Definition
Green stool — when your feces look green — is usually the result of something you ate, such as spinach or dyes in some foods. Certain medicines or iron supplements also can cause green stool.
Newborns pass a dark green stool called meconium, and breastfed infants often produce yellow-green stools. In older children and adults, green stool is not common. However, it’s rarely cause for concern.
Causes
Infants
Infants might have green stool as a result of:
Not finishing breastfeeding entirely on one side. This can result in baby missing some of the high-fat-content breast milk, which affects the digestion of the milk.
Protein hydrolysate formula, which is used for babies with milk or soy allergy.
Lack of typical intestinal bacteria in breastfed infants.
Diarrhea
Children and adults
Causes of green stool include:
Diet high in green vegetables, such as spinach.
Food dyes.
Diarrhea
Iron supplements.
