What Gives Stool Its Color
The reason behind the color of stool is bilirubin. It is because bilirubin is a byproduct of red blood cells produced in the liver. After it moves to the bladder, it gets mixed with bile juices in your bladder. Bilirubin at this stage passes through your intestines and then it helps to breakdown bacteria and discards it into your feces. In this process, if the bacteria growth or there is any infection in the bladder, then the stool color changes.
When To See A Medical Provider
Seek medical care right away if you have:
- Diarrhea for more than two days
- A fever of 102° F or higher
- Symptoms of dehydration
Did you know you can access online urgent care with K Health?
Check your symptoms, explore conditions and treatments, and if needed, text with a healthcare provider in minutes.
K Healths AI-powered app is HIPAA compliant and is based on 20 years of clinical data.
What Consistency Is Stool
As the consistency of yellow stool can vary, it is important to know the scale of stool texture used by doctors. This is the Bristol stool chart, and it categorizes stool into seven types based on consistency or texture.
- type 1: nut-like small separate lumps that are hard to pass
- type 2: sausage-shaped and lumpy
- type 3: sausage-shaped and cracked
- type4: sausage-shaped, smooth, and soft
- type 5: blob-shaped and soft with defined edges
- type 6: a mushy stool of fluffy pieces and ragged edges
- type 7: a watery liquid with no solid pieces
Of these Bristol stool chart categories, types 3 and 4 are generally healthy shapes and textures for stool. The other types may indicate complications with bowel movements.
Don’t Miss: How Long Should You Take Probiotics
When Should I Contact My Doctor About Stool Color Or Texture Changes
Aside from black, red, or maroon stools that may mean bleeding is a possibility, and require urgent assessment and treatment, most color changes are not an emergency. The significance is determined based on other symptoms that might be present.
Women who are pregnant often note changes in their bowel pattern. Stool can turn black because of iron and vitamin supplements. Iron can also turn stool greenish. As the uterus enlarges and increases pressure within the pelvis, constipation may occur and hemorrhoids can develop and cause blood in the stool.
If there is no underlying problem, stool color changes are often due to changes in the diet and will resolve in a couple of days. If this is not the case and changes persist, it is appropriate to contact your health care professional and seek medical attention.
Contact your doctor if you have stool color changes and have associated symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, fever, or abdominal pain.
It is important to remember that every person is different and changes in bowel habit be it color, size, frequency, or consistency may be normal for one person or a sign of a potential problem for another.
Health Solutions From Our Sponsors
C Other Drugs Causing Yellow Or Watery Diarrhea
Many drugs other than laxatives and antibiotics can cause yellow or watery diarrhea. The most common types include:
- Metformin: a common anti-diabetic drug.
- Chemotherapy: in people with cancer.
- Immunosuppressive drugs: such as mycophenolate. Used in people with immunological diseases such as systemic lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, and others.
- Drugs used to treat heartburn, GERD, and gastritis : as esomeprazole , Pantoprazole , Omeprazole , and ranitidine .
This is NOT a complete list of drugs causing diarrhea. Learn more here and here.
Contact your doctor to evaluate if it is necessary to stop the antibiotic and if there is any treatment for your diarrhea.
Recommended Reading: How Do Probiotics Help Digestion
How Do You Get Rid Of Yellow Watery Diarrhea
Treatment depends on what is causing your yellow diarrhea. Treatment may include taking an antibiotic, antiviral, or antiparasitic if your diarrhea is caused by some type of infection or parasite. It could also include learning what foods you should avoid if your problem is genetic or from chronic inflammation.
Yellow Poop Color Or Diarrhea
There are a few different possible causes of yellow poop, and what yellow poop means ranges widely.
Having yellow poop may simply mean that youve been eating yellow food items, like sweet potatoes, carrots, turmeric, or yellow food coloring. In addition, people with gastroesophageal reflux disease and those taking medication for GERD sometimes have yellow poop.
Sudden yellow poop can also be a sign of an infection that affects the intestines, particularly if you also have diarrhea, fever, flu-like symptoms, or stomach cramps. Yellow poop after COVID-19 infection has been reported. And, Giardiasis, a small intestine infection caused by the parasite Giardia lamblia, can also lead to yellow poop or diarrhea.
In some cases, yellow poop can mean there is excess fat in the stoola condition known as steatorrhea. This can be caused by anything that disrupts the intestinal lining, such as celiac disease or disorders that affect the pancreas, liver, or gallbladder.
Steatorrhea usually looks greasy and may be foul-smelling, frothy, or float in the toilet bowl. It often sticks to the side of the bowl and is difficult to flush away.
Some people develop yellow poop after gallbladder removal surgery . This is because there is a larger amount of bile moving directly into your intestines, resulting in watery diarrhea that is often yellow.
You May Like: Can Plan B Give You Diarrhea
What Diseases Or Conditions Cause Yellow Stool
Yellowish bowel movements can be caused by a variety of processes in the abdominal organs.
Most people experience abdominal or stomach pain from time to time, but when abdominal pain is accompanied by yellow bowel movements, this can indicate a bile drainage disorder.
Diseases of the liver, the bile ducts, or the pancreas can cause these symptoms:
- Light, clay-colored stool
- Less common: Fatty stool / weight loss with fat malabsorption
How To Know If Yellow Diarrhea Is Due To Covid
Yellow diarrhea can happen with Covid-19 infection. However, yellow-colored diarrhea as a single symptom is not specific for the Covid-19. It can occur due to a wide variety of causes such as:
- Indigestion of a large fatty meal.
- A gut infection with a protozoan called Giardia.
- Other types of gastroenteritis or food poisoning.
- Stress/Anxiety situations.
Don’t Miss: Does Vitamin B12 Cause Constipation
Why Is My Stool Yellow
If your stool has turned yellow, you are not alone as many people experience yellow stool at some point in their lives.
In most cases, yellow stool is caused by something that is easily treated and does not pose a serious health risk.
However, it is important to understand the causes of yellow stool and when you need to see your doctor.
In this article, we will explore the causes of yellow stool and what you can do about it.
Search For Important Clues
Doing some detective work can help your veterinarian form a diagnosis. LaRock recommends first determining if the poop is firm or soft. If they are experiencing loose stool or diarrhea, we always suggest having them seen by a vet.
If the poop is firm, LaRock says the next step is to answer the following: Are there any changes in their appetite? Are there any changes in behavior? Have you changed their diet in the last week? Does the cat go outside? Are they over 10 years of age, and if so, have they had any blood work performed recently?
With answers in hand, call your veterinarian, LaRock says. If they are not concerned, they may offer you some guidance on home care.
Don’t Miss: Why Does Water Cause Heartburn
Best Probiotic Chew For Cats
Made for cats with sensitive tummies, this dry cat food comes in the form of ring-shaped kibble. The design is intended to encourage cats to eat and chew more slowly, thus encouraging healthy digestion and better stool quality. It consists of a blend of dietary fibers and prebiotics like dried chicory root that work to feed good bacteria, balance the guts microflora, and improve digestive health.
Black Or Dark Poop Color
Certain foods, supplements, and medications can temporarily cause a black poop color, such as:
- Activated charcoal supplements
- Dark foods, such as black licorice, grape juice, Oreo cookies, blackberries, or blueberries
Stool can also appear darker with constipation. Dark green stool from bile that hasn’t had time to break down may appear to have a black poop color in certain lighting.
A poop color that is almost black, dark, or tar-like with a thick consistency may mean there is bleeding in the upper part of the gastrointestinal tract. Medical conditions that can cause dark, tar-like stool include duodenal or gastric ulcers, esophageal varices, a Mallory-Weiss tear, and gastritis.
If your poop color is black and it is not from food or supplements, you should see your healthcare provider as soon as possible.
Don’t Miss: Is It Bloat Or Fat
How Do Doctors Diagnose The Cause Of Yellow Poop
If you visit your doctor with yellow poop and any other symptoms, they will run a number of tests. These tests can depend on which other symptoms you have, if any.
If your doctor suspects giardiasis, they will run tests on your stool samples to look for the Giardia parasite. It can take several samples before the parasite is found. Similarly, foodborne viruses are also diagnosed through stool samples .
However, if your doctor believes that your biliary system may be contributing to the color of your yellow stool, you may require further tests. Tests can include:
Causes Of Yellow Bowel Movement
There are several diseases where yellow bowel movement may be a symptom. Some are minor acute illnesses that quickly resolve on its own. However, there are certain diseases that cause yellow stool which are very serious and can be life-threatening. The yellow stool is only a symptom and not a disease on its own. It often occurs along with other symptoms. It is therefore important that the exact cause of the yellowing of the stool is identified through diagnostic investigations.
Recommended Reading: Do Probiotics Give You Diarrhea
Yellow Bowel Movement Symptoms :
Bile Related Diseases :
Yellow bowel movement can be caused by biliary cirrhosis, narrowing of bile duct, formation of cancer in the bile ducts and hepatitis infection.
Intestinal Problems :
Celiac disease, cystic fibrosis and parasitic infections in the intestine can cause yellow bowel movement.
What Happens If You Do Not Take Treatment For Yellow Stool?
If the underlying cause is serious it can cause potential complications. The red blood cell levels can become very low causing anemia. Consistent yellow stool movement can cause electrolytic imbalance if the cause is diarrhea. In case of infections it can spread to nearby organs. Poor absorption can cause loss of weight and growth problems in children.
Treatment :
Why Does My Poop Smell So Bad
The first thing to remember is that what goes in also comes out, so if you had a spicy meal, chances are youll smell it strongly when it exits. Meat produces more smell than vegetables and intestinal bacteria produce several sulphur-containing compounds that are the primary smelly culprits along with fatty acids and skatole, a product resulting from the naturally-occurring process of amino acids being broken down in the intestine. The human nose can detect hydrogen sulphide in concentrations as low as one-half part per billion, making it easy for us to smell stool! Malabsorption, particularly of fats , can cause a stronger odour, so talk to your doctor if this persists.
Also Check: What Of The Following Statements Is True Of A Microbiome
Why Do Some Stools Float And Others Sink
Most stool sinks because the contents of feces tend to be denser than water. However, some stool just floats and, generally, this is nothing of concern, as it is usually the result of gas within the fecal matter, or a high fibre intake. Excess fat in the stool can also cause feces to float. This is especially common in individuals who have GI conditions that affect fat absorption, such as celiac disease or Crohns disease, but can also happen in healthy individuals who consume large quantities of fat, which is likely the cause if the stool is also oily and foul smelling.
Can You Poop Bile
In your colon, bile acids are reabsorbed back into your bloodstream so they can be used again. From time to time, the bile acids aren’t reabsorbed properly, leading to BAM. Too much bile acid in your colon can lead to diarrhea and watery stool, which is why BAM is sometimes called bile acid diarrhea.
Also Check: Is Nausea A Common Symptom Of Ibs
Purple Or Pink Dog Poop
If you notice poop that looks like raspberry jam, that could be hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, or HGE, which is a possibly fatal disease that could cause your pup to suddenly have diarrhea and vomiting. Most pups that have HGE tend to recover when they receive prompt treatment. So, its important to get emergency medical attention when you notice this color poop.
How Does Your Stool Become Bright Yellow
More than one mechanism can aid in the transformation of your stool into a bright yellow color, most commonly:
- Speeding up of stool passage: To acquire its brown color, your stool must have enough time staying inside your colon to be processed to its brown color. Any process of speeding up poop passage through your colon can cause its color to become yellow. So, any form of severe diarrhea can lead to the bright yellow color of your diarrhea. Examples:
- infections : especially the watery, non-inflammatory type
- IBS with predominant diarrhea.
- Laxative abuse.
- Presence of more fat in your stool: any condition that leads to fat malabsorption of fat overload. More fat in your stool leads to yellow or yellowish-grey color . Examples:
- pancreatic diseases leading to fat malabsorption.
- Gallbladder diseases leading to fat malabsorption.
- Bile acid diarrhea .
- Giardiasis: a common infection that affects fat absorption and causes bright yellow watery diarrhea.
- Other factors contributing to bright yellow diarrhea:
- High bilirubin, as with gilberts syndrome which affects about 3% of people worldwide.
- Certain foods may cause bright yellow stools, such as carrots, sweet potatoes, turmeric, and high-fat foods.
Before you start reading about what caused your bright yellow diarrhea, there are some things to put into consideration:
Also Check: How Are Probiotics Good For You
World Breastfeeding Week August 1
This year, WABAs emphasis for World Breastfeeding Week is on strengthening the capacity of actors that protect, promote and support breastfeeding across different levels of society including governments, health systems, workplaces and communities to provide and sustain breastfeeding-friendly environments for families in the post-pandemic world. According to WABA, breastfeeding can assist with sustainable development strategies post-pandemic, as it can improve nutrition, ensure food security, and reduce inequalities between and within countries.
Problems With The Pancreas
Pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer, or exocrine pancreatic insufficiency could all be factors in changing your stool yellow.
If your pancreas isnt functioning correctly, it may not produce the usual level of enzymes which are essential in digestion. Fats that are not digested correctly can change your poop and make it appear yellow, loose, or oily.
Learn more about Pancreas Causes.
Don’t Miss: How Much Bone Broth Per Day To Heal Leaky Gut
What Is Poop Made Of
In a typical bowel movement, about 75% of the stool volume is water. The other 25% is a mixture of things, primarily dead and living bacteria, food waste, as well as undigested parts of foods, typically fibrous foods such as seeds, nuts, corn, and beans, and substances contributed by the intestines and liver, such as mucus and bile . Many things can affect the balance of stool content, including diet, medications, supplements, and the presence of a GI disease, disorder, or infection.
Care Advice For Stools
You May Like: What Can You Eat To Stop Heartburn
Infants And Yellow Stool
Breastfed infants will have yellow, crumbly bowel movements. This is normal for infants. Bowel movement color should remain consistently yellow until a baby begins eating table foods. Any changes in bowel movement color in an exclusively breastfed infant should be followed up with a pediatric care provider.