Iowa City, IA
A 22-year-old female asked:
How do you know if there is blood in your stool? there were small, bright red flecks but didn't know if it was blood or food.
2 doctor answers • 4 doctors weighed in
Dr. Kevin Considineanswered
Family Medicine 31 years experience
Depends: It could be something you ate like beets for example but if not sure this should at least be discussed with your doctor. Often bright red blood can just be something benign like hemorrhoids but it can also be something more serious especially if it persists or worsens. If you haven't seen your doctor at least once i would do so now to be sure.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Dr. Ralph Morgan Lewis commented
Family Medicine 39 years experience
Microscopic blood may not be visible & requires an occult blood test (just stool on special paper that shows blood when special drops are added). Do see doc for exam.
Jul 18, 2012
Dr. Kevin Considine commented
Family Medicine 31 years experience
Provided original answer
agreed
Jul 18, 2012
Dr. Robert Greeranswered
Family Medicine 45 years experience
Easy: Ask your dr for a "hemacult" like test.You wipe some stool, like off toilet paper, onto a specially prepared paper slide and we look for a color change.This test can be compromised by eating rare beef, beets and other iron containing foods.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Similar questions
A 40-year-old member asked:
Saw some red pieces in stool, food or blood?
1 doctor answer • 3 doctors weighed in
Dr. Pamela Pappasanswered
Psychiatry 43 years experience
Hard to know: Without knowing what you've been eating, it's impossible to say. The easiest way to tell if you have blood in your stool is to do a stool test for occult blood. You can get hemoccult stool cards from your doctor and test this. If positive, there can be multiple causes for blood in stool -- and these need to be followed up.
4.8k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Miami, FL
A 46-year-old female asked:
What are the conditions that can make you have blood in the stool (bright red)?
3 doctor answers • 3 doctors weighed in
Dr. Christopher Schmidtanswered
Facial Plastic Surgery 19 years experience
Bleeding GI system: Needs to be identified. Can be simple from hemmorhoids to dangerous as bleed from cancer. Seek a physicians care
3.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
Last updated Jul 9, 2013
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