Green Diarrhea: Causes of Green Stool & Treatment

Everyone will experience green diarrhea at one time in their lives. More often than not, when people notice green poop, they panic. However, there is often a logical explanation for the poop, and most reasons are not something that should worry you. It is natural to worry when the color of your stool changes. This article will allow you to find out what causes green diarrhea and what you can do about it.

Causes of Green Diarrhea

Infection of the Salmonella

This is a bacterial infection of the intestines. In most cases, it is as a result of ingesting contaminated foods. Diarrhea is a major symptom of the condition as it is a type of gastroenteritis. Your stool will always be green in color. Other symptoms of this condition include:

Abdominal cramps
Fever
Muscle pains
Headaches
Nausea
Vomiting

You will not require medication to treat the infection. However, due to diarrhea, you will have to take a lot of fluids and painkillers for the abdominal cramps. Severe cases have to be treated with antibiotics prescriptions. Ensure that you practice good hygiene to prevent contaminating others.

Giardiasis

This is an illness that is commonly caused by a microscopic parasite known as Giardia lamblia. It often infects people when they drink contaminated water or eat food made from such water. You can also get it if you swim in a contaminated water body like a pool.

This infection is more prevalent in kids than adults. Infected persons will experience slimy, waters, foul smelling, and severe diarrhea. This diarrhea is green and has numerous floats because the absorption of fat in the body is interrupted. In the United States, it is considered the number one cause of diarrhea. Its symptoms include:

Lots of gas
Bloating
Abdominal pain
Nausea
Vomiting
Loss of appetite
Low-grade fever
Dehydration

Sometimes, diarrhea will be yellow while other times, it will be green. You may want to visit a doctor for antibiotic prescriptions and consume clean water.

Undigested Bile Pass Out

Undigested bile is another common reason for green diarrhea. It is often a greenish-brown liquid that is produced by the liver. Bile is critical when it comes to the digestion of fat that is found in the foods we eat. Some of the bile is produced by the duodenum. It is also produced at the beginning of the small intestine and is also found in the gallbladder. This liquid is called upon when the food eaten contains excess fat. Bile works by breaking down the fats so that the nutrients are easily absorbed into the bloodstream. Once it has completed its job, it continues on its path and begins to change color from greenish brown to brown. If you are experiencing diarrhea for whatever reason, the stool moves through the bile more rapidly. Some of the bile will not have time to get digested and change color. It will, therefore, continue to look green, and the color will show in your stool.

People whose gallbladders have been removed suffer from post-cholecystectomy syndrome. One of the symptoms of this stressful disorder is that you will frequently experience chronic diarrhea. They will, therefore, always have green stool. This is mainly because the removal of the gallbladder eliminates the storage facility for the bile. The reason is that the liquid is always dripping to the intestines and remains undigested.

The reason you might have diarrhea, however, cannot be determined by its color only. The green stool only shows that the transit of the fecal matter from the small intestines to the anus was fast. It does not say anything else.

The Food you Consume

Sometimes, the cause of green diarrhea is not complicated. It is, in many cases, not caused by something contaminated. The types of food we put in our diet will influence the color of your stool. While these foods will not cause diarrhea, they will make your stool green. These food items include:

Eating an all green diet. When you eat a meal with only green vegetables, your stool will look green.
Green food coloring, especially man-made types will cause your stool to have that green color
Iron supplements. While these are known to cause the stool to be black, it can sometimes have a deep tinge of the color green.
Laxatives. If you are taking laxatives, you may experience green stool. Laxatives also relax your muscles and cause you to diarrhea. They also tend to quicken the movement of stool from the intestines, thus preventing bile from being fully digested.

Children and Infants

Parents are often freaked out when they notice that their child’s feces are green in color. However, like with green stool in adults, this is normal. Newborn babies tend to pass out olive green diarrhea known as meconium. This is made up of all the food material the baby ingested while in the womb. The same color may be noted in your children and sometimes, in toddlers. They tend to have sensitive digestive systems. Also, they don’t eat solid foods. Milk will usually pass through their digestive system quite fast, leading to the green hues in their stool. The milk also rarely solidifies. Therefore, they will have what seems like diarrhea. Children also tend to eat a lot of candy. These candies have tons of food coloring agents that will transfer and show the color of the stool. This should not be of major concern for the digestive system.

Diet during pregnancy

Pregnant ladies tend to have green stool. It may be followed by some nausea and vomiting and may be one of the many symptoms of pregnancy? Also, it can be as a result of dietary changes as they begin to take more milk and vegetables for their growing babies. During this stage, women are given some medication to keep their pregnancies strong and healthy. Unfortunately, these drugs and supplements may also cause green diarrhea.

If you experience green diarrhea during pregnancy, you may want to take the BRAT diet. However, if the diarrhea is making you weak and sickly, you should consider visiting the doctor immediately.

Treatment of Green Diarrhea

Avoid Food Colorings

Ensure that you do not overload your system with juices and candy. These will upset your stomach and affect the color of your stool. It will also ensure that you need your diet free of additives.

Drink Enough Water

H2O is very essential when it comes to digestive system. Taking enough portions of water keeps your system in a better and healthy working state. Additionally, it helps in balancing stomach PH.

Avoid Overeating Certain Foods

Your diet will always affect the type of stool you pass. For healthy stool, ensure that you have a balanced diet.

Conclusion

The truth of the matter is that the color of your stool is not the only thing you notice if you have digestive issues. The presence of green stool once or twice should not worry you, especially if you do not have any more symptoms. You should also consider looking at your diet to ensure that the cause is not something you are eating. Ensure that you take care of the food you eat and the water you drink to prevent infections. If diarrhea also has symptoms like nausea, weakness, and pain you should visit the doctor as soon as you can.