Most people don’t spend much time thinking about their bowel movements unless something seems off, like a bout of diarrhea, for instance. But your stool can offer valuable insight into how well your digestive system is working.
Paying attention to changes in color and consistency can help you spot problems and seek care early, so they can be treated. Learning how to recognize what’s normal and what’s not can help you play a more proactive role in your gut health.
Our team at Digestive Disease Specialists in Moline, Illinois, and Bettendorf, Iowa, offers a quick guide to some of the changes you should be aware of, so you can seek medical care early.
We generally think of stools as brown, and for good reason. Most do fall somewhere on the brown spectrum, indicating normal digestion and bile flow.
Likewise, variations on this spectrum can occur as a result of the foods you eat, your hydration level, and the speed at which food moves along your digestive tract.
Sometimes, stool color varies because of the pigments in the foods we eat. For instance, if you eat a large quantity of leafy greens, you might notice a greenish tinge to your stools.
Artificial and natural food dyes can have a similar effect. An unusually high digestion rate or a liver issue could also lead to a greenish discoloration.
Black, red, pale, or clay-colored stools deserve closer attention. Black stools may indicate bleeding higher up in your digestive tract, while red stools can point to bleeding closer to your rectum or colon. Pale or clay-colored stools may be associated with serious liver problems, infections, or excess fat in your diet.
While a temporary change in your stool color is likely harmless, when a color change is recurrent or persistent, it’s time to seek medical guidance from our team.
Consistency offers important clues about how well your digestive system is functioning. Well-formed, soft stools that are easy to pass usually indicate a diet with a healthy balance of fiber and fluids that supports normal gut movement.
Hard, lumpy stools are often associated with constipation, which could be a result of dehydration, low fiber intake, or a slower-than-normal digestive tract. Adding more fiber to your diet and drinking plenty of fluids may help, but if you pass hard stools regularly, it’s time to seek medical guidance.
Loose or watery stools are often caused by gastrointestinal infections, food intolerance, medication use, or bowel-related issues, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
If diarrhea lasts more than a few days or recurs regularly, it’s important to schedule a visit so we can identify the underlying cause. Without prompt treatment, loose stools can lead to dehydration.
Need help describing stool consistency? Check out the Bristol Stool Chart. It’s a widely used diagnostic tool that provides standard guidelines you can use to describe your stool consistency during your visit.
Your stools are one of your body’s most direct forms of communication about your digestive health. Paying attention to what’s normal for you helps you identify potentially worrisome symptoms early, when treatment tends to be simpler and more effective.
While occasional changes in stool appearance or consistency aren’t typically anything serious, persistent changes are definitely a reason to schedule an evaluation. Very dark or light stools, sticky or tarry stools, unexplained weight loss, or severe or ongoing abdominal pain are other symptoms that should never be ignored.
If you’ve noticed changes in the appearance of your stools or if your bowel habits have changed in other ways, scheduling an appointment allows us to rule out serious problems while also giving you much-needed peace of mind.
To schedule your visit, book an appointment online or over the phone with Digestive Disease Specialists today.
