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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Treatment For Whitish Colored Stool And Constipation

My son is 18 years old in very good health. He just showed me his stool. It is very light tan, almost white(ish). He said that he has no difficulty passing the stool. He has no temperature, no upset stomach and seems to be sleeping just fine. He recently returned from a canoe trip in Algonquin Park, Northern Ontario, Canada. They did eat a lot of rehydrated and freeze dried foods, but this is nothing new for him. The only thing that he tried differently this time was scary hot ghost pepper tortilla chips. I thought perhaps the ghost peppers would be the culprit. Just wondering if we should watch out for anything else.
Tue, 18 Jun 2019
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General Surgeon,  's  Response
Hi,

Noted the history about your 18 year old son, trip to Algonquin park wherein he ate scary host ghost pepper tortilla chips and re-hydrated freeze dried foods which is he not new to, developed white stools and no other symptoms.
I can understand that there are no other symptoms but having white stools is not at all normal.
Hence I would advise at least the following things to make sure that there is no medical or surgical condition that cause white stool and are as follows:
Tests of stool particularly for stercobillin.
Urine tests for bile salts and pigments.
Blood tests particularly for full liver function tests including that for Alkaline Phosphatase and GGT, these help to see for any evidence of obstruction jaundice that cause white stools.
Ultrasonography of abdomen to see for any gallstones in gallbladder and bile ducts.
Clinical evaluation and examination.
All these help to know the cause.
If all the investigations are normal then nothing to worry about.

Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Regards,
Dr. T Chandrakant, ENT & General Surgeon
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Suggest Treatment For Whitish Colored Stool And Constipation

Hi, Noted the history about your 18 year old son, trip to Algonquin park wherein he ate scary host ghost pepper tortilla chips and re-hydrated freeze dried foods which is he not new to, developed white stools and no other symptoms. I can understand that there are no other symptoms but having white stools is not at all normal. Hence I would advise at least the following things to make sure that there is no medical or surgical condition that cause white stool and are as follows: Tests of stool particularly for stercobillin. Urine tests for bile salts and pigments. Blood tests particularly for full liver function tests including that for Alkaline Phosphatase and GGT, these help to see for any evidence of obstruction jaundice that cause white stools. Ultrasonography of abdomen to see for any gallstones in gallbladder and bile ducts. Clinical evaluation and examination. All these help to know the cause. If all the investigations are normal then nothing to worry about. Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further. Regards, Dr. T Chandrakant, ENT & General Surgeon