Results

Cause of your symptoms

Your change in bowel habit could be the after-effects of a mild gut infection.

Advice

Try the treatments outlined below for four weeks weeks.

Treatments

Eat less roughage and if necessary take a bowel sedative to reduce the number of times you go to the toilet. A pharmacist can advise on suitable treatments

What now?

If you get better nothing else needs to be done but if your change in bowel habit persists for four more weeks or recurs after stopping treatment see your GP.

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You are over 50 years old, have a change in bowel habit to going more often with looser stools but no rectal bleeding

Additional information if you see your GP

Patients over 60 years old with a persistent change to increased bowel frequency and looser stools for more than six weeks merit referral to the 2-week clinic. If you are less than 60 years old and have a normal examination of your tummy and back passage and normal blood test your GP will probably refer you to a routine clinic for further investigations and advice on how to manage your symptoms.
In healthy patients aged 50-70 years old who have not had previous colonic imaging, a single flexible sigmoidoscopy has the added benefit of detecting incidental but significant adenomatous polyps which if removed may prevent a future cancer - ‘opportunistic screening'