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What Causes Foul Smelling Stool While Treating Cough?
Question: I have problems with foul smelling stools. I have had a cough for five years and have been taking a lot of cough sweets to try and control the coughing. Having been constipated for most of my adult life, I now have difficulty controlling the passage of waste. Are the two related? I have had my lungs and chest checked out and they are clear. I have been prescribed Omaprezole which helped the cough. However, my food passes through too fast as does liquid. I have tried going on a high carbohydrate diet but that makes no difference. I have tried to cut out all acid.
Brief Answer:
Anti cough medications can cause constipation
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
I went through the details of the query. You had not mentioned the cough sweets what are they? What medicines did you use earlier for the cough?
Anti cough medicines are generally anti histamines and codeine (opioid) cough syrups which have a side effect of constipation. If you had taken these for long time then cough and constipation are related.
Since omeprazole controlled your cough then we could relate the cough due to GERD (reflux acid disease).
Now the stool is loose and foul smelling, it means the gut is moving very fast and not absorbing water. So you do not have formed stools.
You need a medication to reduce the bowel movements and let the food remain in the colon for sometime for the water to be absorbed and stool to be formed.
1) We need to find the cause for the bowel irritability and quicker transit time
2) We need to add some supplements rich in fibre to form thick stool.
I suggest a gastroenterologist evaluation at this time to find the cause and till the time the cause is found a symptomatic treatment is necessary. You may be asked for some tests as well.
Let me know if you are not clear with any of my explanation.
Anti cough medications can cause constipation
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
I went through the details of the query. You had not mentioned the cough sweets what are they? What medicines did you use earlier for the cough?
Anti cough medicines are generally anti histamines and codeine (opioid) cough syrups which have a side effect of constipation. If you had taken these for long time then cough and constipation are related.
Since omeprazole controlled your cough then we could relate the cough due to GERD (reflux acid disease).
Now the stool is loose and foul smelling, it means the gut is moving very fast and not absorbing water. So you do not have formed stools.
You need a medication to reduce the bowel movements and let the food remain in the colon for sometime for the water to be absorbed and stool to be formed.
1) We need to find the cause for the bowel irritability and quicker transit time
2) We need to add some supplements rich in fibre to form thick stool.
I suggest a gastroenterologist evaluation at this time to find the cause and till the time the cause is found a symptomatic treatment is necessary. You may be asked for some tests as well.
Let me know if you are not clear with any of my explanation.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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