Warning ᐅ blood in the chair - go straight to the doctor or wait?

at Blood in the stool many people get scared because you always think of colorectal cancer. But you can rest easy, because there are numerous reasons for this. We started the search and put together all the information you need to know about the topic. Read below about the different types and causes of blood in the stool.

What does blood in the stool mean??

In most cases, it is completely harmless if you do Blood in the toilet discover. Especially if you see a small amount of blood on the toilet paper, it is not actually blood in the stool in the strict sense. In this case, only the skin on the anus is torn open, as a result of too hard a bowel movement or as symptoms of painful but harmless hemorrhoids. Not until you larger amounts of blood during bowel movements excretion, one speaks of blood in the stool. But here, too, the causes are mostly harmless, especially if it is a one-off case.

What are the causes of blood in the stool??

There are numerous causes of blood in the stool that luckily most of them are relatively harmless and therefore easy to treat. Possible causes include hemorrhoids, gastrointestinal infections, intestinal polyps, stomach ulcers or chronic inflammatory bowel diseases. Last but not least, it can of course be done by too hard bowel movements or heavy pressing simply the sensitive skin around the anus is torn open and causes a few drops of blood in the toilet paper. Of course, colorectal cancer can also be mentioned as the cause, although the causes listed above are much more likely. It is important that you see a doctor if you discover blood in the stool several times to rule out serious causes.

Blood in bowel movements due to hemorrhoids

A very common cause of blood in the stool is hemorrhoids. The small nodules are harmless and affect up to 80 percent of all men and women. First, the tissue swells due to pressure inside the anus. This is through Constipation, overweight or pregnancy triggered. At this stage, the hemorrhoids go unnoticed and cause no discomfort. If the pressure increases, however, the nodules are pressed out of the anus and can be felt. Often you now burst open and a very small amount of blood comes out. This is noticeable by a few drops on the toilet paper. If the hemorrhoids can be gently pushed back into the anus with your finger, there is no need for further action. However, if not, and if the blood in the stool is strong and persistent, you should see a doctor and discuss different treatment options.

Bloody bowel movements due to anal tears

Other causes of blood in the stool include painful but harmless anal tear, also called anal fissure. As a further side effect, one often has the feeling of having a foreign body in the anus. There are hemorrhoid ointments that can be used to treat anal tears. Sitz baths with chamomile can also provide relief as well as improvement. To prevent an anus crack, exercise and a balanced diet should ensure that the stool is always soft. It is important that the suffering does not become chronic, because in this case often only surgery can help.

Blood in the stool from cancer

Even though it is unlikely, blood in the stool can also be a symptom of cancer his. Because if it is in the large intestine, then the cancer cells feed on the blood there. The smallest veins can tear and cause blood that is excreted in the stool. Colorectal cancer is particularly dangerous because it causes no symptoms for a long time. Other symptoms include Weight loss, abdominal pain or anemia. For this reason, you should see a doctor if there is a lot of blood and you discover several times when you go to the toilet.

How is blood diagnosed in stool??

If you go to a doctor because of blood in the stool and other symptoms, he will ask for a diagnosis in the first step about possible previous illnesses for you and your family. Of course this then applies to primarily on Gastrointestinal disorders. In the second step, there are different examination options to be able to make a final diagnosis. This includes an ultrasound of the stomach and intestines, a gastro and colonoscopy or other modern nuclear medicine procedures. The doctor will also carry out a general examination of the body, Take blood and of course examine the stool yourself.

Sometimes you have to endure several of these, unfortunately not always pleasant, examinations so that the doctor treating you can come to a final diagnosis.

What types of blood in the stool are there?

Depending on how strongly the blood is excreted from the body together with the stool, there are different causes. The color of the blood also plays a role in the precise diagnosis of the clinical picture. On this basis, the doctor can already determine in which area of the gastrointestinal tract there is a possible disease. A distinction is made between diseases that are caused by bleeding in the upper digestive tract and those that are caused by bleeding in the middle and lower digestive tract.

Light red blood

If it is light red blood in the stool, then one speaks of a so-called hematochecia. The blood is still fresh and either added to the stool or in strips on the stool. In this case the cause of the suffering lies in middle or lower gastrointestinal tract. Diseases in this area include chronic bowel diseases such as the widespread Crohn’s disease, which can cause inflammation in the entire gastrointestinal area. Furthermore, intestinal polyps can occur in this area. These are benign bulges of the mucous membrane that do not cause any further complaints, but must be removed as they are Colon cancer precursor could be. Other causes of light red blood in the stool include hemorrhoids and infections like classic gastrointestinal flu.

Dark red blood

A second variant is dark red blood, which makes a difference in the source of the bleeding. If the stool is dark red due to blood, this is also referred to as tar chair or melena. The dark red blood can be recognized by the dark, almost black color of the stool. The dark color emerges, when the blood comes into contact with the stomach acid. The cause of the blood then lies in the upper gastrointestinal tract, i.e. between the esophagus and the duodenum. In this case, these are diseases such as gastrointestinal ulcers, bleeding as a result of continued medication (this can occur, for example, with medications that contain acetylsalicylic acid), chronic heartburn or liver diseases. However, it can give other causes of bleeding, it is best to speak to your doctor.

What to do with blood in the stool?

As already mentioned, possible treatment depends on it, how strong and often you have blood in your stool. If there are only a few drops of blood and this occurs only once, there is no need for action. However, we advise you to see a doctor if the blood in the stool repeats and there are large amounts or other symptoms of a disease are added. These include stomach or abdominal pain, pain during bowel movements, nausea and vomiting as well as tiredness and listlessness. Even with a significant weight loss or if you tend to sweat, should You make an appointment with a suitable doctor.

Which doctor with blood in the stool?

But now the question arises which doctor is the right one for treating blood in the stool. If you are unsure or if you want to get a referral to a specialist, then a family doctor can be a first point of contact. He can also determine which further examinations, such as a stomach and / or colonoscopy and an examination of the stool, are necessary. The family doctor will then refer you to an internist, gastroenterologist (specialist for the gastrointestinal tract), proctologist (specialist for the rectum) or surgeon.

5 tips for a healthy intestine

Since blood in the stool is mostly harmless, you can easily do something about it by keeping your intestines healthy. Here are five tips that are natural and that you can easily integrate into your everyday life.

Move: Sufficient exercise, in the best case of course in the fresh air, gets the digestion and thus the intestine in motion.
Fruit and vegetables: We already teach our children to eat enough fruit and vegetables every day. This is not only important for general physical health, you can also prevent many stomach and intestinal diseases.
Home remedies: To Hemorrhoids home remedies counting Flohsamenschalen, which are dissolved in soup, water or yoghurt and taken up with as much liquid as possible.
Less fat: Unfortunately, mostly fatty dishes like fries, burgers and sweets taste best. However, they are very bad for our intestinal health because they produce an excess of stomach acid, which in turn can lead to heartburn, ulcers and blood in the stool.
Stress: Unfortunately, it is often very difficult for us to reduce stress. However, chronic overloads can also lead to gastrointestinal complaints and thus blood in the stool.

frequently asked Questions

There is a lot of information about blood in the stool on the Internet. We also observed that users keep asking the same questions over and over again. We have collected the most common questions and provide you with the appropriate answers below.

With blood in the stool as a result of hemorrhoids, ointments definitely relieve symptoms such as itching or burning. Preparations with witch hazel are particularly beneficial and cooling. Unfortunately, however, the nodules do not completely disappear after use.

The question can be answered clearly with no, because there are also foods such as beetroot, red wine or jam that result in dark stools. If the dark stool repeats itself or if you observe other side effects, please consult a doctor.

If there is blood in the stool, the bowel is often examined by a mirror. This is certainly not a particularly nice procedure, but you are put into a twilight sleep and do not feel any pain.

If you are intolerant to gluten, the so-called celiac disease, digestion irregularities and thus blood in the stool can result as a result of very hard stool.

We have come across this question more and more. Although antibiotics change the bacterial flora in the intestine, blood in the stool has not been detected as a result.

Closing words

We hope you will find all the answers to your possible questions about blood in the stool in this report. In any case, it is a fact that there are many harmless and easy-to-treat causes that do not immediately scare you. Hemorrhoid treatment is therefore not always necessary. However, we definitely recommend you see a doctor if you use large amounts and repeatedly Blood in the stool find.