Blood and guts

Passing tarry black stool means bleeding from the stomach or duodenum, and this is a medical emergency.

IT’S easy to spot a cut or a wound on your body because you can see blood welling up. But how do you know if you’re bleeding internally? The answer lies in your faeces or stool. For example, patients with active gastrointestinal bleeding from the stomach or duodenum will generally pass stool that is tarry black in colour. Patients bleeding from the large intestine pass stool mixed with blood, or followed by blood.