Freaking out about (TMI alert) my poop color

BonJody

OK, so I started a new regimen about two weeks ago. I'm back on the bandwagon, sweet!

Week 1 included lots of fruits, veggies, chicken, sweet potatoes/Yukon gold with no dairy, red meat or sugar/artificial sweeteners.

Week 2 was a balance of fruits, veggies, eggs, chicken/fish/turkey bacon, whole wheat products, cottage cheese.

I somehow managed to switch drinking from about 150 ounces of Diet Coke a day — I miss you old friend!!! — to gulping a ton of water and a Stevia-sweetened soda or two a day. I've also been taking probiotics for the first time ever.

And ... now my poop is kind of a funky tannish/slightly green color instead of the usual brown. (Sorry, but you clicked on the link!)

Has this happened to anyone else? Is this weird? Will I ever see my brown poop again?

I looked at the poop color chart, and I'm now freaking out that I have pancreatic cancer or gallbladder issues (and I already had my gallbladder removed!).

POOP EXPERTS HELP ME!!!

Of_Monsters_and_Meat

In my professional opinion it is more than likely cancer.

joejward95

Green Poo is normal if you're eating a load of veggies.

brewingPHX

Of_Monsters_and_Meat wrote: »

In my professional opinion it is more than likely cancer.

It totally has to be!

DeguelloTex

Pancreatic cancer doesn't mess around.

BonJody

Of_Monsters_and_Meat wrote: »

In my professional opinion it is more than likely cancer.

I KNEW IT!!!

rossinator63

Could be the coloring in the soda.

White_n_Nerdy

It's probably NOT cancer. It could be changes in the colors of the food you're eating (lots of kale / spinach will turn your poop green!) or changes in your iron intake (excess iron leaves the body as a salt, which is green).

I would give it another week. If you're not eating a lot of green foods and it doesn't go back to normal, then I would see a physician just to make sure it's nothing more serious.

BonJody

rossinator63 wrote: »

Could be the coloring in the soda.

I also wondered about this. I mean, I was guzzling down who knows how much of that caramel coloring a day.

Lexicpt

Poop comes in all colors, including green.

monkeypantz

Have you been eating a lot of spinach lately? If so, probably that?

hollie894

gzus7freek

I vote for - Giardia lamblia - better get that checked.

atypicalsmith

Just checked your food diary. You're lucky to have any poop at all, no matter what color. You are eating entirely too few calories. Stop trying to lose all your weight all at once. It doesn't work.

jpaulie

try eating a bunch of beets. freak you out the next day

Dave55412

I'm no poop expert, but I'd say that it's just your digestive system getting rid of the stuff that it had in it before you started eating healthy. You could drop a deuce in a zip lock bag, take it to the doctor, hand it to the receptionist and say that you want it tested.

bajoyba

In my non-professional opinion, it doesn't sound that weird to me. My poop can vary in color depending on what I've eaten. I usually eat a lot of vegetables, so it's not unusual for mine to have a bit of green to it. Last week I ate a ton of spicy cheetos and ended up with orange.

SarcasmIsMyLoveLanguage

jpaulie wrote: »

try eating a bunch of beets. freak you out the next day

Every. Freaking. Time.

khloesdad0124

Green stools


If stool passes through the intestine too quickly, there might not be enough time for bile to be digested and broken down to provide the normal brownish stool color. Bile is a greenish brown fluid that is manufactured in the liver and stored in the gallbladder. Bile helps digest fats in food. It takes time for the bile to degrade and turn brown in the intestine and if the transit time is short, the stool remains green colored. This is why diarrhea is often greenish in color.

Green stools may be a normal variant. It can also be caused by a diet rich in green vegetables, especially spinach. Iron supplements also may be a cause, though it often turns stool black

http://www.medicinenet.com/stool_color_changes/article.htm

flissy5

I like a TMI thread. Especially when they are about poop.

zyxst

joejward95 wrote: »

Green Poo is normal if you're eating a load of veggies.

+1

OP, have you never changed a diaper? Spinach = green poop, usually very squishy poop.

atypicalsmith

OP is hardly eating enough calories to keep a cat alive.

NobodyPutsAmyInTheCorner

atypicalsmith wrote: »

OP is hardly eating enough calories to keep a cat alive.

Does the cat have green poop too?

BonJody

When I said the poop was tannish and slightly green, it's mostly tannish. Maybe I'll poop in a baggie and take it to Home Depot's paint department to get an accurate color sampling.

Yesterday was a lower calorie day, but my range is about 2,500ish calories.

Considering my eating habits, I think I'd be more likely to have Ghirardelli than Giardia lamblia.

gothchiq

khloesdad0124 wrote: »

Green stools


If stool passes through the intestine too quickly, there might not be enough time for bile to be digested and broken down to provide the normal brownish stool color. Bile is a greenish brown fluid that is manufactured in the liver and stored in the gallbladder. Bile helps digest fats in food. It takes time for the bile to degrade and turn brown in the intestine and if the transit time is short, the stool remains green colored. This is why diarrhea is often greenish in color.

Green stools may be a normal variant. It can also be caused by a diet rich in green vegetables, especially spinach. Iron supplements also may be a cause, though it often turns stool black

http://www.medicinenet.com/stool_color_changes/article.htm

This. You aren't likely to have any real reason to worry. If it just keeps right on doing this, or you start feeling really lousy, call up your doctor. But we all see weird stuff in the can from time to time lol.

atypicalsmith

aimeerace wrote: »

atypicalsmith wrote: »

OP is hardly eating enough calories to keep a cat alive.

Does the cat have green poop too?

Probably.

DaveinSK

BinkyBonk wrote: »

jpaulie wrote: »

try eating a bunch of beets. freak you out the next day

Every. Freaking. Time.

I was going to say the same thing. No matter what, there's the two seconds of "Oh my God what... oh yeah, beets."
Peeing in the morning is actually almost worse for me, since I'm usually half asleep and don't notice the bowl's all reddish until I'm almost done.

BonJody

Thanks for the help. I think. Ha, just kidding. Great (and humorous) comments.

Atypicalsmith, good point about not eating enough. It's not on purpose. I haven't felt ravenous as usual (maybe getting rid of artificial sweeteners in my body helped?). I also noticed not all of my food was logged, but that's only the difference of a couple hundred calories on a couple of days.

Anyway, I'll try to stick closer to my plan this week, which is about 2,500 calories/day.

BonJody

P.S. I just pooped and I'd say the color is a peanut/caramel color. Now you know.

KristenMarie1181

You gotta do a colonocopsy or however you spell it >.>

bostonwolf

If you are consuming stevia in equal measure to your previous Diet Coke fix I can't imagine how bad your gas must be. that stuff kills me.