1. Eating green vegetables
The most common reason for green stool is a dietary habit or change. Food that can cause green stools include:
- kale
- spinach
- broccoli
Dark green vegetables and green powder supplements contain chlorophyll, the chemical that allows plants to make energy from the sun. Eating a lot of them can turn your poop green, but that doesn’t mean there’s something wrong. Keep eating those greens!
2. Dyed, blue, or purple foods
Blue or purple food and drinks may also cause green-tinted stool discoloration. This applies to items with both natural and artificial colorings, including:
- Blueberries
- Red cabbage
- Grape-flavored sodas
- Purple or blue ice pops
- Purple or blue icing
The coloring from dyes can pass through the digestive system without absorption, leaving a colorful residue in your stool. Digestive processes can change the nature of dyes, meaning that purple, blue, and black dyes can lead to green poop upon passing.
3. Bile pigment
Bile is a fluid made in your liver and stored in your gallbladder. This fluid naturally has a green-yellow color. When bile combines with foods you eat, the bile helps your body break down more fat from the diet. This allows more fat to be absorbed into your body in the small intestine.
However, your body must break downTrusted Source bile to excrete it as waste. Normally, this is accomplished by traveling a pathway through your intestine. Sometimes when you have diarrhea or other digestive issues, bile can’t be broken down as quickly. The result can be poop that appears green in tint because of the natural green color of bile salts in your body.
4. Antibiotics and other medications
If you’ve recently been prescribed antibiotics, especially a strong one, the medication can kill off large parts of your gut’s normal bacteria. This decreases the population of the brown-staining bacteria in your lower intestine. Probiotics, such as yogurt or kombucha, can help restore balance to your intestinal flora.
5. Parasites, viruses, and bacteria
Parasitic, viral, and bacterial invaders can also be causing your green stool. Yes, your body already contains billions of bacteria that serve a vital purpose. Outsiders, however, can wreak havoc on your intestinal output.
Bacteria like Salmonella, the water parasite giardia, and norovirus can cause your guts to flush quicker than normal, leading to green-tinged stools.
6. Gastrointestinal conditions
If you have Crohn’s disease or another GI condition, bile may move through your intestines too quickly, causing green poop. Crohn’s disease is a bowel disease that causes inflammation in the digestive tract.
Celiac disease, which is gluten intolerance, causes various GI problems, such as gas, bloating, diarrhea, and stomach pain. If you have diarrhea or loose stools with celiac disease, you may also have green stools.
7. Cholecystectomy complications
Cholecystectomy is surgery to remove the gallbladder.
Following gallbladder removal, there’s no reservoir for bile made in the liver. When released into the bowels, it may cause bile acid diarrhea, irritate the anal canal, and cause green or yellow frothy stools.
