“If you think your urine is oily…it’s probably not,” says Michael D. Lutz, MD, board certified urologist with Corewell Health/Beaumont Hospital; President, MIU Men’s Health Foundation.
A slick look about one’s urine is “likely the over-excretion of other compounds which give off an oily appearance,” adds Dr. Lutz.
“That being said, there is the rare occurrence of an oil-like substance in the urine during excessive dehydration and the excretion of fats and proteins.
“Rarely excess vitamin D may be excreted in the urine which yields an oily appearance.
“The most common cause of an oily urine occurs in individuals on high protein/fat diets (e.g., Atkins diet), which causes an excess amount of ketones in the urine, yielding an oily appearance.”
When viewing your excrement, make sure there is good lighting and that the toilet bowl is clean.
A lime-coated bowl, for instance, can influence how well you can actually see your urine.
It’s best to void in a clear plastic cup.
This way you can get a really good look at its contents.
So as you can see, an oily appearance of your urine is nothing to lose sleep about.
It may also be caused by something already in the toilet bowl, perhaps some substance someone else dumped in there mixing with your excrement.
Be sure to flush the toilet before you use it, as this will ensure that previosly discarded contents won’t alter the appearance of your urine.
Dr. Lutz is experienced in all areas of adult urology and has special interests in urological cancer, male fertility and urologic stone disease. Men’s Health Foundation
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/Zay Nyi Nyi
