TMI - digestive question

[Sivalensis]

I was wondering...what is it that turns shit (can I say that in GQ? It's a good referral term for it, I think the word poop is silly) different colors? I figured it was diet...it's orange when I eat lots of carrots, etc.

But I've noticed that sometimes it's green when I haven't eaten anything green, at least not more than usual. What causes this green?

[InternetLegend]

Bile can be green, and that colors your feces.

[FyreFiend]

Eat anything that's dyed green or even blue lately? I know if I drink this soda called Brain Wash(*), which is blue, it turns my crap a Good-Lord-I-Must-Be-Rotting-From-The-Inside shade of green.


*-Intersting stuff. Tastes like tabasco and has enough caffiene to keep you up all week

[Sivalensis]

Ugh! no, nothing like that Fyre! And you would want to drink tabasco why?

If it's bile, does that mean something's wrong?

[Swoop]

I've got a related (sort of) question, which in the interest of keeping "Digestive shit - TMI" threads to a minimum, I'll post here:

Why is dietary fibre necessary? Is it useful to our bodies, or to the digestive system itself? If you don't take in enough, besides reduced bowel movements, what are the consequences? Will shit just kind of back up your colon?

[hlanelee]

Yes, Swoop, that is exactly what will happen. The shit will back up in your colon and kill you. Fibre is material used to purge waste from your digestive system.
Howard

[InternetLegend]

This site has a lot of good, straightforward information about the digestive system (and about other anatomy/physiology questions). Bile is a natural substance produced by your liver and gall bladder and it aids in digestion. It's not abnormal for your feces to vary in color, although it may be more likely if you do have a digestive upset.

Fiber is thought to aid in excretion because it absorbs water, keeping your stool wet and soft, thus moving things along more quickly. Fiber is present in many foods, but even if you eat nothing but low-fiber foods, it isn't likely that your intestines will "back up" because of the action of peristalsis, the muscular contractions that move material through the digestive system. A severe lack of fiber can lead to constipation, hemmorhoids, and make you more susceptible to colon cancer.