Infection with giardia lamblia produces a characteristic yellow diarrhea. Yellow stool can be the result of gallbladder dysfunction which causes improper handling of bile. Green can also be a sign of Crohn's disease, antibiotic use, ingestion of leafy greens or iron therapy. Green stool can occur with rapid transit through the intestines where bile doesn't have a chance to be broken down to its final brown color. While it should always be reported, it's not always an ominous sign. Red stool can also be caused by ingesting red food coloring or beets.
Red stool is most worrisome as it indicates bleeding in the lower GI tract from conditions like hemorrhoids or diverticulosis, or more serious conditions like rectal cancer. Normal stool is brown due to its composition: bacteria, water, bile, bilirubin, broken-down red blood celIs and indigestible plant matter like cellulose, along with small amounts of protein and fat. The color of stool can vary dramatically and can also be a clue as to whether various disease states are present. For most people, smelly stool is simply a byproduct of the beans they had for dinner the night before. New onset of diarrhea associated with a foul odor should prompt an evaluation for infection, whereas fat in the stool associated with a foul odor should raise concerns about malabsorption or pancreatic disorders. Infection with parasites such as giardia lamblia can cause stool to have a very unpleasant odor. Both these conditions can result in floating, foul-smelling stool with an oily sheen.ĭiseases that cause malabsorption of nutrients like Crohn's, celiac disease and cystic fibrosis can also lead to foul-smelling stool. More lethal causes of malodorous stool, and fortunately much less common, include inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) and pancreatic cancer. Antibiotics can also change the smell of stool and give it a medicinal odor. The most common cause of smelly stool is bacterial fermentation of the food in your intestines that produces foul-smelling sulfide compounds. Bacterial imbalance (dysbiosis) in the GI tract and undigested fat can also lead to a change in odor. The odor of your stool is highly dependent on a number of factors, including how long it's been sitting in your colon, your diet, medications you may be taking and, in some cases, the presence of infection. Even though a fiber-deficient diet is the most likely culprit, colon cancer is again on the list as most lethal.
A high-fiber diet or regular use of a bulking agent like psyllium husk will lead to larger, softer stools in most people, making defecation easier. Constipation is often associated with small, difficult-to-pass stools, and people suffering from constipation-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are particularly prone to having small stools. Small, hard stools are typical in people eating a low-fiber Western diet, and are associated with a higher risk for ultimately developing diverticulosis and colon cancer. Colon cancer definitely needs to be excluded by a colonoscopy in anyone experiencing new onset of pencil-thin stools, which can occur as a tumor gets larger and grows inward, reducing the colonic diameter. Endometriosis, uterine fibroids, masses in the abdomen or tumors in other organs, like the ovaries or bladder, can cause thin stools due to external compression of the colon. Other associated symptoms of diverticulosis include a dull ache in the lower abdomen, a feeling of incomplete evacuation even though you may be having multiple bowel movements, and lots of gas and bloating. The result is narrow, pellet-like stools that often fall apart in the bowl and can be difficult to expel. Diverticulosis causes pothole-like craters in the lining of the colon, as well as a narrowing of the internal diameter of the colon due to wall thickening. Insufficient fiber in the diet, diverticulosis, bowel spasm or excessive straining are common causes of a change in stool shape. Here's a guide to some of the most likely – and most lethal – conditions that can lead to changes in the shape, size, smell and shade of your stool.
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