Table of contents:
- Factors that cause stool color to change
- 1. Medicines and supplements
- 2. Food and drink
- 3. Certain health conditions and problems
Stool can change color, you know, that's not all. Sometimes brown, yellowish, green, to black. These changes are influenced by various things that you may not be aware of. Therefore, don't panic just yet. The following are various factors that cause stool color to change.
Factors that cause stool color to change
Don't panic right away, stool color changes do not always indicate a specific health problem. Although indeed certain diseases can affect the color of your stool. The following are various factors that cause stool color to change.
1. Medicines and supplements
Certain medications and supplements can usually make your stool look different than usual. Supplements of iron and bismuth subsalicylate (Kaopectate, Pepto-Bismol), for example, usually make the stool color black or green. While diarrhea medicine can make your stool color white or pale like clay.
2. Food and drink
It is not uncommon that food and drink can make your stool discolored. Green vegetables like spinach, for example, can make stool green. Meanwhile, orange foods that are rich in beta carotene pigments such as carrots and sweet potatoes, if consumed too much can make the stool orange. Meanwhile, food and drinks made from fruit for beets, tomatoes, and dragon fruit can make stool red like blood.
3. Certain health conditions and problems
Certain health conditions and problems can cause stool to change color. Hemorrhoid or bleeding in the lower intestinal tract, for example, can make the stool bright red. This is because feces mix with blood. While bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract such as the stomach will cause your stool to be blackish red.
Meanwhile, people with Celiac disease usually have stools that are bright yellow with an oily texture. This is because the body is unable to process a protein called gluten. As a result, feces contain excess fat due to absorption disorders.
The existence of a problem in the bile also causes the stool to turn pale white. The reason is, bile produces the pigments bilirubin and biliverdin. These two pigments make the stool yellowish brown. Therefore, when bile production decreases, the stool loses the color pigment it needs.
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