Small amount of blood and mucus in stool

Q: Is bloody mucus in stool an emergency?

If youre experiencing severe symptoms, like increasing abdominal pain or vomiting blood, alongside bloody mucus in stools, go to the nearest emergency room for care.

A small amount of one-off bleeding from the bottom is not usually a serious problem. But a GP can check.

Table of Contents Show

Check if you're bleeding from the bottom
Non-urgent advice: See a GP if:
Urgent advice: Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 if:
Immediate action required: Go to A&E or call 999 if:
What happens at the GP appointment
Bowel cancer risk
Common causes of bleeding from the bottom
What does it mean if your poop has mucus and blood?
Is bloody mucus in stool an emergency?
Why am I pooping small amounts of mucus?
What infections cause bloody mucus in stool?

Check if you're bleeding from the bottom

You might be bleeding from the bottom if you have:

blood on your toilet paper
red streaks on the outside of your poo
pink water in the toilet bowl
blood in your poo or bloody diarrhoea
very dark, smelly poo (this can be blood mixed in poo)

A small amount of one-off bleeding can often go away on its own without needing treatment.

Non-urgent advice: See a GP if:

your child has blood in their poo
you've had blood in your poo for 3 weeks
your poo has been softer, thinner or longer than normal for 3 weeks
you're in a lot of pain around the bottom
you have a pain or lump in your tummy
you've been more tired than usual
you've lost weight for no reason

Urgent advice: Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 if:

your poo is black or dark red
you have bloody diarrhoea for no obvious reason

You can call 111 or get help from 111 online.

Immediate action required: Go to A&E or call 999 if:

you're bleeding non-stop
there's a lot of blood – for example, the toilet water turns red or you see large blood clots

Find your nearest A&E

What happens at the GP appointment

If you have bleeding from your bottom, a GP will check what's causing it.

They might:

check your bottom (rectum) with a gloved finger (rectal examination)
ask for a sample of poo for testing
refer you to a specialist for tests

Bowel cancer risk

Bleeding from the bottom is sometimes a sign of bowel cancer.

This is easier to treat if it's found early, so it's important to get it checked.

Common causes of bleeding from the bottom

If you have other symptoms, this might give you an idea of the cause.

Do not self-diagnose. See a GP if you're worried.

Bright red blood on toilet paper, streaks on poo, pink toilet water

Possible causes of bright red rectal bleeding.

Symptoms	Possible causes
Bright red blood and pain when pooing, itchy bottom, lumps	Piles (haemorrhoids)
Bright red blood and pain when pooing – often after constipation	A small tear in your anus (anal fissure)
Bleeding with or without lumps, itching or pain	Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) like genital warts, damage from anal sex
Bright red blood without pain	Side effect of blood-thinning medicine (anticoagulants) like warfarin or aspirin, broken blood vessels in the gut (angiodysplasia)

Blood in poo or blood with slime

Poo can look like it's mixed with blood if you've eaten a lot of red or purple foods like tomatoes and beetroot.

But it's sometimes a sign of something else. A GP can check if you're worried.

Possible causes of slime or blood in your poo.

Symptoms	Possible causes
Blood and yellow slime when pooing, irritated anus, non stop bottom pain	Anal fistula
Bloody diarrhoea with clear slime, feeling and being sick	Tummy bug (gastroenteritis)
Bloody diarrhoea, tummy cramps and pain, feeling bloated	An inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) like ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease
Blood in poo	Bleeding in the anus, bowel or lower gut from injury or another problem
Blood in poo, change in pooing habits (like looser poo, diarrhoea or constipation), slime with poo	Bowel polyps, early signs of bowel cancer

Very dark or black blood or poo

Poo can look very dark or black if you:

take iron tablets
eat a lot of dark foods like liquorice and blueberries

But it's sometimes a sign of something else. A GP can do a test to check this if you're worried.

Possible causes of very dark or black blood coming from your bottom.

Symptoms	Possible causes
Dark or black poo	Bleeding in the stomach or gut – can be from injury or a side effect of blood-thinning medicine (anticoagulants) like warfarin or aspirin
Dark blood or poo with tummy pain or cramps	Stomach ulcer, diverticular disease and diverticulitis
Dark blood without pain	Blood-thinning medicine like warfarin or aspirin, angiodysplasia (broken blood vessels in the gut)

Page last reviewed: 24 April 2020
Next review due: 24 April 2023

What does it mean if your poop has mucus and blood?

Larger amounts of mucus in stool, associated with diarrhea, may be caused by certain intestinal infections. Bloody mucus in stool, or mucus accompanied by abdominal pain, can represent more serious conditions — Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and even cancer.

Is bloody mucus in stool an emergency?

If you're experiencing severe symptoms, like increasing abdominal pain or vomiting blood, alongside bloody mucus in stools, go to the nearest emergency room for care.

Why am I pooping small amounts of mucus?

Having a small amount of mucus in the stool is normal. Excess mucus can occur due to IBS, Crohn's, UC, or proctitis. It may also be an indication of colon cancer. If a person is concerned about the amount of mucus in their stool or experiences other symptoms, they should talk with a doctor.

What infections cause bloody mucus in stool?

Shigellosis is a bowel infection caused by bacteria from the Shigella family. Other names for shigellosis include Shigella infection, Shigella enteritis and bacillary dysentery. Common symptoms include diarrhoea that may contain blood, mucus or pus, abdominal cramps, nausea and vomiting.