8 Reasons Why Your Poop Might Be Sticky—and What to Do About It

You may have heard before that your poop's appearance says a whole lot about your gut health. Well, it's true: Your poop's color and consistency may point to issues like infections or chronic gastrointestinal (GI) conditions. So, the next time you notice your poop sticking to the sides of the toilet bowl, you might be wondering what's going on internally.

Turns out, sticky stool can be a sign of many things, ranging from harmless dietary choices to more serious health conditions. To get down to the root cause of your issue and answer the question, "Why is my poop sticky?," we've enlisted the help of Elena Ivanina, DO, MPH, an integrative board-certified gastroenterologist and founder of the Center for Integrative Gut Health to share expert advice.

Read on to learn the most common causes of sticky poop, how to prevent it, and when to see your healthcare provider about your concerns.

8 causes of sticky poop

Not sure what's caused the recent change in your stool's consistency? Here are the eight most common reasons why your stool might appear sticky.

1. Fatty stools

Sticky poop can be a sign that your body is not properly absorbing fats—a condition known as fat malabsorption. This will lead to an excessive amount of fat appearing in your stool which is medically referred to as steatorrhea. "If fat is not absorbed in your gut and ends up being overrepresented in your stool, then the fatty consistency will make stool oily and sticky," Dr. Ivanina says. This may also lead to smellier, looser stool that is pale in color (like clay) and floats in the toilet.¹

How to treat it: Dr. Ivanina says many possible causes of fat malabsorption can lead to sticky stool, including:

• Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (a deficiency in the digestive enzymes that absorb fat such as lipase) 
• Celiac disease (an autoimmune GI condition causing the inability to properly digest gluten)
• Inflammatory bowel disease (conditions such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis that cause gut inflammation and intestinal damage)

“Therefore, getting a thorough evaluation is key to treatment,” she adds.

2. Too much fat in your diet

Even if your digestive system is in tip-top shape, you may still experience upset by eating lots of high-fat foods in a short amount of time, including fried food, certain types and cuts of meat, or full-fat dairy products. “If you overwhelm your gut's ability to digest and absorb fat, it will be overrepresented in your stool,” Dr. Ivanina says. Similar to steatorrhea, this excess of fat can make your poop appear oily and sticky.

How to treat it: Take note of the amount of high-fat foods you're eating throughout the day. Then, "decrease the fat content [you're eating], especially saturated fat from animal products (like red meat) and dairy," says Dr. Ivanina. Of course, it's okay to enjoy a rich meal now and then—just consider spacing when you eat them out to give your stomach a chance to rest.

3. Lactose intolerance

If you get painful gas, diarrhea, and bloating after eating or drinking dairy, you might have a lactose intolerance (i.e., the inability to properly digest the sugar called lactose found in milk). But sometimes, instead of diarrhea after eating cheese or ice cream, you might get sticky poop.

"If your body can not digest lactose, the dairy will continue through the gut undigested, causing an influx of fluid,” Dr. Ivananina says. This can result in diarrhea and sticky stool, she says. While there are a few potential causes of this intolerance, it's most often due to your body not producing enough of the digestive enzyme, which helps break down lactose in the gut.²

How to treat it: “Cut dairy out of your diet for a few weeks or try a lactase enzyme replacement [like Lactaid], and see how your stool responds,” Dr. Ivanina says. This can help you determine how severe your intolerance is, and whether you can still enjoy a bit of dairy from time to time.

4. Celiac disease

As mentioned above, people with celiac disease may be prone to fatty and sticky poop. Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition that causes your body to have an inflammatory response to eating gluten—a protein found in wheat and other grain products. This response alerts your immune system to make antibodies to "fight" the gluten, which can also, unfortunately, damage the lining of your small intestine.

When this happens, your gut won’t be able to properly absorb nutrients from your food, Dr. Ivanina says, leading to diarrhea or sticky stool. The Celiac Disease Foundation notes you might have other GI symptoms like:

• Stomach pain
• Bloated stomach
• Gas
• Constipation
• Fatty stools

Apart from GI issues, The Celiac Disease Foundation also says you might experience symptoms like joint pain, fatigue, and nutrient deficiencies like anemia (due to lack of iron).

How to treat it: If you have pain and diarrhea after eating gluten, “get tested for celiac with your gastroenterologist,” Dr. Ivanina says. This usually involves a blood test (to confirm whether you have gluten antibodies) and a small tissue sample from your small intestine to see whether you have damage in your intestines.

Once you have a diagnosis, you'll need to start a strict gluten-free diet. Most people feel better soon after they get rid of gluten, but it might take some time (read: several months) for your gut to heal.

5. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)

Like celiac disease, you might also get sticky stools if you have an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This is an umbrella term to describe to conditions—Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis—that happen when your immune system attacks your gut and causes inflammation, Dr. Ivanina says.³ If this inflammation damages tissues in your gut, it can impair your ability to absorb nutrients, she says. This malabsorption (i.e., inability to absorb nutrients) might manifest as persistent diarrhea and sticky poop. Other symptoms may including the following, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• Abdominal pain
• Rectal bleeding or bloody stools
• Weight loss
• Fatigue

How to treat it: “There are many treatment options for IBD, from dietary changes to biologics (i.e., a group of medications derived from live organisms like antibiotics),” Dr. Ivanina says. “Therefore, talk to your gastroenterologist about the best one for you.”

6. Stomach ulcer or irritation of the esophagus

“Inflammation such as esophagitis [inflammation that damages the esophagus, or tube connecting the throat to the stomach] or peptic ulcer disease [open sores in your stomach lining or the upper part of your small intestine] can change stool consistency, especially if there is any bleeding involved,” Dr. Ivanina says.

Both esophagitis and peptic ulcer disease can be caused by many things, including infections and long-term use of certain medications, especially nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as Ibuprofen.⁴ Other signs of esophagitis may include:

• A sore throat
• Heartburn
• Difficulty swallowing
• Chest pain
• Acid reflux
• Regurgitations
• Food getting stuck in your throat
• Indigestion
• Feeding difficulties (in children)
• Nausea and vomiting
• Blood in your vomit
• Mouth sores

And other signs of peptic ulcer disease may include:

• Epigastric pain (central upper abdominal pain)⁵
• Indigestion (dyspepsia)
• Bloated stomach
• Burping or belching
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea and vomiting

How to treat it: Both conditions can be healed if you resolve the root cause of the irritation. This is why you should “get evaluated right away,” if your sticky stool has a “coffee ground appearance or presence of blood,” Dr. Ivanina says. Once you identify what’s driving the inflammation, you can stop it. Most treatments for these conditions will involve taking medications that protect and promote healing in the damaged tissues, such as proton pump inhibitors (like omeprazole aka Prilosec) or acid blockers (like famotidine aka Pepcid).

7. Blood in your stool

The presence of blood can give your poop a sticky appearance. Depending on where the blood is coming from, it can either look like "melena" (i.e., sticky tar-like, black stool) or like bright red blood, Dr. Ivanina says.⁶ For example, if the bleeding is coming from your lower rectum or colon, the blood will appear bright red, and if it's from your stomach or upper GI tract, it might look like black tar.

While this all might sound scary, bloody stool is not always serious. Sometimes it could be from something harmless like hemorrhoids (i.e., swollen veins in the lower rectum) or colon polyps (i.e., typically harmless growths on the inside lining of your large intestine). But other times, it can indicate problems like inflammation of the colon.

How to treat it: “If there is blood in your stool, you should speak with a doctor right away,” Dr. Ivanina says. It’s important to find the location of the bleeding and stop it. Treatment will depend on the site, severity, and cause of the bleeding.

8. Cancer, in rare cases

Colon cancer (which usually begins as abnormal polyps in the large intestine) can affect the way your poop looks. Your stool consistency can become sticky and black like tar due to “microscopic blood loss from tumors,” Dr. Ivanina says. Your poop may also change shape, she adds. Other signs of colon cancer can include:

• A change in bowel habits, such as more frequent diarrhea or constipation
• Rectal bleeding or blood in the stool
• Ongoing discomfort in the belly area, such as cramps, gas, or pain
• A feeling that the bowel doesn't empty during a bowel movement
• Weakness or tiredness
• Losing weight without trying

Still, many people with colon cancer don’t show symptoms right away, which is why early screening is so important.

How to treat it: “If there are new changes to the shape or consistency of stool, you should speak with a gastroenterologist about getting a colonoscopy,” Dr. Ivanina says. For this procedure, your healthcare provider uses a long, slender tube attached to a camera to look inside your colon and rectum. If they find any abnormal polyps, they can remove and test them. If cancer is found, you may need surgery to remove part of your colon (called a partial colectomy) or chemotherapy, depending on how much it has progressed.

How to make your poop less sticky

While you can’t always prevent the conditions that cause sticky poop, you can take measures to minimize your risk with gut-healthy habits. Here are some expert-approved tips:

1. Exercise regularly

When you move, everything in your body does, too, including your gut. Getting daily exercise can help you have more regular bowel movements and relieve things like constipation, bloating, and gas.⁷ Try things like walking around the block after dinner, taking a yoga class, or going for a bike ride.

2. Focus on fiber

“The most important thing you can do is optimize the fiber in your diet,” Dr. Ivanina says. “Journal and see how many grams of fiber you are currently getting," then set realistic goals to increase your fiber intake by small increments each day, until you've reached the recommended 25 to 30 grams per day. To do this, add more fiber-rich foods to your plate like greens, veggies, legumes (beans), and whole grains.

As you begin to add fiber, try to limit your consumption of highly processed and sugary foods, which can lead to diarrhea and fatty stools.⁸

3. Ask your provider about probiotics

Probiotics, aka good bacteria, can be found naturally within the gut and fermented foods like yogurt, kefir, and sauerkraut. Taking a probiotic supplement may also be helpful for some people, like those with gut dysbiosis (i.e., an imbalance in your microbiome).⁹ Just be sure to check in with your healthcare provider to see if these supplements can benefit you.

4. Drink a lot of water

Drinking enough water can aid in digestion and help keep stool moving through your intestines. While everyone's hydration needs are different, Dr. Ivanina says a good rule of thumb is to aim for about two liters (or eight 8-ounce glasses) per day. You'll know you're drinking enough if your urine looks pale yellow to clear when you pee.

5. Manage your stress levels

The state of your mental health can make a significant impact on your gut—a concept known as the gut-brain connection. In other words, when you are chronically stressed or anxious, this can cause gut health issues such as pain, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and diarrhea. To mitigate this, try practicing stress-relief techniques like yoga, meditation, talk therapy, and journaling, which have been shown to reduce stress and anxiety symptoms.¹⁰,¹¹

How is sticky poop diagnosed?

If you've been dealing with sticky poop and other gut health symptoms like pain and bloating for a while, the first step to diagnosis is reaching out to your healthcare provider. You'll need to describe your symptoms poop's appearance so your provider can get a general sense of what's going on. They may also use the Bristol Stool Chart to compare your description with the categories of consistency and shape listed on the chart (e.g., hard lumps to watery stool).

Also, while it might feel funny to do so, sharing pictures of your poop with your provider is often welcome. "I always appreciate it when patients share poop photos with me as this type of stool is easily identified in the toilet bowel (i.e., how it smears on the side)," Dr. Ivanina says. If your provider notices anything off, they can run a thorough medical workup to identify the issue, she adds, which may include stool samples and blood tests.

When to see a healthcare provider

The occasional bout of sticky poop is often not cause for concern. It may happen as a result of a meal high in fat, for example, and go back to its usual consistency the next day. But, "if the sticky stool persists and/or is accompanied by other symptoms, it's important to reach out to your doctor," Dr. Ivanina adds. She says the following symptoms could indicate an underlying health condition that needs to be treated:

• Abdominal pain
• Weight loss
• Blood in your stool
• Iron deficiency anemia (a health condition where your body doesn't get enough iron to make red blood cells)
• A family history of colorectal polyps (abnormal growths on the lining of the intestines) or GI cancer

Keep in mind, “your stool is a window into your gut health, and it is important to always discuss your stool details with your doctor,” Dr. Ivanina says.