# sandy stool



## caputsky

Hi, My appologies if this topic has already been covered, but I'm experiencing some very weird symptoms and would appreciate any feedback. For the past two days I have been having what I can only describe as "sandy stools." I'm sorry for being graphic, but basically my stools have been filled with undigested food, and many of them have looked like sand or grain when passed. Along with this, I am having acute pain in my upper abdomen, and a lot of urgency. So far today I have had 9 BMs, which is a lot more than average for my usual IBS (I'm a type D). I'm really starting to worry, and while I know I should go to my doctor about this, when this has happened previously about a month ago, none of my doctors had any clue or advice (big surprise). So I thought I would ask on this forum. I'm worried that because of the consistency and the undigested particles that some sort of malabsorption might be going on. Anyways, any thoughts would be great appreciated, thanks so much!


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## Kathleen M.

Everyone always has undigested matter in their stool. A lot of things only break up by grinding and do not dissolve, and so they come out exactly the way you swallow them.The looser the stool the easier it is to see the bits. How big they are depends on what you eat and how well you chew. Studdying stool is a typical way of figuring out what something ate (either if the stool is easier to find than an animal is to catch, or stool from ancient people/animals that you can't watch eat.Are you maintaining weight when you eat enough calories to maintain weight? Is your blood work normal? Usually as long as those are true you don't really need to worry about malabsorption.


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## daffodil

helloyesbeen having v similar to what you describe, since mid marchit started with 'abundant' bm but is now not usually more than 3/4 a day and mebeverine and fybogel seem to help just a littlebut things are still not 'normal'and like you, assume, since it is yellowy and undigested - that it must be some form of malabsorbtionstill waiting for some answersyou should probably tell your drD x


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## jmc09

I believe lighter coloured stools can indicate liver problems.See your doctor.


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## Kathleen M.

Yellow isn't usually a problem in the realm of "lighter" and liver problems or malabsoption.Food that needs to be ground up that comes out like it went down is normal. There is nothing past the teeth to grind things up, so it comes out the way it went down. This is not a symptom of malabsorption, it happens to all healthy people. It is why some foods are typically used as a "quick" test of transit time. No one has anything in the stomach or intestines that grind up the tough bits.The brown color comes from the yellow (all stool starts yellow or green from the bile) being changed to brown over time in the colon. If you are running a bit faster than the color change, your stool will be either light brown or yellow.If you do not release any bile you don't have much to color the stool and they call it clay colored (kind of off white). That usually means the gall bladder is blocked, but you typically have other symptoms with that, like severe pain.


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