[mrmojo3200]

Hi everyone. I have a question that has been bothering me lately and I though I would ask as I know there are many experts on here. I have had IBS-D for about 4 years now. It was always D of a lighter color and my Doc said every thing was fine. I am 39 years old and was going through considerable stress at the time. The last few months it has gone away except for a few instances here and there. Things are great but now I am worried about something else and that is the color of the stool. Now my stool is a dark brown. Of course I started reading internet stuff and read of black tary or red stools. This does not seem to be the case, it's just dark brown. Is this a normal color for stool? I was worried about stomach or colon cancer or something? THanks in advance for any advice.

 

[Kathleen M.]

Brown is the normal stool color, from a light brown to a dark brown.All stool start out a yellowish or light greenish color (from the bile) and over time the bacteria turn that to brown. The more time they have, the darker the stool gets. So diarrhea often is lighter brown or may even still be close to the original color it has when it gets to the colon.

 

[mrmojo3200]

Brown is the normal stool color, from a light brown to a dark brown.All stool start out a yellowish or light greenish color (from the bile) and over time the bacteria turn that to brown. The more time they have, the darker the stool gets. So diarrhea often is lighter brown or may even still be close to the original color it has when it gets to the colon.

So I guess it's normal..... I don't know why I was freaking out so bad. Kathleen, thank you for the quick reply.