Dark green color of stools may continue for five days after consuming green foods, supplements or artificial colors. Infants have green stool in first days after birth, and breastfeeding afterwards. Some baby formulas can can cause green color. In children, who are on clear-liquid ”starvation diet” during illness, Green watery stools may also appear. Fructose or sorbitol, may accelerate vermiculation (wavelike muscle contractions of the alimentary canal that moves food). Green Bowel can be caused by the following reasons:
Green bile, after excreting from the liver into duodenum, slowly changes to yellow, and then to brown – due to chemical changes performed by normal intestinal bacteria and enzymes. When bowel content flows through intestine fast, original bile color doesn’t change, and thus colors the stool green (or yellow). Causes of decreased bowel transit time include:
Diarrhea – loose bowel movements; there are several causes of loose bowel movements, including food poisoning (giardia and salmonella infection often result in green diarrhea), rotavirus infection, food allergies, lactose intolerance, fructose malabsorption, celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, etc. GERD
Thyrotoxicosis - elevated levels of hormone thyroxine in the blood, usually due to autoimmune thyroid disorder (Grave’s disease)
Impaired gut innervation, often in diabetes
Impaired Bile Re-absorption
Bile salts are absorbed into blood mainly from last part of small intestine (terminal ileum). Causes of impaired bile re-absorption are:
Inflammation of the small intestine, mainly due to Crohn’s disease
Surgical removal of terminal ileum
What to Do, If You Have Green Bowel Movement?
Green bowel movements due to ingested food or medication/supplement are normal, and don’t require any action. In all other cases, especially if symptoms like fever, diarrhea, constipation, weight loss, or general malaise are present, you should visit a doctor, because a serious underlying disorder may be present.
Food: Some foods like Green leafy vegetables like /poccoli, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, Black licorice, Baby formula – vegetable mashes cause green stools. Moreover, artificial colors, commonly added to soft drinks, ice creams, or other drinks also induce green bowel movement. Furthermore green stools may be due to morning cereals, milk products, sweets, Iron-rich foods like enriched /peakfast cereals, red meat, spinach, beans, etc.
Medications/Supplements: When taken by mouth, iron supplements and laxatives (due to their short passage time in intestines), Algae, Chlorophyll may also result to green color of stools. Children syrups often contain sweeteners fructose or sorbitol that both can speed up peristalsis what may result in green bowel movement.
Green bile, after excreting from the liver into duodenum, slowly changes to yellow, and then to brown – due to chemical changes performed by normal intestinal bacteria and enzymes. When bowel content flows through intestine fast, original bile color doesn’t change, and thus colors the stool green (or yellow). Causes of decreased bowel transit time include:
Diarrhea – loose bowel movements; there are several causes of loose bowel movements, including food poisoning (giardia and salmonella infection often result in green diarrhea), rotavirus infection, food allergies, lactose intolerance, fructose malabsorption, celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, etc. GERD
Thyrotoxicosis - elevated levels of hormone thyroxine in the blood, usually due to autoimmune thyroid disorder (Grave’s disease)
Impaired gut innervation, often in diabetes
Impaired Bile Re-absorption
Bile salts are absorbed into blood mainly from last part of small intestine (terminal ileum). Causes of impaired bile re-absorption are:
Inflammation of the small intestine, mainly due to Crohn’s disease
Surgical removal of terminal ileum
What to Do, If You Have Green Bowel Movement?
Green bowel movements due to ingested food or medication/supplement are normal, and don’t require any action. In all other cases, especially if symptoms like fever, diarrhea, constipation, weight loss, or general malaise are present, you should visit a doctor, because a serious underlying disorder may be present.
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