What Are Period Poops—and How Can You Prevent Them?

During your period, you may notice a change in your bowel movements or stool. Known as period poops, the changes can come in the form of constipation or diarrhea. Period poops may also cause bloating and smelly stools.

Changing hormones are usually to blame for bowel movement changes during your period. People with anxiety and existing digestive issues are also more prone to period poops.

Thankfully, there are steps you can take to manage your period poops, including taking medication and changing your diet.

Here's how your period can cause digestive and bowel movement changes and how you can manage period poop symptoms.  

Symptoms of Period Poops

During your period, the frequency and consistency of your bowel movements can change. You may have constipation, unable to poop regularly. Or you might find that the consistency of your stool has changed so that it is looser than usual, thanks to diarrhea. Some people may find they poop more often during their periods or that their poop smells worse than usual.

You may also experience other gastrointestinal symptoms during your period, like bloating and abdominal cramping. 

Causes of Period Poops

There can be several reasons why your bowel movements and stool change during your period. Here's how your changing hormones and other gastrointestinal issues can cause period poops.

Increase in Progesterone

Before your period, your body starts producing more of the hormone progesterone. Progesterone levels continue to rise through your period and peak right before ovulation. This hormone helps regulate your menstrual cycle and prepare your body for pregnancy by helping the uterine wall thicken and grow.

High progesterone levels can cause constipation by slowing waste movement through your intestines.

Dietary Changes

Right before and during your period, many people have food cravings that alter their day-to-day diet. This is probably due to higher progesterone levels, which are linked to cravings and more eating. Typically, you'll crave calorie-dense foods high in sugar or fat.

Eating food higher in sugar and fat is more difficult to digest, which may cause constipation. Depending on your usual diet, these foods may also change your poop's smell and consistency.

More Stress and Anxiety

Experiencing stress and anxiety during your period can change the consistency and frequency of your bowel movements. Even if you're not on your period, stress can alter digestion enough to cause diarrhea or constipation.

The effect of stress on your bowels can be even worse on your period because premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and your period make you even more likely to experience mood swings and higher anxiety levels. 

Increase in Prostaglandins

If you poop more often on your period—or notice your stool consistency becomes thin and watery—an increase in prostaglandins may be the reason. Prostaglandins are chemicals that increase before and during your period to help your uterus contract and shed its lining. These same chemicals can also enter your bloodstream and make the smooth muscles of the bowel contract more often, causing more urgent trips to the bathroom. 

Dehydration

When you're on your period, blood loss can cause your body to lose fluids. If you aren't drinking enough water, your period may further increase symptoms of dehydration, like constipation. If you're dehydrated, your intestines pull water from your poop to compensate for water it's not absorbing from your intestines. This causes hard, dry stool that makes it difficult to poop. 

IBS and IBD

People with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD)—including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis—are more likely to experience period poop.

The cause of IBS is unknown, but it includes symptoms like abdominal pain, constipation, and diarrhea. Research shows menstruating people with IBS are even more likely to have bloating, abdominal pain, and frequent bowel movements during their period. 

IBD causes chronic inflammation of the intestines, which can lead to diarrhea, fatigue, bloody stools, weight loss, and fatigue. Research shows menstruation can increase these IBD symptoms and cause severe diarrhea. You may also experience more headaches and abdominal pain. 

How To Manage Period Poops

If you get period poops, there are lifestyle changes and home remedies that can help. Here's how to manage abnormal bowel movements during your period. 

Fiber and Hydration

If you have constipation with your period, try eating more fiber and upping your water intake. Soluble fiber in fruits, veggies, oats, and beans helps soften hard stool. Drinking more water throughout the day can also help replenish fluids in your stool to ease constipation.

Eating sources of insoluble fiber—like nuts, seeds, and whole grains—can not only absorb water and soften hard stool, but it can also help bulk up watery stools if you have diarrhea. 

High-fiber foods you can add to your diet include:

• Mashed sweet potatoes
• Broccoli
• Avocados
• Raspberries
• Blackberries
• Quinoa
• Brown rice
• Oats
• Ground flax seed
• Chia seeds
• Beans and lentils
• Sprouted grain bread

Physical Activity

Moving your body can help relieve period symptoms like constipation, cramps, and bloating. Research shows exercise can help accelerate waste movement in your bowels. This happens because movement helps decrease blood flow to the gastrointestinal tract and increase the hormones needed to move waste through your bowels.

Exercise may also help mechanically stimulate your gastrointestinal tract because of the bouncing and abdominal muscle contracting you experience during the activity.

Over-the-Counter Medications

Taking over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like Advil (ibuprofen) can help reduce prostaglandins that cause period-related diarrhea and pain. You might be able to take NSAIDs for a few days to help relieve period poop symptoms.

Talk with your healthcare provider to see if NSAIDs are right for you and, if so, how often and how many pills you should take. NSAIDs aren't for everyone. For instance, people with stomach ulcers, bleeding disorders, liver disease, or aspirin allergies should avoid taking them. 

Hormonal Birth Control

If your period poops and cramps are moderate to severe, your healthcare provider may suggest you take hormonal birth control like oral contraceptives. These medications can alter progesterone levels that cause period-related constipation and prostaglandin levels that cause period-related loose stools.

Lowering prostaglandins can also help reduce period cramp pain. However, research shows women taking oral contraception often still experience constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and more frequent bathroom visits. 

When To See a Healthcare Provider

Mild period pain and changes in bowel movements are often a normal part of having a period. Usually, self-care measures can help alleviate these digestive issues. However, if your period poops cause you extreme pain or affect your quality of life, consider seeing a healthcare provider like your primary care physician or gynecologist.

Debilitating or lasting diarrhea or constipation may be signs of more severe gastrointestinal issues that need treatment. Extreme period pain may also be a sign of a reproductive condition like endometriosis or uterine fibroids.

See your healthcare provider if you experience the following abnormal bowel movements or gastrointestinal symptoms:

• Diarrhea that lasts two or more days
• No bowel movements for three or more days
• Severe abdominal or rectal pain 
• Bloody stool
• Black, tarry stool
• Fever
• Sudden or severe cramps that you've never experienced

If you have a gastrointestinal disorder like IBD or IBS, you may need to see your gastroenterologist to help manage period poop changes. Menstruation can make IBS symptoms like bloating, abdominal pain, and frequent bowel movements worse. People with IBD are also more likely to experience diarrhea, abnormal bleeding, and pain during their periods. A gastroenterologist or other provider might be able to give advice on how to cope.

A Quick Review

Period poops can be looser and smellier than usual. While some people experience diarrhea during their period, others might have constipation. These changes in bowel habits and stool often happen because the changing hormonal levels leading up to and during your period impact your digestive tract. If you have IBD or IBS, you might be more likely to have gastrointestinal symptoms like diarrhea, constipation, and bloating during your period. If you get period poops, try eating more fiber, hydrating, exercising to help make your bowel movements more regular. Talk to your healthcare provider if home remedies don't help or your symptoms worsen.