Black stool during early pregnancy

Some women may experience some discomfort symptoms in the early stages of pregnancy, such as nausea, vomiting, etc. Some women find that their stools turn black in the early stages of pregnancy. In fact, this phenomenon may not be caused only by pregnancy, but may be caused by eating black food, so pregnant women do not need to worry too much about it. Let’s take a look at what causes black stools in early pregnancy?

If you eat animal blood, liver and more meat, or take iron or carbon supplements, your stool may be black. In the former case, the occult blood test of the stool may be positive. Common causes of black stool are as follows:

1. Digestive tract diseases: The most common cause of bloody stools, including esophageal varices, esophageal foreign bodies, ulcer disease, acute gastritis, gastric mucosal prolapse, intussusception, hemorrhagic necrotizing enteritis, strangulated intestinal obstruction, Meckel's diverticulum, intestinal polyps, anal fissures, etc.

2. Blood diseases: neonatal hemorrhagic disease, hemophilia, leukemia, aplastic anemia, thrombocytopenia and allergic purpura, etc.

3. Other systemic infectious diseases, such as sepsis, typhoid fever, etc., newborns swallowing blood from the mother's birth canal or ruptured nipples, swallowing of bleeding from the nose, pharynx, and gums, etc.

4. Influence of food or medicine: Certain foods and medicines can also cause changes in stool color, which can sometimes be easily confused with blood in the stool. For example, eating a lot of watermelon and tomatoes in the summer can make the stool turn red. The stool of children with anemia can turn black after taking iron supplements. The stool can also turn black after eating animal blood. These changes in stool color caused by food and medicine do not constitute bloody stools.

If you are not sure yourself, please go to the hospital for a check-up.

What causes constipation in pregnant women?

After pregnancy, the body secretes a large amount of progesterone, which causes the gastrointestinal muscle tone to weaken and intestinal motility to slow down. The ever-growing uterus compresses the gastrointestinal tract, especially in the late pregnancy and after the fetal head enters the pelvis. The mechanical pressure on the gastrointestinal tract, especially the rectum, becomes increasingly obvious, often accompanied by the formation of hemorrhoids. Many women suffer from constipation before they become pregnant. After pregnancy, they have difficulty moving, especially are not used to squatting toilets. Coupled with the pain from hemorrhoid attacks, pregnant women develop a fear of defecation and consciously reduce bowel movements, making constipation worse.

After pregnancy, if pregnant women eat a lot of high-protein, high-fat foods and ignore the intake of vegetables, the fiber content in the gastrointestinal tract will be insufficient, which is not conducive to the decline of chyme and stool. Lack of activity is also a factor. After becoming pregnant, many women are afraid that too much activity will hurt the fetus. Coupled with the special "care" of their family members, they often become less active and sit or lie down all day. This reduces the gastrointestinal digestion ability of the already reduced motility, aggravating abdominal bloating and constipation.

After pregnancy, the condition is most serious in the later stages of pregnancy, mainly because a large amount of progesterone is secreted during pregnancy, which can relax the uterine smooth muscle and weaken the peristalsis of the large intestine. As the uterus continues to grow and gain weight, it compresses the large intestine, causing poor blood circulation and weakening the bowel movement. Food residues remain in the large intestine for a long time, and excessive water is absorbed by the intestinal wall, resulting in dry and hard stools. In addition, the abdominal wall muscles have low tension and insufficient contraction force, so pregnant women are prone to constipation, often defecating once every two or three days, or even once a week. Constipation is often accompanied by abdominal pain and bloating. Frequent constipation will cause hard fecal masses to accumulate in the rectum, which will inevitably compress the veins in the intestinal wall, affecting blood return and forming "hemorrhoids".