What disorders can black stools indicate during pregnancy?

What color of stool is normal?

Each person's stool color may be different at different times. The color of an adult's stool can range from yellowish-brown to dark brown. The color of the stool depends on what the person ate in the previous few days, on the amount of bile in the stool; if there is a violation of the outflow of bile, the stool will be light.

Sometimes the stool may appear black, but it will actually be dark brown. To determine whether stool is black or dark brown, you can perform a simple test at home.

Apply a little feces onto a sheet of white paper and spread the feces in a very thin layer over the paper. This way the color will appear more accurately.

If a person discovers black stool, then it is important for him to know the probable causes of this phenomenon. Let's consider the main etiological factors:

• Eating foods that can turn stool black in the last 3 days

As a result of digesting prunes, large amounts of beets or red grapes, the stool may darken or even turn black. If you suspect that this is the reason for the appearance of such coloring of the stool, you should exclude these foods from the diet for 4-5 days and observe the color of the stool all this time. If 3 days after you consumed these foods, the stool remains black, then you should look for another reason for this.

• Taking certain medications.

A number of drugs can cause black stool. These include iron supplements for anemia (Sorbifer, Ferrum Lek, Aktiferrin, Maltofer and others). Activated black carbon and bismuth preparations (De-nol, Bismofalk) also have a similar effect. The appearance of dark or black stool is not a contraindication to continuing to take medications. All changes to the treatment regimen must be carried out by a doctor; unauthorized withdrawal of drugs is fraught with serious consequences.

If you are taking bismuth preparations for the treatment of peptic ulcer disease, it is necessary to differentiate between two etiological factors - taking these drugs or bleeding from an ulcer.

• Bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract

When there is bleeding from the esophagus (bleeding from esophageal varices, esophageal injury, Mallory-Weiss syndrome) or stomach (stomach ulcer, stomach cancer), the stool turns black, also called melena. In this case, as a rule, there are other symptoms, for example, pain in the epigastric region, weakness, nausea, vomiting. The vomit has the appearance and color of coffee grounds. But with minor bleeding, the first and only symptom may be the appearance of black stool.

Taking antiplatelet agents (aspirin, cardiomagnyl) and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (ibuprofen, diclofenac and their analogues) can provoke bleeding in patients with gastric or duodenal ulcers. Although the drugs themselves do not turn the stool black, they can cause bleeding!

How to adjust your diet during pregnancy

Since problems with the gastrointestinal tract are normal during pregnancy, following a diet even in the absence of problems with bowel movements can be beneficial.

Basic principles of nutrition:

• Don't eat too hot or cold food. This way you injure the gastric mucosa, which cannot but disrupt the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract;
• Make sure that the food is not too high in calories. It is advisable to have a minimum of complex fats in your diet. Otherwise, the level of stimulation of intestinal function will increase;
• Avoid completely sour, spicy and salty foods;
• It is also undesirable to consume a lot of simple carbohydrates. Simply put, you should minimize the amount of fresh baked goods and sweets in your diet;
• The diet should contain a sufficient amount of protein. At the same time, it is worth replenishing it through lean varieties of meat and fish. But legumes, despite the significant amount of protein in their composition, should be excluded from the diet;
• Limit the amount of dairy products. Remember that they can cause fermentation in the stomach;
• Don't go too heavy on fruit. In large quantities, they can also cause fermentation in the intestines.

By following these recommendations regarding nutrition during pregnancy, you will minimize the likelihood of problems in the gastrointestinal tract. Accordingly, pregnancy will be easier.

What can help differentiate the likely causes of dark-colored stools?

• General health - if the cause is bleeding, then symptoms due to blood loss are more likely to appear - weakness, pale skin, sticky sweat, epigastric pain. If the cause of such coloring of stool is food or medication, then general health, as a rule, remains normal.
• The duration of this symptom - if the cause is the intake of certain foods, then the stool takes on a normal color after eliminating “coloring” foods after 1-2 days. With bleeding and long-term use of “coloring” medications, the stool may be black for a long time. If the reason was due to taking medications, then the usual coloration of the stool appears after they are discontinued, which is done by the doctor at the end of the course of treatment.

Folk remedies

Before using traditional methods of treatment, you should consult your doctor.

Some ingredients in the recipe can cause allergies or increased uterine tone, and this, in turn, can cause miscarriage or premature birth.

• Enemas with sea buckthorn oil contribute to the healing of intestinal cracks. To do this, 5 ml of the pharmaceutical drug is injected into the rectum using a bulb;
• Propolis has a bactericidal and anti-inflammatory effect. Prepare an infusion of 10 g of propolis, which must be mixed in 300 ml of boiled water and kept in a steam bath for 20 minutes. After an hour, the infusion is filtered. Drink a tablespoon twice a day;
• Shilajit has a regenerating, analgesic and anti-inflammatory effect, which is recommended for use in ulcerative colitis. Dissolve 0.1 g of mumiyo in a tablespoon of warm boiled water and drink. Repeat the procedure twice a day for a week;
• Every day drink a tablespoon of starch solution. Prepare a solution from a tablespoon of the product and a glass of warm boiled water. It is an excellent remedy against diarrhea;
• If the culprit of the problem is infectious processes, you can use a bactericidal agent such as chamomile infusion. A tablespoon of raw material is steamed in 300 ml of boiling water. After 20 minutes, the product is filtered and a little natural honey is added to it. Drink 100 ml 2-3 times daily.

What can be accompanied by the appearance of black stool in adults? What features might there be?

• Small inclusions of black color - may be the result of eating fruits with small grains or seeds (raspberries, grapes).
• Black worms in feces - they are often mistaken for parasites. But, as a rule, the cause is eating a lot of bananas. Worms are usually whitish or yellowish in color.
• Liquid black feces - most often occurs with gastrointestinal bleeding. As a result of the influence of digestive enzymes and hydrochloric acid, the blood in the stool becomes black, which is what causes the color of the stool. When bleeding from the large intestine, the stool will not be black, but will have the appearance of “raspberry jelly” (see bleeding from the anus).
• Black stool streaked with blood can occur with a number of diseases of the large intestine, for example, with Crohn's disease. In this case, you should definitely consult a doctor immediately.
• The appearance of black stools in the postoperative period may be a sign of internal bleeding, most likely during surgery on the stomach, upper intestines or esophagus.
• Black-green stool, accompanied by a rise in temperature. With a high degree of probability, it can be assumed that there is a serious intestinal infection, the treatment of which should be carried out in a hospital.
• Black stool during pregnancy. Pregnancy and childbirth affect intestinal motility, but do not affect stool color. Therefore, in pregnant women, all of the above reasons can lead to a change in the color of the stool. In pregnant women, iron supplementation is often the cause of dark-colored stools, since anemia is not uncommon in them.

Black feces for gastrointestinal diseases

Black diarrhea during pregnancy may indicate internal bleeding, which may be a consequence of dilated veins in the esophagus or the presence of polyps in the intestines. In parallel with intestinal upset, the following signs are observed:

• pale skin;
• lack of appetite;
• weakness of consciousness, up to its loss;
• dizziness;
• low pressure.

If such symptoms are detected, the woman should be immediately shown to a medical specialist. It may be necessary to conduct an FGDS to clarify the diagnosis. The cause of black stool with impurities may be Crohn's disease.

Black stool in children

If black feces appear in a child, this can be very worrying for parents. In the first days of life, a child produces meconium - feces that was accumulated during intrauterine development. It may have a dark color, almost black. After 2-3 days it is replaced by normal-colored stool. Depending on what type of nutrition the newborn is on, it can be from light yellow to dark mustard liquid consistency.

In slightly older children, stool may become dark when bottle-fed, consuming cow's milk (which is not permissible until 2 years of age), or drugs containing cow's milk protein (colibacterin).

But in these cases, the stool is usually not black, but dark brown; at first glance, it may seem black. For differentiation, you should carry out the test mentioned above.

If your child is restless, crying, has a poor appetite and has black stools, then you should consult a doctor! Even young children may experience gastrointestinal bleeding. They can be especially common in children who consume cow's or goat's milk.

The degree of bleeding from the resulting damage to the intestinal mucosa can range from minor, but over time leading to iron deficiency anemia, to severe.

Danger signs

In general, black stool during pregnancy in itself is not dangerous if its occurrence is not accompanied by a deterioration in well-being. Sometimes the appearance of an unpleasant condition is accompanied by symptoms such as:

• chills;
• increased body temperature;
• hypotension, weakness;
• dizziness, loss of consciousness;
• increased sweating;
• pale skin.

In this case, you should immediately call an ambulance, as these may be symptoms of internal bleeding. It can be a consequence of exacerbation of pre-existing diseases or diseases acquired during pregnancy. In this case, the black color of stool comes from blood oxidized by digestive enzymes, the source of which is located in the upper parts of the gastrointestinal tract. During internal bleeding, when biological fluid enters the digestive system, the feces not only change color, but also become liquid.

In what cases is it necessary to consult a doctor if black stool is detected?

• Black stools are accompanied by vomiting and/or fever.
• A history of gastric and/or duodenal ulcers.
• Blood tests reveal iron deficiency anemia.
• Presence of liver cirrhosis and (or) hepatitis.
• Recently there was severe vomiting, especially if it was caused by drinking alcohol (possible Mallory-Weiss syndrome).
• A history of intestinal or stomach cancer in the person himself or his relatives.
• If this is a child, and he has become restless, whiny, refuses to eat or is too lethargic.

Author:

Revus Olesya Grigorievna, neurologist

Prevention

In most cases, an isolated change in stool consistency or color during pregnancy is not dangerous and can be corrected by following a balanced diet with mandatory product quality control.

Nutrition should be balanced, with sufficient amounts of proteins, fats and carbohydrates.

Taking medications should be under the supervision of a doctor, and in the case of correction of anemia, it is necessary to monitor the indicators of red blood cells (in a general blood test). When identifying dark stool during pregnancy, the main thing is to correctly determine the reason for the change in normal stool.

Causes

Changes in the color of stool are mediated by many factors. Seeing dark feces, some people think about disruption of the digestive system, considering this a sign of some kind of pathology. But not always such a symptom can be considered in the context of diseases. Very often, the color of feces is explained by completely physiological processes. Thus, it may change under the influence of the following factors:

• Nature of nutrition.
• Taking medications.
• Gastrointestinal bleeding.
• Hemolytic anemia.
• Infectious diseases.

To find out why a woman’s stool color has changed, it is necessary to consider the possibility of all conditions, conduct a medical examination and support it with additional research. Only after this can a final conclusion be made about the cause of this phenomenon during pregnancy.

If dark stool appears, then you should not immediately sound the alarm - you need to calmly assess the condition of the body.