I’m 6 years post a mini gastric bypass and still haven’t found a solution to my very very embarrassing problem. I suffer from foul smelling stools that can be runny sometimes. It causes me a great deal of embarrassment and distress.. I can’t use toilets anywhere outside my own toilet in my house.. and no one can use the toilet after me because the smell is very foul and lingers for a very long time.. I also suffer from a lot of smelly farts that usually start around evening time (hardly anything in the morning) ... no matter what I eat or what I eliminate from my diet it doesn’t cause a difference.. Does anyone seem to have a solution for this or managed to understand why? Please don’t tell me it’s my diet because I’ve tried changing it an eliminating so many things and nothing works.

Have you tried asking your surgeon about this? I'm sure they'll be able to clear some things up for you ?

Edited April 13, 20206 yr by Sabs211

Tried good probiotics yet?

Well all?stinks but the gas sounds like a case of IBS. My poop is on the normal stanky level but nada like your issue. Are you taking too much fiber? I would strongly suggest you keep a log of everything you eat including supplements so that a nutritionist or some specialist can help out. You gotta keep it honest so that they help you.

Could it be a bacteria in your intestines/bowel? I had Giardia for decades. It sat in my lower stomach/upper intestines & would have a party in my digestive system if I was stressed or run down. Cramping, sudden & often explosive diarrhoea & awful odour. Heavy antibiotics never killed it completely unfortunately.

Post sleeve & I’ve been attack free. Think the bug was living In the part of my stomach that was removed.

Giardia doesn’t like lactose but there are a lot of other bacterias. Could be worth asking your GP (does require a stool sample).

Should have said parasite not bacteria though it could be that too.

I had read that somewhere about the bypass, so the food isn't being fully digested and it creates more gas

15 minutes ago, MsMocie said:

I found research telling that foul smell is because we have much shorter digestive system. Any inputs on this?

1 hour ago, Hop_Scotch said:

I had read that somewhere about the bypass, so the food isn't being fully digested and it creates more gas

I don't think that's very common with the bypass. It is with the DS, though.

1 hour ago, MsMocie said:

I found research telling that foul smell is because we have much shorter digestive system. Any inputs on this?

I know that's an issue for the DS (where much more of the small intestine is bypassed). I've never read that about the RNY - and the diarrhea/foul smell isn't all that common with us. Constipation is much more common. Only a few inches of the intestine are bypassed in the RNY. It's more of a gastric (stomach) bypass than an intestinal bypass.

Edited April 19, 20206 yr by catwoman7

On 4/19/2020 at 9:53 PM, catwoman7 said:

I know that's an issue for the DS (where much more of the small intestine is bypassed). I've never read that about the RNY - and the diarrhea/foul smell isn't all that common with us. constipation is much more common. Only a few inches of the intestine are bypassed in the RNY. It's more of a gastric (stomach) bypass than an intestinal bypass.

Some of us have a much longer bypass - mine was 150 cm. This may be more common for revisions though - the main reason I chose it is that my surgeon explained to me that a revision to a regular bypass (short-limbed) is not as successful as a longer-limbed revision, similar to a MGB, but without the possible GERD complication. Anyway, now that I'm eating normally (only 6 weeks out - seriously, no restriction, no other problems), the gas and smell is a major issue everytime I go to the toilet. I'm thankful that I'll be working from home over the next 4 months, would hate to have to deal with this at work!

28 minutes ago, biginjapan said:

Some of us have a much longer bypass - mine was 150 cm. This may be more common for revisions though - the main reason I chose it is that my surgeon explained to me that a revision to a regular bypass (short-limbed) is not as successful as a longer-limbed revision, similar to a MGB, but without the possible GERD complication. Anyway, now that I'm eating normally (only 6 weeks out - seriously, no restriction, no other problems), the gas and smell is a major issue everytime I go to the toilet. I'm thankful that I'll be working from home over the next 4 months, would hate to have to deal with this at work!

Mine is 150cm too haven't had any dumping etc yet and I'm 5wks out

5 minutes ago, Sabs211 said:

Mine is 150cm too haven't had any dumping etc yet and I'm 5wks out

I believe that's most common for MGB, but not so much for a regular RNY. So mine was a hybrid surgery - the long bypass, similar to MGB, but with a much smaller pouch (not sleeve).

1 hour ago, biginjapan said:

I believe that's most common for MGB, but not so much for a regular RNY. So mine was a hybrid surgery - the long bypass, similar to MGB, but with a much smaller pouch (not sleeve).

I read the surgeon report and it said mine was the lesser curved pouch. Maybe that's common with the MGB?

1 hour ago, Sabs211 said:

I read the surgeon report and it said mine was the lesser curved pouch. Maybe that's common with the MGB?

It is - that's what makes it easier for surgeons to do, instead of a tiny pouch like the RNY.

11 hours ago, biginjapan said:

I believe that's most common for MGB, but not so much for a regular RNY.

Mine was 200 cm. I now have a 70/150 cm.

11 hours ago, biginjapan said:

I believe that's most common for MGB, but not so much for a regular RNY.

that could be. I rarely hear that with RNY (sometimes, but not very often - most of us deal with the opposite problem). I haven't come across nearly as many people with MGB, so I'm not too familiar with that one.