The color of the stool of a healthy person normally varies from light brown to dark, a change in shade indicates that a pathological process has begun in the human body. The presence of bilirubin and bile pigments is responsible for the color of feces. Sometimes the color of the bowel movements changes due to the characteristics of the food consumed, usually this deviation returns to normal after a day or two. In most cases, orange feces indicate problems with the gastrointestinal tract and digestive system.
Norm and pathology
In a normal state, feces are a small sausage, the dimensions of which can vary from 10 to 20 centimeters. The stool should be a uniform brown color, soft consistency. In the feces there should not be any impurities of blood or pus, but mucus in small quantities is considered permissible. The nature of the feces of different people can differ from the standards of the norm, this is due to the human food preferences and depends on the amount of food and water consumed per day.
Deviations from the norm are considered to be the presence in the feces of such impurities as blood, pus, foam. A sharp change in the color of the stool and its consistency may indicate the development of a pathological process in the body.
Possible causes of stool staining in orange
The causes of orange feces in adults can be due to the following factors:
- Excessive eating foods that contain large amounts of carotene. Such products include: broccoli, carrots, apricot, pumpkin.
- The use of certain medications can also stain stool, in particular, we are talking about a drug such as Rifampicin.
- Diseases of the genitourinary system - cystitis, as well as lung diseases can also cause feces of orange color.
- Sometimes the causes of staining of feces in orange are diseases such as celiac disease, Gilbert syndrome, Escherichiosis.
- In addition, cirrhosis, hepatitis, pancreatic problems, and cholelithiasis are the cause of orange feces in adults. In the presence of such pathologies, the patient may have other signs, namely: pain in the abdominal cavity, skin and mucous membranes are covered with a yellow tint. The patient has an increased body temperature, nausea, vomiting, the stomach swells, the appetite almost completely disappears.
Causes in children
Unlike adults, children can often observe stool color in orange, and in most cases this is not a deviation from the norm. Orange feces in infants can be the result of a regular banana, eaten the day before. In this case, it does not matter whether the child ate the banana itself or received it from the mother along with breast milk. Older children often consume food and drink, foods that add dye to sweets, juices and drinks.
Eating low-quality ingredients can be fraught for a baby with a bright orange color of feces of a liquid consistency, which indicates a digestive system disorder in a child.
The presence in the feces of an impurity of pus and blood indicates the development of dysentery or more serious pathologies. In this case, you should immediately consult a doctor.
Diagnostic measures
Diagnosis of bowel movements stained in orange includes a number of the following measures:
- As with any other disease, to determine the cause of staining of feces in orange, a general analysis of feces and urine is necessary.
- Advanced fecal analysis - coprogram.
- Genetic testing for diseases such as Gilbert syndrome and celiac disease.
- An ultrasound scan will help to see the condition of the liver and pancreas, as well as establish an accurate diagnosis.
In general, to establish the reason why the orange feces is not difficult, the most important thing in this case is to contact a specialist in a timely manner, who will be able to accurately establish the diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment.
What is analysis for - a coprogram?
Analysis of feces helps to identify malfunctions in the gastrointestinal tract, determine what they are associated with, and also diagnose the inflammatory process in the digestive system. In addition, the coprogram helps to detect the presence of worms and roundworms in the intestines.
Preparing for the test
Some special preparation for the analysis is not required. The only thing that is necessary is to temporarily cancel taking medications that can provoke stool staining in a different color. The coprogram is not performed after taking laxatives, after an enema or using candles.
Decoding analysis in adults
Fecal analysis helps to determine the presence or absence of problems in the digestive tract. And in a chemical analysis, the presence of salts and protein is determined, acidity, mucus, and some other indicators necessary to determine an accurate diagnosis are established.
- Soluble protein. The presence of this substance in the stool indicates that the digestive system began to malfunction, since normal protein should be absent in feces.
- Starch. This substance, present in the feces, indicates a deviation from the norm, since starch should be completely broken down even during the digestion of food.
- Muscle fibers. In a completely healthy person, the feces contain fibers in an altered form, but if they are unchanged, this indicates a malfunction of the pancreas.
- White blood cells. In a normal state, a person should have no white blood cells. Their detection and an increased number indicates that the patient develops pathology of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Connective tissue fibers. This component is the remains of food of animal origin found in the bowel movements during bowel movements. The presence of such fibers indicates that the patient has decreased acidity, gastritis or pancreatitis.
Decoding analysis in children
The decoding of the coprogram in children is somewhat different from the adult. One of the important indicators is the amount of feces. So, an excessively large or small amount of feces suggests that the child has a violation in the functioning of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract.
The consistency of feces is no less important. Mash-like bowel movements may indicate colitis, and fluid stools indicate that intestinal secretion is greatly increased.
Changing the color tone of bowel movements in infants depends on what kind of diet a nursing mother sits on. In some cases, feces may change color as evidence that the baby has started having bowel problems, so young mothers should follow the strict diet prescribed by the doctor during lactation.
When do I need to see a doctor?
If the orange feces persists for a day or two, while in addition to changing the color of the feces, there are no more impurities, then this is not a cause for concern.
If this condition lasts more than two days, then in this case you should consult a doctor. The immediate presence of a specialist requires the presence of blood or pus in the feces.
Treating Causes of Orange Stool
If the feces began to turn orange, the necessary treatment is prescribed by a gastroenterologist in accordance with what caused the changes.
If during the diagnosis a large number of red blood cells and white blood cells are found in the patient, the doctor prescribes anti-inflammatory drugs, as this is the reason for the development of the inflammatory process in the body.
Infectious disease detected during diagnosis requires immediate hospitalization of the patient. The patient is first injected with drugs that normalize the water-salt balance, intestinal microflora, and only after that the doctor prescribes medications that eliminate the inflammatory process, as well as rid the body of pathogenic bacteria. In addition, the patient is recommended a course of general strengthening therapy.
If gall bladder stones are found in the patient with orange feces, then their removal through surgical intervention is recommended.
It is important to note that when changing the color of feces in children or adults, you should not wait for time, but you should immediately consult a doctor. Except for those moments when there is an exact certainty that staining of feces provoked some kind of food product from the diet, in this case you should not worry, as the situation normalizes by itself.