whats up with the loose stools?

In the past, I've been able to correct loose stools by stopping all magnesium supplementation (Doctor's) for a week. For the past 3 months or so, it's become somewhat chronic. Not every BM, but most and I hate this. The only dietary change I've made is starting to use liquid Stevia to sweeten my tea (instead of Splenda - but never really had any trouble with that.) Researching this, I've seen sugar alcohols frequently mention as a potential trouble maker in this area. But Stevia is not that, is it? Other potential reasons point to all kinds of other nasty maladies, none of which I think I am suffering from.

Time to see the doc? Suggestions please!

geeloyd... You can check these links for the association of Stevia and the loose stool issue. It does affect some people.
You should stop using the Stevia completely and then try re-introducing it very slowly at very low doses. I have read that many people use far too much Stevia on a daily basis because of their sugar craving habit. You absolutely need the magnesium for your heart but the Stevia or similar such as xylitol are not requisite nutrients.

However, if you don't find any relief when you use zero Stevia, then you should consult a GI practitioner who hopefully will do a stool analysis for pathogens that might be working behind the scenes as well.

[www.google.com]

Jackie

I second what Jackie just said gleeloyd ...

Cheers!
Shannon

Good news! After suffering with this "issue" for nearly six months, I finally stumbled upon the problem: OXALATES!

How did I run across this? I'm a regular listener of low-carb guru Jimmy Moore's podcast. The title of his August 1 episode was "Sally Norton Sounds the Alarm on the Oxalate Toxicity of Eating Plants." I ALMOST skipped listening, since the subject matter did not pique my interest. But five minutes into the podcast, I knew it was an "aha" moment for me. She pointed to two popular "health" foods that are high in oxalates: spinach and almonds. Oxalate toxicity can cause problems in many areas - the GI tract being one of them.

About the time the whole loose stool thing commenced, my wife and I had started the habit of preparing "green smoothies" in the morning, packed with fresh spinach and blended with almond milk, fruit, and a big dollop of almond butter. Two or three times a week my lunch consisted of a big salad made from spinach or other dark green leafy's topped with a protein, and, oh yeah, crushed almonds. My workday snack of choice: raw almonds - of course! On weekend bike rides, instead of sugary gel packs, I would carry packets of Justin's almond butter with me.

Since my wife was not suffering any of the same symptoms, I never suspected the spinach (she wasn't pigging out on all the almond products like me.)

But, as the NIH paper linked below states, how an individual handles oxalates is dependent on the existence of a few oxalate-degrading bacteria species in the gut. Most young children have these, but not all adults do. Likely culprit - antibiotics.

BTW - I have read that oxalates may bind up minerals such as calcium and magnesium and thus rendering them unavailable. Kidney stones contain mostly calcium oxalate.

Cheers,
Gary

NIH paper on oxalates

Search for "sally k norton" for more resouces.

Hi Jackie,

I posted in this thread, but should have replied. that I found the source of my problem.

Gary

Hi Gary - thanks for posting your progress report and finding the source culprit. It certainly supports what we continue to emphasize - that we are all individually unique and there are many problems that can occur in some...but not in others.
I'm so glad you were able to find yours. The oxalate alert is important.

Best to you,
Jackie