Consistency with color and even the smell of feces can say a lot about the state of human health. This factor was taken into account in antiquity. Therefore, if the chair suddenly turns black, this is an occasion to seriously think about the reason for such a change. For example, everything can be explained by quite ordinary things - eating some specific foods. But sometimes dark feces can indicate serious pathologies that require immediate medical attention. In addition, there is a huge number of chronic diseases in which black stool is a dangerous and extremely suspicious symptom.
What should be a healthy color of feces?
The normal shade of feces can vary from tan to dark brown. It can also slightly vary depending on the type of human nutrition and personal characteristics of the body. A similar color is provided by the presence of processed bile in the stool structure and some undigested food particles that made up the diet of a particular individual. It is very important that the chair is decorated. As a rule, everyone knows about which color of feces is normal for him. In this regard, it is almost impossible not to notice when it becomes unusual.
Harmless causes of dark feces
Often, feces can turn black due to the ingestion of certain foods that give it such an unusual color. Among these products, perhaps, it is worth mentioning red table beets, pomegranates, prunes, black currants, red grapes, blueberries. Absolutely all of these and other saturated colors of fruits with vegetables and berries can change the color of feces.
In the event that, after analyzing his diet, a person understands that the cause of dark feces is a separate food, and he does not feel sick, and his stool is framed, then there is nothing to worry about. You can simply stop eating such fruits or berries, and after a couple of days, the feces will certainly get their normal shade. Do not worry if there are black inclusions in the feces, they are undigested particles of food that have changed their shade in the digestive system. Sometimes the causes of dark feces in adults are not so harmless.
Serious fears in people are caused by the presence in the stool of inclusions that are very reminiscent of the appearance of small worms. They are usually mistaken for worms, and quickly run to the doctors to take tests and recover. But most likely, it will turn out to be the fibers of the banana that was eaten the day before. As for real pinworms and helminths, they, like most other parasites, have a completely different color: white or yellowish.
The color of feces and the effect of drugs on it
Dark feces can become due to the use of certain pharmaceuticals. For example, medications that are used to treat anemia. Such medicines contain iron, which can give the stool a similar color. Many vitamin complexes have the same effect, along with medicines containing bismuth with activated charcoal.
In the event that a person who discovered a darkening took any medications the day before, then he needs to study the instructions for them. If you can make sure that the whole thing is just in the preparations, then you can calm down, since there is absolutely no harm to the body in this case.
Internal bleeding
It is worth emphasizing that drugs that contain acetylsalicylic acid, as well as drugs that reduce blood coagulation, cannot stain their stool. But their use is sometimes the cause of internal bleeding. In this regard, if the patient saw dark feces during treatment with such drugs, he should seek medical help.
Diseases that provoke the appearance of black feces
Suddenly blackened stool is often a clinical symptom of internal bleeding. In most situations, everything can be explained by erosion of a blood vessel in the area of gastric ulcer formation. In this regard, people who suffer from peptic ulcer disease, you need to carefully monitor the color of their feces. And in the event that they turn black, this is an occasion for immediate medical attention.
Along with blackening of the stool, people who suffer from internal bleeding also observe other signs of a life-threatening condition. One of these symptoms is scarlet vomiting and symptoms of blood loss. In addition to bleeding ulcers, the causes of dark feces in an adult are various intestinal pathologies with tumors in the stomach and expansion of the veins of the esophagus. Sometimes other dangerous ailments turn out to be to blame:
- The development of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
- Presence of esophagitis, gastritis, or Crohn's disease.
- The appearance of hookworm or histoplasmosis.
There is also a dark feces in a child.
The appearance of black feces in children
Fortunately, in children, the causes of this stool color are mostly harmless. They rarely have such serious, and at the same time life-threatening conditions as in adults.
Parents are often scared by the color with the consistency of feces in infants, which stands out in the first days of life. Absolutely black stool in newborns is called meconium, and it is considered the norm. The color of the original feces is directly explained by its structure: it consists mainly of bile, hair, epithelial cells, amniotic fluid, mucus and water. A little time will pass, and the baby’s chair will acquire a mustard color normal for his age.
In the event that dark stool is found in an older child, this serves as an occasion to analyze the composition of the products and medicines that the child had to take the day before. If a child ate blueberries with bananas, blackberries and some other fruits, then most likely you should not sound an alarm at all. Especially when the child feels healthy, cheerful and active.
But when the appearance of black feces in addition is accompanied by a worsening of the condition, and there is an alarming symptomatology in the form of abdominal pain with nausea and weakness, and, in addition, constipation or diarrhea with vomiting, it is necessary to call a doctor urgently. In children, especially very young ones, dangerous conditions develop much faster than in adults.
The causes of dark green feces are discussed below.
The main reason is malnutrition. Fecal staining in green occurs when foods containing dyes and iron are consumed. Such products include fruit juices, sea fish, lettuce, broccoli, red beans, black licorice, etc. When using some of the above products, the color of feces can change for 5 days. A dark green shade of feces is usually observed among vegetarians, since vegetables and fruits predominate in their diet. Feces of a dark green color may indicate some pathologies. This shade of stool appears against the background of bleeding in the stomach or intestines. This may indicate a peptic ulcer or oncological processes in the body. Green feces may indicate the development of dysentery, treatment in this case is carried out only in a hospital.
Observation of black feces in pregnant women
Black feces in pregnant women is a fairly common sign. It is worth saying that pregnancy with childbirth is not the cause of darkening of the stool. Nevertheless, such changes are very scary for expectant mothers. Do not panic. As a rule, the cause of black feces in expectant mothers lies in the fact that they consume vitamin complexes, which are enriched in iron. In addition, women who are expecting a baby are trying to eat as many fruits as possible with berries and vegetables that contain iron.
Thus, if the darkening of the stool is not accompanied by a deterioration in well-being and alarming symptoms, there is absolutely nothing to worry about. But if there is a peptic ulcer or any chronic disease of the digestive system, you should beware and go for an additional examination.
What to do if black feces are detected?
Every person who discovers black feces always begins to worry about what caused such changes. In any case, you can’t panic prematurely, let alone let it go by itself. The following measures should be taken:
- Need to study the diet in recent days. In the case when in the last period of time a person ate regular food and did not consume any medicine, a sudden blackening of the stool may indicate the development of a life-threatening condition. And this requires a visit to the doctor, who cannot be put off.
- It is necessary to observe the consistency and color of feces for a couple of days. In situations where the causes are harmless and harmless, the stool will certainly normalize a maximum of a couple of days after excluding foods that stain stool from the diet. But if the stool turns black due to a serious illness, this will not happen, and its color will not change to normal color. In particular, a person should be alert for periodically recurring black diarrhea.
- It is also important to pay attention to well-being. It is necessary to analyze the state of health in recent times, which preceded the sharp blackening of the stool.
Conclusion
In the event that the causes of feces of a dark color are harmless, the person's well-being will remain unchanged. Thus, he will feel healthy and full of strength. In situations in which the appearance of black stool is accompanied by constipation with bloating, anemia, vomiting, heartburn, nausea, abdominal pain and other disturbing painful symptoms, whose intensity also increases over time, we will already be talking about a serious illness or any complications.