Introduction:
The color of the stool is a significant factor in evaluating the individual's health. Depending on the underlying causes of the stool, such as the consumption of highly-pigmented food or any disease or infection. The standard color of the stool is usually light to dark brown, which may change to yellow, green, red, or black, depending on the condition. Some medical reasons behind the change in color of the stool are bleeding in the intestines, pancreas or liver diseases, or even some kind of medication.
What Are the Conditions Associated With Change in Stool Color?
- Consumption of some highly-pigmented food or drinks can change the stool's color. For example, beetroot, colored beverages, and colored whipped cream or cakes.
- Bismuth: It changes the stool color into black or gray due to its contact with the bit of sulfur in the saliva.
- Celiac Disease: It is a chronic immune and digestive disorder that affects the small intestine.
- Crohn’s Disease: It is an inflammatory bowel disease with no cure and stays for life.
- Tumors: The presence of tumors leads to the excretion of several dead cells in the stool, which may change the color of the stool.
- Diverticular Disease: Inflammation of the diverticulum may lead to blood stains in the stool.
- Hemorrhoids: These are swollen veins in the lower rectum.
What Are the Different Colors of Stools?
There are different colors of stools. Following are listed below:
- Green stools: When the digested food passes the intestines very quickly, and the bile does not do enough digestion, the stool appears green instead of brown. The bacterias in the intestines change the bile into a greenish-brown color, which is then converted into a completely brown color in the intestine. When the bile cannot change its color, the stool appears green. This generally happens in diarrhea, where the food is incompletely digested and leaves the intestines quickly. However, in some cases, the green stool can be normal, too, due to the consumption of lots of green vegetables.
- Yellow, Greasy, and Foul Smelling Stool: There are several reasons behind the yellow, greasy foul smelling stool, which includes the intestine's inability to digest and absorb fat due to any diseases or inflammation on the lining of the intestine (like cystic fibrosis or celiac disease) or due to inflammation in the pancreas leading to insufficient production of digestive enzymes, or if there is an inadequate amount of bile being delivered to the intestine due to cancer of the liver or the bile ducts.
- Bright Red Colored Stools: The most common reason behind red stools in adults is bleeding from the hemorrhoids. In infants, the cause is an anal fissure or tear in the tissue surrounding the anus. In a few cases, the reason behind red stool may be some serious issues such as infections in the intestine, inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, tumors, or diverticulum bleeding. Arteriovenous malformations can also be a cause of red stools in which there are abnormal communications between the arteries and the veins. Bleeding from the esophagus, stomach, or duodenum can also cause red stools. Consumption of red-pigmented food such as beet or red food coloring agents may also lead to red stools.
- Black Tarry Colored Stools: It is a concern to witness black stools as it may be due to lots of bleeding into the digestive system, usually in the upper gastrointestinal tract. The red blood cells from the bleeding are broken down in the intestines, which turns the stool black. The texture of the stool is tar-like and very foul-smelling. Blood from nose injuries or dental procedures can also be swallowed and appear as black stains on the stool.
- Clay Colored or White Stools: These types of stools are seen in cases of liver and bile diseases. The pale color of the stool can also be due to pancreatic cancer that blocks the bile ducts. The deficiency of bile leads to discoloration of the stool, giving it a pale color.
- Maroon Colored Stools: This stool color usually appears due to gastrointestinal bleeding from the colon. It differs from red-colored stools, where bleeding originates from the upper gastrointestinal tract, particularly the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum. The maroon color of the blood is due to its partial digestion in the intestine.
- Currant Jelly in Color: In cases of children suffering from intussusception, where the portion of the intestine telescopes into another part of the intestine, leading to a temporary obstruction, thus giving a current jelly color to the stool.
- Gray or Black Color: This type of stool color comes when there is bismuth consumption which then comes in contact with sulfur in the saliva and gives a dark gray or black color to the stools.
- Brown Colored Stools: This is the normal color of stools and is caused due to the natural breakedown of the bile in the gastrointestinal tract.
Conclusion:
The color of the stool varies due to several underlying reasons, which can be related to health, food, or some drugs. It is essential to evaluate any changes in the color of the stool to look for the underlying causes, as many diseases show a change in stool color as a symptom. The two major reasons behind the stool's color are blood in the stool and the unprocessed form of bile.
