Stool comes in a range of colors. All shades of brown and even green are considered typical. Only rarely does stool color indicate a possibly serious intestinal condition. Stool color is generally influenced by what you eat as well as by the amount of bile — a yellow-green fluid that digests fats ...
Colon cancer can affect your stools. Find out what to look for and how to test for colon cancer at home.
Colon cancer stool: What to look for and how to test at home
Larger amounts of mucus in stool, associated with diarrhea, may be caused by certain intestinal infections. Bloody mucus in stool or mucus along with belly pain may signal a more serious condition, such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and even cancer.
A fecal occult blood test looks for blood in a sample of stool. It can find tiny amounts of blood that can't be seen just by looking at the stool. The medical term for this hidden blood is occult blood. Fecal occult blood test is often shortened to FOBT. A fecal occult blood test is one option for ...
Diarrhea — loose, watery and possibly more-frequent passage of stool — is a common problem. Sometimes, it's the only symptom of a condition. At other times, it may be associated with other symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain or weight loss. Luckily, diarrhea is usually short-lived, lasting no more than a few days.
Overview Constipation is a problem with passing stool. Constipation generally means passing fewer than three stools a week or having a difficult time passing stool. Constipation is fairly common. A lack of dietary fiber, fluids and exercise can cause constipation. But other medical conditions or certain medicines may be the cause.