Floating Stools?

[CantEvenEatRice]

I have been gluten free for over 3 years, but have never felt really great. I am trying to cut out all grains and dairy as well as other foods I think bother me. However, for the past 6 months, I have felt miserable! I am so tired and my stools are just not normal anymore. Before being diagnosed with Celiac, I had chronic constipation for at least 10 years--I mean really constipated ALL the time. That all cleared when I went gluten free. Now I am having problems with diarrhea from EVERYTHING I eat. And, when my stools are more formed, they are always floating. Does that indicate something? I have also been having a lot of pelvic pain so I am scheduled for a pelvic ultrasound next week. I have checked and rechecked for cross contamination and I can't find any. In fact, sometimes I barely eat anything and I still get sick. So frustrated!!!!!!

[Kaycee]

I have been gluten free for 9 months, and still my stools float. I don'tknow what this indicates, but at least I do not have constant d d like I used too.

Catherine

[2kids4me]

This may help:

Floating stools are seen in a variety of different situations. Most are diet-related, or caused by episodes of diarrhea that accompany an acute gastrointestinal infection. A change in dietary habits can lead to an increase in the amount of gas produced by bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract.

Similarly, acute gastrointestinal (GI) infections can result in increased gas content in the intestines, due to rapid movement of food through the GI tract. One wrong idea is that floating stools are caused by an increase in the fat content of the stool. In fact, it is increased gas levels in the stool that make it less dense and allow it to float.

Another cause of floating stools is malabsorption. More than two weeks of diarrhea with floating stools is often seen in people suffering from malabsorption, a dysfunction in the GI tract that affects the body's ability to digest and absorb fat and other types of foods.

Increased levels of nutrients in the stool (which have not been absorbed by the GI tract) are supplied to the normal bacteria that live in the gut, which in turn produce more gas. This results in more gas-rich stools that float.

Floating stools alone do not indicate an illness or problem, and they do not require home care. If a change in diet has caused problems, try to find and eliminate the offending food.

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[lindalee]

I have been gluten free for over 3 years, but have never felt really great. I am trying to cut out all grains and dairy as well as other foods I think bother me. However, for the past 6 months, I have felt miserable! I am so tired and my stools are just not normal anymore. Before being diagnosed with Celiac, I had chronic constipation for at least 10 years--I mean really constipated ALL the time. That all cleared when I went gluten free. Now I am having problems with diarrhea from EVERYTHING I eat. And, when my stools are more formed, they are always floating. Does that indicate something? I have also been having a lot of pelvic pain so I am scheduled for a pelvic ultrasound next week. I have checked and rechecked for cross contamination and I can't find any. In fact, sometimes I barely eat anything and I still get sick. So frustrated!!!!!!

Have you tried eating gentle foods like chicken soup? Eliminating corn and corn syrup helped me. Hope you feel better and let us know how the appointment turns out.

[IrishKelly]

I have been gluten free for 9 months, and still my stools float. I don'tknow what this indicates, but at least I do not have constant d d like I used too.

Catherine

How long did it take for the d to go away?...i'm curious because i'm still patientlly waiting.

[Kaycee]

How long did it take for the d to go away?...i'm curious because i'm still patientlly waiting.

Irish Kelly,

For everyone it is different. I think for me, if I am extra extra careful with what I eat, I am usually fine. But being extra extra careful has been the hardest bit. It is not that I am eating gluten, but it occassionally gets in, so that doesn't help. But my biggest problems are other intolerances which seem to keep the D going. I have given away peanuts, and nearly all soy, and have re-introduced milk, which does not seem to be a problem, but then I have to balance that against what else I have been eating. It has been quite hard for me to find out all the ins and outs of the diet, and what else bothers me. I hate to say this, but the more packaged prepared food I seem to add to the diet, the harder it is to manage everything. As a rule if I am careful, the d dissappears, until i have something that is questionable. Thankfully, it has been getting better these last couple of months.

I know I should just go straight, and only eat fruit and veges and meats. But I am afraid I am not as strong on myself as I should be. Not that I would knowingly eat gluten, but there are other things that I should watch out for.

But then, Kelly, have you thought that you might have another intolerance. Something I tried to not think about for the longest time, as I probably knew I would not be able to manage that one as easy as eliminating gluten, as that was a big ask in the first place, and the most necessary thing to eliminate.

Catherine

[RiceGuy]

I've been reading lately that B12 deficiency is common among Celiacs, and it does cause the sort of symptoms you describe. Can't hurt to get one of those sublingual supplements and see what happens. Just make certain it says gluten free on the label.