6. Blood in the Stool
For many people, there are few more concerning images than seeing blood in their own stool after a bowel movement. However, more often than not this isn’t anything to fret about: for one, often it’s not blood at all, but simply a discoloration of the stool caused by eating some type of food (such as beets or something that’s been colored using food dye). In other cases, it’s just the result of a small tear somewhere in the colon or rectum, often as the result of constipation.
Still, blood in the stool should be a warning sign, especially if it appears often. In fact, this can be a sign of the presence of tumors in the colon; as the tumors grow or spread, they’re torn by waste passing through the body, leading to bright red blood in the stool. Although blood in the stool isn’t always a sign of colon cancer, it’s reason enough to have a conversation about the matter with your doctor.