Results

Cause of your symptoms

Your change in bowel habit is likely to be due to something you have eaten.

Advice

Try the treatment outlined below for two weeks.

Treatments

Eat a regular balanced diet.

What now?

If you get better nothing further needs to be done. However, if your change in bowel habit persists for two more weeks or recurs after stopping treatment see your GP.

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You are over 50 years old and have a non-specific change in your bowel habit but no abdominal pain or rectal bleeding.

Additional information if you see your GP

Your GP will probably examine your tummy and back passage and do a blood test and if these are normal it would be reasonable to advise a further period of treat, watch and wait. However, if your bowel habit does not return to normal your GP may refer you to a routine hospital clinic for further investigations and advice.

In healthy patients aged 50-70 years old, not having previous colonic investigations, a single flexible sigmoidoscopy has the added benefit of detecting incidental but significant polyps which if removed may prevent a bowel cancer developing in the future - ‘opportunistic screening'.