Awful smelling stool and gas

[SIPSGrammy 27]

I'm 7 months out and still have the smelly poo & gas is awful.. I feel like a walking sewer system! Doesn't matter what I eat, however, anything fatty, Beans and dairy have the worst effect on me.

Hope this all resolves one day.

[toastedink 115]

Yeah.. I was warned though when I got a DS that this is one of the side effects. I just watch what I eat and write everything down so I know what the culprits are quickly. One problem I'm still having sometimes (rarely though) is vomiting - also food related.

[janet1000 15]

I am a DSer 3 years out. Carbs do the gas and foul smell for me. So bread, rice, potatoes, Beans, sugar, chips - I will get gas that sounds like a herd of buffalo are coming through. Everyone is different. Some people get wicked diarrhea from certain foods. I did not have any food issues (lucky I guess). Dairy can do it, carbs definitely do it, and certain chemicals can do it. Curb your carbs and see if the gas doesn't die down.

Smelly BMs - part of that is the food you eat. If you stay close to clean Protein, Protein powders, a little veggies, a lot of clean fat (you need to eat 5 times the fat as a normal person), your smell and gas will subside. By clean, I mean eat from the perimeter of your grocery store – your food should not be coming out of a box.

If it doesn't get better, get a script from your doctor for an antibiotic to knock down some of the colon bacteria (and definitely stop eating carbs because that is what is feeding the colon bacteria).

Even when you eat cleanly, you will have smelling BMs. Half of what you eat isn’t getting digested. It is sitting in your guts at 100 degrees in a Soup of bacteria all the way through your intestines for 24-72 hours. So you are releasing fermented, bacteria soaked undigested food at the other end.

I’ve used all the poo products and the one I use at work is called Ozone Spray. It’s the only thing I’ve seen that will kill the odor on contact. It will also suck the oxygen out of your lungs, so spray it and get out. Also keep flushing. Don’t let it sit in the bowl cause it will waft up and start sticking to the walls and mirror (kidding here, but it will start traveling down the hallway and kill small children and pets). My family is disgusted by my bathroom smells, and it will stay in the hallway and bathroom for hours – so keep flushing it down.

It gets better as time goes on. At the 2 yr point, your body will adjust and your bathroom issues will level out.

[Less_Is_More 3]

I am in tears. I had duodenal switch 4 months ago. doing great on weight. My family is making fun of me. My stool and gas is so bad the house is awful.

LOL I know the feeling! I was legendary BEFORE my DS... now I can clear the entire house in 10 seconds flat sometimes. Mostly it's when I've eaten carbs so I am under 30 carbs a day and that's really helped. I also added Probiotics and I eat at least a cup of yogurt a day and that's made it a lot more bearable too.

Devrom helps some people too... I've not tried it yet, but I'm planning to try some because I have a cruise scheduled and I'm sharing a cabin with someone I don't really know. I suppose it would be nice to NOT gas them out Also, Probiotics have helped me out somewhat. Poo pourri in the toilet bowl helps, as does an air freshener spray called m9.

Just remember, poop stinks and the people complaining are probably perfectly capable of opening a window or spraying some air freshener. It's not like you are doing it on purpose.

[Kim Smith 3]

As Janet1000 said the bathroom issue is very bad I am 7 years out but have fallen off the path but trust me the smell in the bathroom can be very bad and my kids eyes go cross a lot from my gas, my husband says I can peel the paint off the walls with one fart. Yes wait you eat will make more gas than others you will learn as you go. Milk, potatoes, white bread all simple carbs will do it for sure. Your complex carbs will also but not as bad..

[utahgirll 81]

There are some amazing Facebook groups for DS. My first suggestion was carbs.. bread in particular. Also dairy. Then I was going to suggest Devrom. There are also some interesting Patches you can buy to adhere to your panties, that have charcoal embedded in them that absorb the smell. Also try ozium spray. I am pre op but learned tons from the 2 Facebook groups.

[Peggy D 124]

The malabsorption of fat is the most likely culprit. It's something I learned many, many years ago in nursing school. Malabsorption of fat also causes the stool to be a gray color. Carbs, especially the simple carbs, can add to the problem as they are likely to cause diarrhea.

[jpt.30175 45]

In the bathroom you can always light a match and put it out afterwards... Unfortunately since my ds surgery I have to go at work a lot and this helps the odor without spending so much on poopouri and sometimes spraying doesn't cover it. I am still searching for something to help with flatuance spray just mixes with it. I eat very clean actually and things like spinach and other veggies make me do this. Also the salad dressings, I only use enough to taste it. Hope this helps some!

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[janet1000 15]

The malabsorption of fat is the most likely culprit. It's something I learned many, many years ago in nursing school. Malabsorption of fat also causes the stool to be a gray color.

I had no idea the fat was making the stool grey. So now I am going to aim for grey stool.

Personally, I was worried about this issue. I thought my Iron (not being absorbed) or my minerals were making my stool grey. If fats are doing it, I am over joyed. I try to remember that we malabsorb 80 percent of all the fat we eat, so I try to eat tons of fat.

Thanks for sharing that info.

[Andreaj2003 19]

I am a DSer 3 years out. Carbs do the gas and foul smell for me. So bread, rice, potatoes, Beans, sugar, chips - I will get gas that sounds like a herd of buffalo are coming through. Everyone is different. Some people get wicked diarrhea from certain foods. I did not have any food issues (lucky I guess). Dairy can do it, carbs definitely do it, and certain chemicals can do it. Curb your carbs and see if the gas doesn't die down.

Smelly BMs - part of that is the food you eat. If you stay close to clean Protein, Protein powders, a little veggies, a lot of clean fat (you need to eat 5 times the fat as a normal person), your smell and gas will subside. By clean, I mean eat from the perimeter of your grocery store – your food should not be coming out of a box.

If it doesn't get better, get a script from your doctor for an antibiotic to knock down some of the colon bacteria (and definitely stop eating carbs because that is what is feeding the colon bacteria).

Even when you eat cleanly, you will have smelling BMs. Half of what you eat isn’t getting digested. It is sitting in your guts at 100 degrees in a Soup of bacteria all the way through your intestines for 24-72 hours. So you are releasing fermented, bacteria soaked undigested food at the other end.

I’ve used all the poo products and the one I use at work is called Ozone Spray. It’s the only thing I’ve seen that will kill the odor on contact. It will also suck the oxygen out of your lungs, so spray it and get out. Also keep flushing. Don’t let it sit in the bowl cause it will waft up and start sticking to the walls and mirror (kidding here, but it will start traveling down the hallway and kill small children and pets). My family is disgusted by my bathroom smells, and it will stay in the hallway and bathroom for hours – so keep flushing it down.

It gets better as time goes on. At the 2 yr point, your body will adjust and your bathroom issues will level out.

You are hilarious, I could not stop laughing. Thanks I really needed that!

Sent from my SM-N920P using the BariatricPal App

[Gardenlady1234 2]

Have you tried Devrom? My surgeon recommends this natural "internal deodorant" that comes in regular or chewable tablets. I am pre-op, but others in my support group say they are a miracle. Available on Amazon and probably some drug stores.

Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

[RubyWednesday 5]

Hi, Pamela. Congratulations on your weight loss.

You probably have already heard about courtesy flushes, but I'm afraid once you drop the stink bomb, the stench spreads out very fast, indeed. You may always want to carry Ozium smoke and odor eliminator. I spritz into and around the toilet before I start.

My stuff was so bad that my nieces and nephews named it Zorg for the alien that crawled out of my rectum and died, after overhearing my sister say the stench "was not of this world."

Our "zorgs" are caused by malabsorption. You need to look first at a probiotic. Another duodenal switch forum recommended Primal Defense Ultra by Garden of Life. You should boost its power by a good Prebiotic. I get one from Vitamin Shoppe called Nutra Flora FOS.

I had researched internal deodorants on the internet and learned that alfalfa and chlorophyll would work, but they only helped a little. After Zorg kept setting off the carbon monoxide in the travel trailer of a friend I was visiting, I went to the Vitamin store to also add parsley to see if that would work and told the manager about my problem. He told me to get activated charcoal tablets.

I have found that this protocol works very well for me. I don't set off alarms anymore and if I'm in the middle of something in a public restroom, people still come in and do their business rather than cough, choke and quickly exit, looking for another place to do their business.

Devrom has been recommended, but I won't go there if I can get natural supplements.

Hope this helps.

[B_Lush77 30]

I am 15 months out and my poops and farts still smell horrible. I even surprise myself. LMBO. Febreeze and Poopuri is gonna be the best thing. And if I’m getting desperate I’ll use my husband spray deodorant and move on with my day. After having DS it doesn’t matter what you eat. All your food is bypassing 60% of your small intestines so it’s gonna stink. Tell your family like I tell mine “ Oh Well. You’ll be alright.” Sometimes I ask them “did you die?” Keep up the success and leave the sh$t behind.

[theshop62 17]

I had gastric sleeve in 2015 and never had problems with sulfur type smelling foul gas / stool. Then I had a hiatal hernia in November 2020, that the surgeon repaired and at the same time revised me from a sleeve to a bypass, now I’m having very bad passing of this very foul smelling gas and stool. Dr gave me prescription Colestipol Hydrochloride granules to stop extra bile from going into the large intestine. When I took it everything went away and I was ok. He also scheduled me for a specialized SIBO test?, small intestine bacteria test, to make sure overgrowth of bad bacteria is not growing in the small intestine, hope this helps everyone on this forum.

[Losinglovehandles 0]

I am having theee WORST smelling gas and poops since having DS surgery. Does this ever subside!? It’s terrible. I don’t want to be in social situations, or at my cubicle in the office building where I work. I just don’t know what to do. My hubby thought it was hysterical at first and now he is grossed out. I can’t deal with it anymore! I don’t know exactly what sets it off but when it’s bad, it’s really really bad and when it’s not as bad, the smell is still outright putrid. It lingers forever and no spray will help. I wish someone would’ve warned me about this. I literally had no clue. I had DS surgery as a revision to GSV because I gained most of the weight back. I am 4 months post DS and 52 lbs down but I’m afraid to be around anyone. It’s embarrassing! I’ve tried a pill called Devrom I read about Amazon that’s supposed to be an internal “deodorizer” but it didn’t work. I’ve tried charcoal pills to control the gas…still no relief. Anyone have any other advice? Anyone else experiencing this? I literally have to isolate myself and after a year of Covid where I was basically quarantining, I’m tired of being alone in a room!! Help please?!