I'm going to use the word "poo" a lot in this question

May 17, 2009 4:07 PM

Why do I have to poo all the time when I drink? I'm not talking about the "morning after" poos.

I'm 40 years old. In the last couple of years, often when I'm out drinking, I have to poo after about the second drink. It continues all night long. I think last night, I pooed three times. It wouldn't bother me so much, but a public restroom in a bar is not the best place to be pooing, plus the poos are not happy, easy ones. What could be causing this? I mostly drink beer - could it be a yeast intolerance? I poo immediately after lunch every day too, no matter how little I've eaten.

posted by anonymous to health & fitness (5 comments total)

Try some scientific method and experiment a bit. Drink some non-yeasty alcohol one night and see what happens. That you will help you determine if it is a yeast problem.

Also try just drinking some non-alcoholic beverage one night and then try drinking nothing at all the next and see what happens. It might be either being out socially (relaxing or feeling tense) or drinking lots of liquid that is the cause.
posted by srboisvert at 4:38 PM on May 17

Is it always at the same couple of locations, or is it anywhere?

Consider mixing up what you drink (under controlled circumstances); for instance, one night only drink one brand of bottled beer, then another time, try the same thing on tap. Or try draft beer in one place for a night and then the same in another bar. I had a bad string of luck with my two favorite bars having less than clean lines for the better part of the same year. I was initially under the impression that I was allergic to hops or something, but it was just that their lines weren't cleaned properly.

Another thing I might recommend is to pay attention to what you've eaten before. If you eat very healthfully during the the work week and only go out on Saturday nights when you've eaten poorly, well, that's a possible clue.
posted by kimota at 5:22 PM on May 17

Do you have IBS generally? In many sufferers, alcohol can cause a flare up.
posted by wackybrit at 8:39 PM on May 17

Agreeing with kimota - there was a pub where I used to live where no-one I knew would drink their draught beer because, as my mate said "they don't clean their tubes out, so you end up cleaning your tubes out". I'd suggest trying just bottled beer for a bit, before deciding something more nefarious is at work.
posted by Coobeastie at 3:35 AM on May 18

Possibly you are losing the ability to break down alcohols, which will cause gas in your bowels, which will cause the "poos". You may want to get yourself checked for diabetes as this is sometimes a symptom.
posted by elle.jeezy at 9:20 AM on May 18