Is this a concern? Answer From Elizabeth Rajan, M.D. A small amount of mucus in stool is usually nothing to worry about. Stool normally contains a small amount of mucus — a jellylike substance that your intestines make to keep the lining of your colon moist and lubricated.
If mucus in the stool is related to diet, a doctor might recommend drinking more water, increasing fiber intake, or taking probiotics. Treatment might include prescription medication and lifestyle changes for long-term conditions such as Crohn's, UC, and IBS.
Mucus in stool caused by dietary changes
After changing to a high-carbohydrate (bread, pasta, rice) diet, stool consistency also immediately changes. If a large amount of mucus persists for several days, there is often another underlying cause.
It's important to note that aside from shape and texture, the presence of white or cloudy mucus in your stool may also point to IBS. But here's what's not associated with IBS: Blood in your stool.
Narrow or pellet-like stools: if you have advanced or severe diverticulitis, your large intestine may narrow, causing stool to become thin, narrow, or pellet-shaped.
Dehydration and constipation can cause mucus from the colon to leave the body. This gives the stool the appearance of increased mucus. Increased mucus can also be a sign of illness, especially if inflammation occurs and the mucous membrane breaks down.
If you get flu-like symptoms and your poop has blood or mucus in it, you may have food poisoning. It usually clears up within days.
Symptoms of diverticulitis
Symptoms can include: Abdominal pain, many times in the lower abdomen, more often on the left side, but can be present on the right side as well. Fever and chills. Diarrhea or constipation, can have blood or mucous in the stool.
Other symptoms of intussusception include: Stool mixed with blood and mucus — sometimes referred to as currant jelly stool because of its appearance. Vomiting. A lump in the belly.
Probiotics could alter the volume and/or composition of stool and gas or increase intestinal mucus secretion.
Yellow stool may be caused by: Bacterial, viral, or parasitic infections that may be causing malabsorption. One of the most common is giardiasis (also called giardia infection), caused by a microscopic waterborne parasite.
Mucus in stool is normal but when you see a lot of white or yellowish mucus, it means you may have a GI problem, like a stomach bug, IBS, inflammatory bowel disease, celiac, or other issue. It's important to make sure something in your diet isn't causing it and see a doctor to look for an underlying intestinal issue.
Common symptoms include diarrhoea that may contain blood, mucus or pus, abdominal cramps, nausea and vomiting. To cause infection, the bacteria have to be eaten, either directly through physical contact with a person with the illness, or indirectly by contaminated food and water.
In IBS, there's a breakdown between how your brain and gut talk to each other. When you have this condition, certain foods, stress, or changes in your hormones can make your colon spasm. This pushes food too quickly through your system and causes it to come out as watery or mucus-filled diarrhea.
Hemorrhoid problems can cause various symptoms. These often include itching, mucus discharge or a burning sensation in the anus. Painless bleeding is common too. This can happen if hard stool damages the thin walls of the blood vessels in hemorrhoids.
Metronidazole treatment alters goblet cell function and reduces the production of the inner mucus layer.
Keriorrhea is the production of greasy, orange-colored stools which results from the consumption of indigestible wax esters found in oilfish and escolar.
The most common symptom of diverticulitis is belly or abdominal pain. The most common sign that you have it is feeling sore or sensitive on the left side of your lower belly. If infection is the cause, then you may have fever, nausea, vomiting, chills, cramping, and constipation.
The vegus nerve is part of that rest-and-digest system, and runs all the way from the brain stem to the rectum. "When that is stimulated, it can cause sweats, it can cause chills, it can drop your blood pressure and your heart rate as well," he says.
If you have IBS with diarrhea, you will have frequent, loose, watery stools. You may have an urgent need to have a bowel movement, which may be hard to control. If you have IBS with constipation, you will have a hard time passing stool, as well as fewer bowel movements.
People with Crohn's disease may produce stools containing mucus, blood and/or undigested fats, whereas stool samples from people with ulcerative colitis are more likely to contain only mucus and/or blood.
If you have ulcerative colitis, you might see blood and mucus in your poop when you have a flare-up.