My Bowel Movement Smells Heavily Of Garlic. Why?

Posted on Thu, 28 Jun 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Thu, 28 Jun 2012 Answered on

Tue, 17 Jul 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : My bowel movement smells heavily of garlic ?

Answered by Dr. Rohan Khandelwal (1 hour later)

Dear XXXXXXX

Thank you for writing in.

The smell and the consistency of your bowel movements to a great deal depends on the food which you consume. It is a well known fact that people who consume excessive garlic, develop a garlicky odour and their bowel movements can develop a similar smell.

Are you suffering from diarrhoea as well? That is another cause which can lead to foul smelling stools.

I would recommend that you cut down on your garlic intake for a few days and then observe you stools. If the smell goes down, it was probably because of consumption of garlic.

Hope you get well soon. I will be available to help you further if you have any more concerns.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad