Black loose stools in an adult: causes and treatment methods

Causes of black stool

With diseases of the stomach and intestines, the shape, color and smell of feces change. Black feces indicate bleeding from the digestive organs.

The cause is various diseases:

• varicose veins of the esophagus;
• polyps in the stomach and intestines;
• peptic ulcer;
• stomach tumors;
• some intestinal infections are accompanied by black stool and fever;
• gastric diverticulum;
• ulcerative colitis;
• inflammation of the duodenum;
• erosion of the stomach lining.

Black stool occurs when there is bleeding from the upper part of the digestive system. Dark stools are formed when blood mixes with hydrochloric acid from the stomach contents.

With hemorrhoids, feces can rupture a distended vein, which causes red diarrhea in humans and scarlet blood in the stool.

If black stool occurs, you should go to the doctor as soon as possible. To clarify the cause, fibrogastroduodenoscopy (FGDS) or colonoscopy is performed.

Physiological

However, there is no need to panic right away. The color of stool may change due to the use of certain foods or medications. Changes in stool color for these reasons are considered physiological. Before visiting the doctor, remember what you ate yesterday and what pills you took.

Nutrition

If you see black stool, the most likely cause is the food you ate the day before. Dark-colored stool appears when certain foods are digested:

• beets;
• blood sausages;
• black berries - currants, blueberries, blackberries;
• tomatoes and tomato juice;
• red wine;
• medium-cooked steaks containing blood;
• prunes and dried fruits;
• black grapes;
• liver.

The appearance of brown diarrhea can be caused by eating prunes, several cups of coffee, or bananas. Porridges made with water have the same property. After eliminating these products from the menu, the color of the stool is restored.

Liquid dark stools in an adult appear after drinking raw water while relaxing at sea. This is the so-called traveler's diarrhea.

Alcohol

People who frequently drink alcohol notice black stools immediately or 2 hours after the next dose. Black feces due to alcohol poisoning are observed in the following cases:

• After drinking red wine, the color of the stool is due to the combination of hydrochloric acid of gastric juice with iron found in grape juice. In this case, dark stool is normal.
• Loose, black stools in an adult after drinking other strong drinks always indicate bleeding from the stomach or intestines. Alcohol provokes exacerbation of serious diseases of the digestive system.

This could be reflux disease, erosive gastritis. Atrophied thinned membranes of the esophagus and stomach in the presence of Mallory-Weiss syndrome are easily injured by food. With heavy bleeding, feces become the color of tar.

Medicines

Another cause of loose, dark-colored stool in an adult is taking medications:

• Activated carbon turns the feces black as it passes through the intestines. This phenomenon lasts for several days, after which it goes away on its own.
• Aspirin, drugs with Ibuprofen and antibiotics with a long course change the color of stool.
• Medicines containing iron react with HCl during the treatment of anemia.
• Bismuth preparations used in the treatment of gastric ulcers.
• Vitamin complexes containing blueberries or iron.

If the color of the stool has changed after eating or taking pills, the smell usually does not change. After treatment is completed, the stool returns to its original color.

Causes

Each person should pay special attention to the consistency, smell and color of their own stool, because it is an indicator of health status. Feces are the same throughout life - from light brown to dark brown (individually for all people).

There are many conditions that trigger the formation of black diarrhea. These may be physiological or pathological reasons.

Physiological reasons

Diarrhea occurs against the background of an increased amount of fluid in the intestinal lumen, which is why peristalsis works harder, trying to remove water from the body. The following physiological reasons contribute to the formation of diarrhea:

• taking certain medications and alcoholic beverages;
• sudden change in diet;
• acclimatization;
• infection with E. coli;
• excessive anxiety or stress;
• consumption of hard-to-digest foods;
• binge eating.

If a person with these conditions consumes foods/drugs, etc., that emit a dark coloring pigment, then diarrhea occurs in a black tone.

Physiological causes are usually not dangerous and are temporary. That is, the structure and color of stool are restored after eliminating the factors that influenced it. Therefore, therapy is most often not required. But if diarrhea occurs over a long period of time, you need to make an appointment with a doctor.

Diseases that cause black diarrhea

Feces become black in the presence of pathologies that are accompanied by internal bleeding. Accordingly, in the organs of the gastrointestinal tract - duodenum, stomach, esophagus. It is generally accepted that when bleeding occurs, the stool contains blood impurities, but this is not the case. Because before entering the feces, the blood first combines with bile and gastric juice, which leads to blackening.

What diseases cause loose stools to turn black:

1. Ulcerative formation in the stomach or duodenum. Bleeding occurs due to damage to the mucous membrane, as well as the consumption of certain foods. Additional symptoms are vomiting, pain.
2. Inflammatory processes in the gastrointestinal tract, especially gastritis in the acute stage.
3. Oncological neoplasms always provoke gastrointestinal bleeding. Unfortunately, in the later stages of development, since at the initial stage the cancerous tumor does not manifest itself in any way. This is the most dangerous cause that leads to the death of the patient. Therefore, immediate medical attention is required.
4. Varicose veins of the esophagus. Dilated veins become fragile and brittle, and are therefore injured by food entering the stomach. A peculiarity is that the stool does not always become liquid, but always black, since the blood mixes with gastric juice.
5. Benign formations - esophageal or gastric polyps. Urgent surgery is required to remove the tumor, as this is fraught with degeneration into a malignant neoplasm.

Black diarrhea in diseases

If black bowel movements occur with a simultaneous increase in temperature, this may be a sign of an acute intestinal infection. In summer, outbreaks of “intestinal flu” caused by rotavirus are traditional. After infection, abdominal pain, frequent vomiting, and brown loose stools appear in an adult.

In addition to ingesting sea or fresh water, poisoning occurs through contaminated food or hands. Therefore, doctors do not recommend eating on the beach, where germs are teeming.

Putrid dyspepsia

Gray diarrhea in an adult is a sign of putrefactive dyspepsia. The disease occurs due to a violation of the secretory function of the stomach. A decrease in acidity leads to the colonization of the intestines with pathogenic microflora. Food is not completely processed. This leads to the formation of excessive amounts of gas and abdominal pain.

Ulcerative colitis

Inflammation of the large intestine is also accompanied by gray diarrhea. The disease is characterized by the production of excess hydrogen sulfide and methyl mercaptan. Colitis is manifested by flatulence, abdominal cramps, mucus and blood in the stool.

Appendicitis

Acute inflammation of the appendix - appendicitis - often occurs at night or in the morning. In addition to pain, diarrhea or constipation appears. During the summer, people tend to think that symptoms are caused by eating too much fruit.

Attention! If there is any pain in the abdomen, a person should be examined by a doctor. Until a diagnosis is made, you should not place a heating pad on your stomach or take analgesics so as not to mask the symptoms.

Stomach cancer

Black diarrhea in adults occurs due to stomach cancer. At first, the disease occurs without severe symptoms. As the cancer progresses, nausea, drooling, and constant aching pain in the epigastrium are observed. In case of bleeding, lethargy, weight loss, and loose dark stools are noted.

Physiological causes of black diarrhea

Normally, the color of stool varies from brown to brown. The shade in this case depends on the bile, which, after passing through the intestines, becomes brown.

A change in color, including the appearance of black diarrhea, indicates the presence of abnormalities in the functioning of the digestive tract. The patient's menu also affects the color of stool. Black diarrhea in an adult can occur due to eating foods that promote coloring, including blueberries, black currants, prunes, beets and blood sausage. You should be especially careful with prunes, since in large quantities they cause black diarrhea. Sometimes there are stools with black dots. In this case, pieces of undigested food are simply observed in the stool, which does not pose any danger.

Also, black diarrhea in an adult can appear as a result of using activated carbon. Of course, the drug itself does not cause diarrhea, however, if diarrhea has already begun and the patient took activated charcoal to get rid of toxic substances, the color of the stool may become darker. Activated carbon has a special property. It is not absorbed into the blood and organ walls, but, on the contrary, absorbs all harmful and toxic substances, and then leaves the body along with the feces. Dark-colored diarrhea, which appears for physiological reasons, is safe for the human body. In this case, there is no need to resort to any specific treatment. It is enough just to change the products on the menu or stop using certain medications. These measures will help normalize the digestive process, so that the stool will become normal again.

In rare cases, physiological causes can be dangerous. For example, long-term use of aspirin, which also causes black stool, can lead to disruption of blood vessels. Using aspirin for too long can cause internal bleeding due to improper functioning of the vascular system.

Black feces of physiological origin, as a rule, pass quite quickly. If black stool persists for several days, you should consult a doctor; it is likely that the cause of this phenomenon is not in physiology, but in a pathological process. In this case, it is necessary to undergo a full examination to find out the cause of the disease.

Important! Liquid feces in any case are a sign of impaired functioning of the digestive tract. In combination with a change in the color of stool, the sign is quite dangerous, so it is better to seek help from a specialist, especially if diarrhea lasts more than three days or occurs with a certain frequency.

Symptoms of loose black stools

People with stomach and intestinal problems experience symptoms:

• heartburn;
• vomiting with blood;
• feeling of nausea;
• pain in the epigastrium or around the navel.

When heavy bleeding occurs, weakness, shortness of breath, and increased heart rate appear. If a person is not given help, after losing 1 liter of blood, blood pressure decreases, dizziness, thirst appear, and cold sweat appears. Floaters flash in the eyes.

If such signs occur, it is necessary to call a team of doctors.

Internal bleeding

Diarrhea with black stool can be caused by bleeding of internal organs. Most often this is the upper intestine or esophagus. In this case, the blood, under the influence of enzymes and hydrochloric acid, acquires a dark tint. But when the large intestine is damaged, it remains scarlet or crimson.

What diseases may black, loose stools indicate:

1. Gastritis. Bleeding with gastritis is quite rare. This is possible only with an erosive or mixed type of disease, as well as during a period of severe exacerbation. But do not forget that in the absence of adequate treatment, gastritis can develop into a stomach ulcer and even cancer.

2. 
   Peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum. Wounds on the mucous membrane of the organ may bleed. In this case, in addition to black diarrhea, the patient will have severe abdominal pain, elevated body temperature, and vomiting.

3. Varicose veins of the esophagus. This pathology is characterized by increased fragility of the veins. They are easily injured by solid food, which is why blood appears in the stool.
4. Benign neoplasms. Polyps in the stomach or esophagus may bleed from time to time. They also increase the risk of cancer. Experts strongly recommend removing such tumors.
5. Cancer. Malignant tumors may not make themselves felt for a long time. In the early stages they are usually discovered by chance. The appearance of black diarrhea in stomach cancer indicates the progression of the disease.

Symptoms

It is important to understand that with internal bleeding you cannot hesitate for a minute. No diet or folk remedies will help here. If the following symptoms appear, you should immediately call an ambulance:

• severe weakness, drowsiness, darkening of the eyes;
• cold sweat, dizziness, loss of coordination;
• loss of consciousness;
• thirst, dry mucous membranes and skin;
• lack of urination;
• dyspnea;
• vomiting, especially blood;
• blueness of the limbs, lips, nasolabial triangle.

Attention! Until the ambulance arrives, the patient should remain in bed.

You can't move, talk, cough. You can apply cold to your stomach. In addition, you should definitely ensure a flow of fresh air - unbutton your shirt and open the window.

Treatment of black diarrhea in adults

Immediately after admission to the surgical department, therapeutic intubation and gastric lavage are performed. Then an emergency endoscopic examination is performed. This is necessary to determine the source of bleeding.

The scope of measures for black water diarrhea depends on the disease. Bleeding is stopped by coagulation of the damaged vessel. In cases of massive blood loss, the patient must be treated surgically.

Medicines

At the same time, drug therapy is carried out:

1. A solution of Vikasol, Dicynon, calcium chloride intravenously.
2. To restore the volume of circulating fluid, infusions of saline solution are performed through the subclavian vein.
3. Blood transfusion is possible.

The infusion of solutions is controlled by appropriate blood tests.

Folk recipes

You can use traditional methods only after identifying the cause of the bleeding.
Potato starch is used in consultation with the doctor. Stir 1 tbsp. l. in a small amount of water. Take the suspension one tablespoon three times a day. Dried blackberries have healing properties. To obtain the drug 1 tbsp. l. Brew the fruit with boiling water and leave in a thermos for 2 hours. Drink a glass three times a day.

If you have black stools, blueberries will help. Boil 1 tbsp for 10 minutes. l. berries in half a liter of water. Take a tablespoon before breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Physiological factors

You should not panic when you see stool of an unusual dark color. It is quite possible that loose black stool in an adult was caused by the following reasons:

• A sudden change in diet.
• Taking certain medications, for example, activated carbon, vitamin complexes, iron supplements.
• Alcohol abuse.
• Iron-rich foods (shellfish, white beans, lentils, beef liver, cashews, raisins, tuna).

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If it is established that loose, frequent black stools are caused by physiological factors, and there are no other symptoms (impotence, nausea, vomiting), then the patient has no cause for alarm. It is enough to adjust your diet and change your lifestyle.

Diet after poisoning

Therapeutic nutrition is prescribed depending on the cause of dark diarrhea. By following a gentle diet after alcohol poisoning, you will help yourself recover quickly. Nutrition basis:

• a balanced diet with sufficient protein and limited fat;
• on the first day, lightly salted rice porridge is recommended, it absorbs and removes toxins and gases from the intestines, restores B vitamins;
• Preferably stewed, boiled, baked, steamed food;
• meals frequently, in small portions;
• dishes should not be too hot or cold;
• for dark diarrhea in an adult, decoctions of blueberries, currants, and rose hips are recommended;
• exclude fresh vegetables and fruits for several days;
• do not eat smoked meats, marinades, fatty and fried foods.

You can expand the menu after eliminating abdominal pain and normalizing stool. After a few days, you can take kefir and yogurt to restore beneficial intestinal microflora. Alcohol intake is excluded.

Diagnostic measures

If you experience diarrhea with black mucus, you should immediately consult a doctor. He will listen carefully to the symptoms, study the outpatient card and prescribe an examination.

To clarify the cause of the pathology, the following procedures are prescribed:

• FGDS;
• colonoscopy;
• blood analysis;
• stool analysis.

What do these medical studies provide?

FGDS

FGDS is esophagogastroduodenoscopy. A procedure in which a person swallows a thin tube with a miniature video camera attached to the end. The research method allows you to see exactly what caused the internal bleeding.

Using FGDS, you can examine the condition of the stomach, esophagus and duodenum. Although the procedure is unpleasant, it gives the doctor complete information about the state of the gastrointestinal tract.

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Colonoscopy

This is a procedure in which a probe is inserted through the anus and makes it possible to examine the lower gastrointestinal tract.

Conducting laboratory tests

Laboratory analysis allows the doctor to see whether there are intestinal infections in the body and at what level of hemoglobin. These data allow you to get a complete picture of the state of the body and not make mistakes when making a diagnosis.

Prevention

The main prevention of gastrointestinal bleeding is to treat the underlying disease. If a person knows his illness, he should regularly visit his doctor.

If you have red diarrhea, you should consult a proctologist. Usually this symptom is accompanied by hemorrhoids and anal fissures.

Black diarrhea can only be avoided by timely treatment of existing diseases. No measures will help if a person continues to drink alcohol.