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| baby poo |
What is normal?
It's amazing how much time we mums spend inspecting our baby's nappies, trying to figure out whether the frequency, colour and consistency is normal or not. But what's normal for your baby can depend on how old she is, whether she's breast or bottle fed and whether she's started solids. Health visitor Vicky Pigott says, "Your baby's stools will change regularly as she develops from a newborn through her first year and you'll soon be able to tell what's normal for her."
There is no set frequency for how often your baby should pass stools. In the early months this will depend on whether you are breast- or bottle-feeding your baby. Says Vicky Pigott, "Breastfed babies who are not on solids may pass stools four times a day or more, or only once every three days, but you shouldn't worry about the frequency as long as the stools are soft and easy to pass. But bottlefed babies normally need to pass a stool each day to avoid constipation."
Your baby's stools may regularly change in consistency and colour, too, going from soft and mustard-yellow in colour to yellow with green specks, and then back again the next day. This is completely normal.
What will my newborn be passing?
For the first couple of days after the birth, your baby will pass meconium. This is a sticky, greeny-black substance that has built up in your baby's intestines during your pregnancy and is made up of bile, mucus, cells from the bowel wall, secretions and amniotic fluid. While meconium may be difficult to wipe off that tiny bottom, its appearance is a good sign that your baby's bowels are working normally.
After a day or two, once feeding is established and the last of the meconium passes out, the stools will turn a browny-green and be loose and grainy in texture, before becoming more yellow.
What will it be like if I am bottlefeeding?
Your bottlefed baby's stools will be pale yellow or yellowish-brown in colour and remnants of the formula will leave it looking bulkier and more formed than a breastfed baby's, as the formula will not be as completely digested as breastmilk. The smell will be pretty pungent, too, smelling more like an adult's stools.
Health visitor Vicky says: "Bottlefed babies normally need to pass stools once a day to feel comfortable, as their waste is bulkier. The longer it stays in the bowel the harder it will become and the more difficult to pass, which could lead to constipation. Talk to your health visitor if you feel your baby has a problem."
And if I am breastfeeding?
The stools of breastfed and bottlefed babies will look very different. Your colostrum or "first milk" acts as a laxative, helping to push meconium out of your baby's system. Once your milk becomes established, after about three days, your baby's stools will gradually change to a bright, or mustard, yellow and be sweet-smelling. They will be loose, but textured, sometimes seeming grainy, or, at others, curdled.
In the early weeks, your baby may poo during or after every feed, but this will settle down and she will work out her own routine, often passing stools at a similar time each day. This routine can change at intervals, for instance, when you introduce solids, if your baby is feeling unwell, or when she starts to take fewer feeds.
So will it affect my baby if we change from breast to bottle?
"If you're switching from breast to bottlefeeding, it is important to do this slowly, over a period of at least two weeks", advises Vicky. This will give your baby's digestive system time to adapt and avoid constipation, as well as reducing the risk of painful, swollen breasts for you. Once your baby has adapted to the bottle, she may settle down into a completely different pooing routine!
Starting solids
The biggest change in your baby's stools will be when you start her on solids. Gone will be those easy-to-wipe-clean, sweet-smelling poos. Once on solids, what goes in must come out. This means that, when you feed your four-month-old pureed carrot, the contents of her next nappy will be bright orange. As she progresses onto a variety of foods, her stools will become thicker, darker and a lot more smelly! As she tries more textured foods, you'll find that those rich in fibre, such as raisins or baked beans, will pass straight through, until her digestive tract develops enough to deal with them more efficiently.
What's not normal?
Diarrhoea symptoms include very runny stools and sometimes an increase in volume and frequency, and they can seem to spurt explosively out of your baby's bottom. A breastfed baby is less likely to suffer from diarrhoea, as breastmilk helps to inhibit the micro-organisms which cause it.
Bottlefed babies are more prone to infection, which is why it is vital to sterilise equipment and always wash your hands thoroughly. The cause may be an infection, such as gastroenteritis, too much fruit or juice, teething, any medication your baby is on, or a sensitivity or allergy to a food.
Diarrhoea should clear up without treatment within 24 hours, but if not, get it checked out. Says Vicky: "Mums often assume the cause is their brand of formula, but before changing, talk to your health visitor or GP in case there are any other causes."
Constipation This is more than a case of your baby turning bright red and pushing hard when she passes stools. Symptoms include difficulty in passing stools - which appear like small, dry pellets - abdominal pain and a tight tummy, irritability, and sometimes blood-streaked stools which could be due to anal fissures (tiny cracks in the skin) caused by passing hard stools. Breastfed babies don't tend to suffer as much as bottlefed babies, as their milk contains all the right nutrients to keep their stools soft.
Always take your baby to your health visitor or GP if she is constipated and particularly if you notice blood in her stools, to check out all possible causes. You'll probably be advised to increase her fluid intake, as well as the amount of fibre in her diet if she is on solids. One way of doing this is to give her pureed prunes or apricots.
Green poo Says Vicky Pigott: "If your baby's stools are green and frothy she may be taking in too much lactose (the natural sugar found in milk), which happens if she feeds often, but doesn't get the rich milk at the end of the feed to fill her up. It may also be caused by overfeeding or underfeeding, or is a sign that your baby has a stomach bug."
Make sure your baby finishes feeding from one breast before offering her the other. If the symptoms last longer than 24 hours, consult your health visitor or GP to try to find the source of the problem, as it may be due to a food sensitivity, medication or your feeding routine.
Streaks of blood Streaks of blood in your baby's stools may occur if she's constipated as straining can cause anal fissures. But always get this checked out by your health visitor or GP to eliminate any other cause.
