Strange bowel symptoms

[Precise]

My urine and stool have a strange odor, which smells like a plant in my garden (boxwood)- which has a very strong odor to me, while others do not smell anything.  My stool is the consistancy of pudding, with too much liquid in it, and it never gets solid enough to form a mass.  My bowel function has ceased to move, possibly because there is no mass for it to move. I have had this condition for about six months.

Through extensive tests, my doctor has ruled out any bacteria in my stool or blood.  A colonoscopy shows a healthy colon.  Thyroid is healthy. My doctor has diagnosed this as an allergy; the Vanderbilt Allergy Clinic says they do not believe this is an allergy.  I have no respiratory symtoms, and am otherwise very healthy.  The Vanderbilt clinic also ruled out mold - which may be present in the house I am renting, as it had a long term water leak under the house.

My colon doctor said to "walk 3 miles a day and eat more fiber".  More fiber just changes the stool to a grainy pudding consistency!  Ditto for Metamusil or other fiber products.  Walking doesn't create a bowel movement.  I do work-out everyday, with a trainer two days a week.

My allergy doctor said it is due to my change of lifestyle - new job, new living environment including new refridgerator, new place to buy food & produce, new place to prepare food, new routines, etc.  He said I should try eliminating different food groups like dairy, vegetables, etc.  Since my symptoms don't change from day to day, but my food choices do, it doesn't seem like that would help.

My general doctor prescribed Sucralfate 1GM 4x daily, which treats ulcers with constipation as a side effect.  We thought this would create firm stools.  It did have a calming effect, but otherwise it really doesn't help.

I am 63 years, and the allergy doctor said I may have less body enzyms.  Also, I do have loose bowel lining close to the rectum, and possibly a "sack" ... it feels like a maze in there!  But what would that have to do with the odor, especially in my urine?...or soft stool?

What do you think?  HELP!

[Med_Writer]

P.S.  About the scent of boxwoods...

I forgot to mention that the smell of boxwoods is likely from the bacterial overgrowth as well.

Certain kinds of bad bacteria can produce a lot of ammonia, mercaptans, and sulfur-containing compounds that smell strangely like that cat urnine smell of boxwoods (my apologies if you're one of those people who thinks boxwoods smell nice).

[Med_Writer]

Watery stool is a classic sign of infection. Your intestines are trying to flush out harmful bacteria by shedding its lining and allowing water to diffuse in. This makes your poop mushy.

You sound like a person who likes gardening. Think of your intestines as a garden with lots and lots of plants growing in it. If you were to spray a harsh pesticide everywhere each day for two weeks to kill off one kind of plant, many other plants will die as a result and nasty weeds will grow in their place.

Bacteria are like plants growing in your gut. If you wiped out the good ones with antibiotics, alcohol, or lots of meat and few fruits and vegetables, bad ones can take over, start growing, and cause diarrhea (which is actually your body trying to heal itself by getting rid of these bad guys).

Testing for overgrowth of bad bacteria is tricky. Bad bacteria don't show up on colonoscopies, sigmoidoscopies, blood tests, or in most stool samples (at least not the ones covered by typical health insurance policies). One of the medical names for this condition is "dysbiosis" (dis-bye-OH-sis).

If you want to get better, you can do several things. You can find a doctor who knows about such issues (good luck), you can try to treat yourself with home remedies, or you can try to do both of those things. As someone who's had dysbiosis himself, I recommend doing the following.

Many, but thankfully not all, M.D.'s are too quick to believe their lab tests instead of their patients. If your test results appear normal, they think the problem lies with you instead of with their tests. So first, look for a doctor who will know what the heck you're talking about (If you're not having luck with your M.D., look for a naturopathic physician -- someone with N.D. after his or her name instead of M.D.).

Second, eat and drink things that fight intestinal infections.

-- drink a few mugs of green tea each day
-- eat carob candy bars (found at health food stores).
-- eat cherries and blueberries

These foods are well known, safe, effective intestinal infection-fighters. If you're interested, I'll tell you how these items work in a follow up posting. This one's getting kind of long. Good luck.

-M.W.

[yoshi]

you doc could be right,something in your new environment could be the cause of your problem.
how about the water from the pipes??
are the pipes old,is it an old house??
usually fungus and mildew and yeast cause constipation,not loose stools.
do you use an air cleaner?/

[yoshi]

the reason why i asked if you have been on antibiotics is that it upset the flora in your system,like it wiped out the good bacteria which keep the yeast in check.
most people will restore the balance by taking aciphil bacteria either thru yogurt with live culture or acidphil pills.
If you want to take yogurt,skip the dannon **** and go to a good health food store and buy it from them.
if you dont have ulcer and that sulcrate stuff is not really a big help,you may want to discontinue it ,what if it makes your stomach produce less acid to digest food??
partially digested food passed from stomach to intestines will interact with bacteria there and ferment,thats why some folks have bad smelling stool.
but then you said your stool is not solid,so it cant be half digested food.

[TJV]

   You didn't mention if you have had a  urinalysis , that can tell a great deal about your body.   If you didn't that would be very important.  You should ask for a urine culture as well.  Water intake, foods, can also affect the smell of urine., as well as urethral discharge. You can get aculture for tat as well.   Have you had liver blood tests?  

  Have you been tested for Malabsorption ? That can present with loose foul smelling stool.  Don't know if you had a fecal fat test , you only mentioned bacteria testing.  Also celiac disease  is another possibility. You should request a test for that as well.

[Precise]

Thank you for your suggestion of the BRAT diet!  I will try it!