The Student Room Group

My poo is black

Recently whenever I have a heavy drinking session, for the next few days after it my poo is black??? Does anybody know why this is? This has only been happening to me recently, but is it something to worry about?
Reply 1
Original post by rossjameslx
Recently whenever I have a heavy drinking session, for the next few days after it my poo is black??? Does anybody know why this is? This has only been happening to me recently, but is it something to worry about?


It could be blood so might be worth getting checked out. It could also be too much iron in your diet, such as if you took supplements. Also if you've eaten lots of dark coloured or black foods this can also be an issue. What sort of things are you drinking? Anything with blueberries, blackberries, liquorice etc might cause a colour change.
Original post by rossjameslx
Recently whenever I have a heavy drinking session, for the next few days after it my poo is black??? Does anybody know why this is? This has only been happening to me recently, but is it something to worry about?


Do you drink many red drinks?
Reply 3
Original post by rossjameslx
Recently whenever I have a heavy drinking session, for the next few days after it my poo is black??? Does anybody know why this is? This has only been happening to me recently, but is it something to worry about?


Unless you are eating or drinking a lot of red or black coloured foods or are taking medications (like iron supplements) that can cause black stools you should really see a GP. Black stool can be a sign of things like internal bleeding which obviously isn't something you want to ignore.
Reply 4
Do you eat a lot of leafy greens or take iron supplements?
Original post by rossjameslx
Recently whenever I have a heavy drinking session, for the next few days after it my poo is black??? Does anybody know why this is? This has only been happening to me recently, but is it something to worry about?


Think about the kinds of foods and drinks you've been consuming and if any of them could affect the colour. Maybe keep a food diary for a few days to see if there's any pattern appearing. It might be worth going to your GP anyway just to check it out.
Reply 6
Guinness.
Reply 7
I mostly drink lots of white spirits and mix them with soft drinks like KA, which is a mixture of loads of fruity drinks. However, I did drink a few bottles of wine the other day, I guess that's considered as a dark drink? As for foods, I eat a load of junk food like chips and burgers (unhealthy I know lol)
Reply 8
Original post by rossjameslx
I mostly drink lots of white spirits and mix them with soft drinks like KA, which is a mixture of loads of fruity drinks. However, I did drink a few bottles of wine the other day, I guess that's considered as a dark drink? As for foods, I eat a load of junk food like chips and burgers (unhealthy I know lol)


Try a night drinking with no red or dark drinks and see how that goes. If your poo isn't black after you've found the cause. If your poo is still black after go see your GP.

Junk food isn't healthy obviously, but it shouldn't be affecting this directly especially as it only happens when you've been drinking.

With coloured foods and drinks the colour sometimes stays in your poop and colours it so red and really dark stuff (like liquorice) can make your poop black. That's why we've been asking about what you eat and drink.
Since it only happens when you've been drinking it would make sense to look for foods and drinks you have at those times. The red KA and wine would seem to fit the bill. Easy way to test it is repeat it but without the red drinks and see if it happens again.
Red wine and iron supplements both turn my poop black. These are common things to ingest.

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