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How Serious Is Blood in Stool?

Blood in your stool can indicate either a very serious problem or a temporary condition, such as food poisoning, which should end quickly once you get the contaminated food out of your system.

  1. Bright Red

    • If your stool is bright red, it could be due to either bleeding from hemorrhoids, an anal fissure or Crohn's disease. The closer the bleed site is to the rectum, the brighter red the blood will be; if you are bleeding from the right, or tranverse, colon, the color of your stool will be dark red or maroon in color.

    Black

    • If your stool is black and tarry, this could indicate bleeding from higher up in the GI tract, perhaps the stomach or duodenum; this type of bowel movement is called melena.

    Causes

    • According to Mothernature.com, inflammatory bowel disease and diverticulitis can also cause bloody stool. Diverticulitis actually results in a hemorrhage in the wall of your colon, which may lead to excessive rectal bleeding; inflammatory bowel disease is a painful digestive disorder that also causes a bloody stool.

    False Alarm

    • According to Medicineplus, if you have black stool, it may not be the result of blood; iron pills, Pepto Bismol, black licorice or blueberries can make fecal matter appear black.

    Don't Mess Around

    • Blood in the stool can indicate rectal cancer; if you are experiencing this symptom, seek medical attention.

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