if you take a pill and find it in your stool have you gotten the full benefit from it?

Question

i sometimes find my potassium pills in my stool hours after taking them well not that long. maybe 4hrs after. they will be whole yet the coating is off. have i gotten the full benefit of the sr pill or should i take another?

if you have a hard something coming out of your behind then you would look at it too. plus when you have lots of health issues i was taught to know your body to be aware of everything its just a wise thing to do to be preventative. say you went to the doc and they ask if you had blood in your stool. you wouldnt know if you didnt. but you are having other on going issues that could have been detected. its just common as you get older so only serious answers please!!!!

Answer 1

If the pill isn't breaking down in your digestive system, then no, it's probably not doing much of anything. This is not too suprising to me as lots of supplement makers use cheap, indigestible forms instead of stuff that you can actually use.

Of course the best place to get potassium is from food! No over-the-counter potassium supplement has more than 99 mg per serving due to possibile toxicity. You can get the same amount of potassium from just two tablespoons of raisins! And those are EASY to digest! Here's a chart with lots of foods:

Food Serving Potassium (mg)

Banana (1 medium) - 467
Potato, baked with skin (1 medium) - 721
Prune juice (6 fluid ounces) - 530
Prunes, dried (1/2 cup) - 633
Orange juice (6 fluid ounces) - 354
Orange (1 medium) - 237
Tomato juice (6 fluid ounces) - 400
Tomato (1 medium) - 273
Raisins (1/2 cup) - 598
Raisin bran cereal (1 ounce) - 437
Artichoke, cooked (1 medium) - 425
Lima beans, cooked (1/2 cup) - 478
Acorn squash, cooked (1/2 cup cubes) - 448
Spinach, cooked (1/2 cup) - 419
Sunflower seeds (1 ounce) - 241
Almonds (1 ounce) - 211
Molasses (1 tablespoon) - 293

If you aren't eating any of these foods already, I'll be vastly surprised! Just have a little more!

Answer 2

Pills In Stool

Answer 3

These are extended release pills. The potassium is embedded in a wax matrix "skeleton". The potassium comes out and is absorbed by the intestine but the waxy matrix will come out intact in your stool. There are different formulations of extended release potassium, but indeed one of them uses this matrix, which your body cannot absorb. You do, however, absorb the potassium.

Answer 4

No benefit received.
Try a different type of pill (??soft gel, etc) or incorporate more potassium-enriched foods into your diet.

Answer 5

umm...no. perhaps your body is having a hard time digesting them. the coating is gone primarily to the acids in your stomach eroding it away but if it's still whole then it really didn't do anything. might wanna try crushing them up and drinking them with water and that might help the digestion process out.

Answer 6

Adipex <----- not sure if I'm spelling that right bit its Dr. Prescribed and I lost 20 lbs the first week and didn't exercise once or change my eating habits

Answer 7

No benefit. Just eat watermelon, they have loads of potassium.

Answer 8

this sounds weird what makes you look at your poo and the pill is tiny have you got tweezers down the toilet? i take the pill and i have never thought of looking for it,the answer is no you wouldnt have the benefits from it as it is not in your system to do what it is supposed to do

Answer 9

shouldn't they dissolve?

ask your doctor to name a brand that works





ew

Answer 10

leading on from the first answer... I agree with him.... and eat tons of bananas too