I apologize ahead of time for those who do not want to hear about my bowel movements, but it's a serious question...
A little back story first, though. For about 2 weeks, now I've been counting calories and eating small portions of food several times throughout the day. Before my diet (which I think is one of the reasons I'm so heavy) I only ate one large meal once a day, and it was usually something along the lines of fast food, or a pizza, and I would drink a lot of pop throughout the day. Fast forward again to my diet, I've been eating less calories more often every day, and drinking 2-4 litres of water per day, and largely nothing else (no pop, no coffee, no energy drinks, no milk, no juice, no liquor, etc.).
Before my diet, I would have about one bowel movement every day and it would be a normal size, color, consistency, what have you. The point is it was not loose at all. Ever since my second day on the diet, I've been having diarrhea for a good portion of my bowel movements. Every so often, it will be solid, but kind of greenish/black (if not black, very dark brown), and small. I have reason to believe that my digestive system is not bleeding, so I don't think that is the cause. I do wonder, though, is this drastic change in my diet the cause of these abnormal bowel movements, and will this subside over time, or will I have to deal with this indefinitely? Thank you ahead of time for your responses. :)
Is there any diet food, supplement, aide or pills your taking make sure it isn't that (If you have ever read warning labels on a lot of that stuff, it says "if loose stool persists stop taking"). Besides that, considering the color too, I'd say see your doctor, better safe than sorry.
The only supplement I'm taking is a multivitamin (Centrum, for Adults Under 50)
Well have a look at this article see if anything applies: http://www.livestrong.com/article/259844-loos e-dark-stools/
You say you are dieting n eating small portions several times a day.
Theres no real benefit in that. It was not the one meal a day you ate, it was what n how much you ate that caused your weight problem. That said if your body has somehow got used to getting one meal a day why not try 3 meals a day.
Next in your attempt to eat less calories n number of small snacks thru te day instead of meals could it be you are not getting the correct proportions of macro nutrients protiens , carbs , n fats. Also very important ensure you are getting fibre. Checking what you are eating should make a difference.
Thanks for your reply, unfortunately I'm not in a financial position to see a doctor, so I might have to just wait it out. :\ I don't feel sick, or otherwise ill, or in pain. So I don't think the things in that article apply, but when I can, I'll try to see a doctor.
Oh that sucks, sorry I forget about affordability since I am Canadian our medical is so different compared to Americans, I truly hope nothing is wrong/serious.
Yeah, "Obama care" Hasn't kicked in yet... Or it won't ever, I'm actually not sure. But as of right now, I have no way of seeing a doctor without going into extreme debt. It really sucks.
I truly wish there was a better way :(
You can try to take out certain foods (meat, dairy, etc) and see if it stops it, or decreasing intake of certain foods like high fiber foods or increasing other beneficial/healthy foods.
What are you eating typically in a day?
Well, I usually start off in the morning with some cereal in soy milk, or oatmeal, then throughout the day I will eat a banana or a pear, maybe a yogurt, lunch will be a lean cuisine, then maybe more fruit and or a yogurt later on, then a small portion of whatever is available for dinner, whether that be another lean cuisine, or a sandwich, or spaghetti or something. All the while I'm drinking water, and only water. That's a typical day. I try to keep it relatively structured, but my job is not structured (in terms of when I'm scheduled), so it gets difficult.
Have you ever had soy products before? Soy is a bit controversial in the food world these days (whether is it s good or bad for you). Try almond milk (it is very tasty) if you are avoiding milk. If possible ditch the lean cuisine and add some greens.
Maybe try that or just change up one of your usual meals to something else and see which meal of the day could be causing it. Good luck :)
I had the same concern when I started dieting (I cut down on bread, grain, I am getting my carb mostly from fruit and veggies). My poop was dark greenish brown, got the same symptome that you explain. I didn't see any doctor. Now I am fine my poop is normal, I have been on the diet for over 6 months now
I guess your boby is just in shock and is trying to adapt itself to your new lifestyle. Just wait and see.
Thank you for your responses, guys. :) Also, hollowness, I only have soy milk with my cereal, and I do not have cereal every day. I do not drink it straight, I dislike the taste straight.
The microbes which digest your food for you are adapted (in the sense of the proportions of the different organisms) to the availability of different nutrients in your diet, so it will probably take a little while for your digestive system to adjust to such different food. Plus, it sounds like you're eating a lot more fibre than your body's used to, which can definately cause the "trots" ;) Hope it clears up for you :)
EDIT: Would definately go see your Doc if it doesn't clear up in a few weeks though, cos it could just be a coincidence that the bowel problems started at the same time as a diet change, and you don't want to risk it with that kind of stuff. Especially if you do start to see any blood.
Hey. How many grams of fibre are you now getting a day?
summerofdarwinj has some very goods points. From personal experience though, the dark greenish-black stools are most likely caused by the gallbladder purging itself of extra bile. What happens is, your liver produces bile and the gallbladder acts as "storage" for it until a large amount of it is needed (incidentally, it is green in colour). Whenever we eat fats, any kind of fats, bile is released from the liver, and also from the stores in the gallbladder. The bile then helps break down the fats for digestion.
So knowing that, one or both of these could be the reason for the greeny diarrhea:
1.) Since your diet was previously high in carbs and fat, your body got used to producing lots of bile to make sure it could digest the fats whenever they came along. Since you only ate one large meal a day, your body "knew" it would need a lot of bile to be released all at once to deal with the fat. But when you changed your diet, it took some time for your body to begin to "realize" all that stored bile isn't necessary anymore. It is still producing heavy amounts of bile, but it isn't needed so it's being flushed out naturally. The bile mixes with the stool and looks greenish black. If this is the cause, over time it should calm down and stop on its own.
2.) Your current diet may now contain larger amounts of fibre (flushes out your colon, as already mentioned), as well as magnesium and potassium than you were previously used to. Both of these minerals can cause loose stools or even diarrhea in some people if consumed in large amounts (or in your case, normal amounts since it sounds like your diet was previously weak in these). I'm not going to go into why, it's easy to look up on your own, but the point is that these two minerals work in tandem to make the gallbladder contract ("flushing out" the bile) and attract water to the colon (making the stool softer). The bile mixes with the soft stool and looks greenish black. If this is the cause, it too will ease off over time.
[I suffer from both IBS and gallbladder disease, so unfortunately I know all about the green trots. :P]
As long as the stool isn't dark black, doesn't have what looks like lots of black coffee grounds in it, or isn't painful, it probably isn't serious. If it's inconvenient or getting you down though, maybe talk to either a pharmicist, nutritionist or heck, drop by a health food store and tell them your story. They might be able to offer advice for supplementing your diet with something to "firm up" the issue. However, it sounds to me very much like either one of the above, and so should happen less and less on its own over the next week. If it doesn't improve or gets worse though, SEE A DOCTOR. Sell the silverware and the TV if you must, but make it a priority and see one. Getting worse could be a sign that something very, very nasty is going on, and nasty is always better to catch early than late.
Just wanted to also add: good for you for doing the diet (!!) and taking care of the one person who needs you more than anyone else - *YOU*! Keep up the great work. :D
That was very interesting advice, thank you. :) I'll keep an eye on it over the next couple of weeks.
@queenvalerian & master_taco
Don't you just love the internet and these forums. There is always somebody out there who has the experience to share knowledge on practically any issue.
