What Causes Stool Colour Changes After Taking Heartburn Medication During Pregnancy?

Posted on Tue, 4 Feb 2014

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

Tue, 4 Feb 2014 Answered on

Wed, 5 Mar 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : Pregnant and taking tums, famantidine and prilosec for heart burn, just had a bowel movement with a couple white floaty stool but most dark colored. Are the antacids causing this or should I be concerned a bile blockage? Due to 3 weeks

Answered by Dr. Dr. Michelle Gibson (15 minutes later)

Brief Answer: likely related to medication Detailed Answer: HI, thanks for using healthcare magic Famotidine can be associated with changes in stool colour. Most commonly it can be associated with black tarry stools but in some persons, the stool can have a whiter appearance. The exact reason is not known. As you mentioned , blockage of the flow of bile can also cause a pale appearance to the stool. This occurs in disease of the liver, gallbladder or pancreas. In the absence of any other symptoms that can be related to these organs (abdominal pain, jaundice, fever), then this is less likely the cause. You should consider monitoring the stool colour, if it continues, your doctor may consider liver function blood tests as a precaution, though it is likely medication related. I hope this helps, feel free to ask any additional questions

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar