficult to differentiate between ...
Why is my stool pale?
However, undigested food and strong food colorants that are not broken down in the gut may also taint the stool with various different colors. Read more on black bowel movement .
What causes a GI tool to be dark?
If there is any source of bleeding higher up the gut then it eventually degrades to give ths tool a dark, tarry appearance. This is known as melena. Some of the common causes of gastrointestinal bleeding and particularly upper GI bleeding includes: Bleeding peptic ulcers (stomach or duoenum) Mallory-Weiss tear.
Why does urine turn yellow?
A combination of air and bacteria in the gut then act on this bilrubin to yield stercobilin and urobilin. Both contribute to the color of stool with stercbobilin usually associated with the brown color. Most of this urobilin is reabsorbed from the gut and eventually passed out with urine. It causes urine to have the typical yellow color.
What is the normal color of bowel movement?
Posted by Dr. Chris. The normal color of bowel movement in humans varies from tan to dark brown. It is not unusual for stool color to vary within the shades of brown, even among successive bowel movements on the same day. There are various factors that influence the color of bowel movement. However, there are cases where bowel movement may be too ...
Why does my diarrhea turn black?
Common causes of black watery diarrhea include: Peptic ulcer bleeding. Taking Pepto Bismol for diarrhea. Bleeding esophageal or gastric varices. Bleeding from tumors or malignant ulcers inside your gut. Angiodysplasia: bleeding from malformed blood vessels. Black foods such as blueberries, and black licorice.
What causes black diarrhea?
This is more common with malignant forms such as cancer stomach or cancer esophagus. The mass usually ulcerates and causes bleeding which leads to black diarrhea in severe cases of massive bleeding.
What does it mean when your stool is black?
Black stool is a potentially serious condition that may reflect bleeding inside your gut tract. The amount of black diarrhea may reflect the “severity” of bleeding. If you have sudden massive black watery diarrhea, consult your health care provider immediately.
Why do people have peptic ulcers?
People usually have peptic ulcers due to the abuse of “Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs” or due to H. Pylori infection. In the United States, up to 73% of patients with Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) suffer from bleeding ulcers (causing vomiting of blood or black watery diarrhea) ( ref ).
Why does my stool turn black after a tonsillectomy?
Having black stool or black diarrhea after one or two days after epistaxis attack ( ref ), tooth bleeding, or bleeding after tonsillectomy operation may be a result of a swallowed blood. Fact-checked.
What does it mean when you have a black watery diarrhea?
Presence of red or clotted blood with the black watery diarrhea. Vomiting of blood. Severe epigastric pain (pain in the upper central part of your abdomen. Shortness of blood, sweating, rapid heartbeats. Dizziness, confusion, fainting attacks, or loss of consciousness.
What color is diarrhea?
So, the first thing to make sure of the color of your diarrhea before you dive into the causes below. “Dark brown” or “dark green” stools are different from the black stools. So, notice the stool under sufficient light to make sure it is true black.
Why is my stool dark brown?
Very dark brown stools are often caused by dark foods, food pigments, or medications. However, almost black stool can be a sign of bleeding inside your gastrointestinal tract.
Why is my stool black?
Because it is less frequent compared to food and medications. Also, Bleeding into the upper part of your gut (eso phagus, stomach, and early part of small intestine) causes JET BLACK stool rather than a very dark brown stool. Minor and recurrent bleeds can cause black spots or speckles in the stool.
What is the smell of blood coming from the upper part of the stomach called?
Blood coming from the upper part of your gut (esophagus, stomach, or duodenum) is usually black (called melena). Melena is different from a very dark brown stool. It is tarry black. Usually with a characteristic offensive smell (rotten meat smell).
What causes black stools?
Medications can indirectly cause almost black stools (melena) by inducing bleeding inside the stomach or intestine. Tow major mechanisms of bleeding: Inducing ulcers or injury to the lining of your intestine which in turn bleeds.
How to get rid of dark stool?
Check the iron content of your supplement. If you are not sure about the cause of very dark stool, try to withhold supplements for 3 to 5 days. And watch your stool color, if it reverts to normal, then it is due to the iron-containing supplement.
Can iron be taken with iron deficiency anemia?
Oral treatment of iron deficiency anemia usually requires high doses of iron. The larger the dose of iron, the darker your stool gets. It can turn to almost black stool during the treatment of iron deficiency anemia. However, iron also is contained in general tonic supplements. Tonic supplements (containing multivitamins and minerals) ...
Why is my urine dark?
Hepatitis, inflammation or infection of the liver, can be cause for dark colored urine and diarrhea. Several causes of hepatitis exist. If you are experiencing these symptoms, it would be a good idea to contact your doctor for advice.
Is food poisoning a life threatening disease?
Food poisoning is common, but can also be life threatening. The symptoms for food poisoning are fever, abdominal pain, headache, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. Food poisoning has many causes, for example, chemicals (from toxic fish or plants) and bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus or Salmonella).
Why does stool color change?
Only rarely does stool color indicate a potentially serious intestinal condition. Stool color is generally influenced by what you eat as well as by the amount of bile — a yellow-green fluid that digests fats — in your stool. As bile pigments travel through your gastrointestinal tract, they are chemically altered by enzymes, ...
Why is my stool red?
If your stool is bright red or black — which may indicate the presence of blood — seek prompt medical attention. Food may be moving through the large intestine too quickly, such as due to diarrhea. As a result, bile doesn't have time to break down completely.
What does it mean when you have no bile in your stool?
A lack of bile in stool. This may indicate a bile duct obstruction. Certain medications, such as large doses of bismuth subsalicylate (Kaopectate, Pepto-Bismol) and other anti-diarrheal drugs. Excess fat in the stool, such as due to a malabsorption disorder, for example, celiac disease.