Baby Only Poops a Little at a Time
What Should Baby Poop Look Like, Anyway?
A range of colors, textures, frequencies and volumes are considered normal. Only in that location are some things to scout out for.
Credit... Sofia Hydman
[This guide was originally published on June five, 2019 on NYT Parenting.]
Baby poop is a source of smashing mystery — and often, business organisation — for many parents. Sometimes it'due south light-green and mushy; other times it's yellowish and seedy. What does information technology all mean? "Babe poop is not like adult poop," said Dr. Katie Lockwood, M.D., an attending doctor at Children'south Hospital of Philadelphia. "So there are lots of questions about it."
Thankfully, unraveling the significant behind all those baroque colors, textures and sizes is pretty straightforward. And about of the time, everything y'all encounter is perfectly normal (even if information technology doesn't seem that style to you).
For this guide, I spoke with three experts (two of whom specialize in pediatric gastroenterology) about what to expect from your baby's stool from birth until she starts eating solids — including what's normal, what'due south not and when to phone call the doctor.
During the first few days of life, watch for a tar-like color and consistency.
The stool that babies pass during their first few days of life is unique. Information technology'due south black, thick, gooey and fungus-y. Doctors often describe this poop, called meconium, as tar-like; others describe it every bit looking like motor oil. "Since the baby hasn't been eating foods yet, it doesn't look similar a normal stool that we think of," said Dr. Lockwood. "But it's the digestive tract cleaning out."
What exactly, then, is it cleaning out? Cells, amniotic fluid and other material the baby has swallowed in the womb — as well as mucus that the baby's bowels are producing. Information technology also contains bile produced by her liver, which is largely where the black hue comes from.
Newborns typically kickoff excreting meconium inside the kickoff 24 hours of life — your infant may even pass it during delivery. Dr. Lockwood said that while some babies may just accept 1 bowel move per day, others volition take small amounts throughout the day at this phase. Meconium can concluding for a few days and will get more than of a black-ish green as it transitions to a more than typical baby poop.
From birth until your infant starts solids, poop mileage may vary.
Betwixt the time when your infant starts feeding on breast milk or formula and until she starts solids, her stool can vary a lot. There isn't one detail way your child's poop should be, and in about cases, poop that looks a little off is actually normal. "The reality is that poop — from a neonate onto infants and toddlers — is really a lot more than unproblematic than people want to break it downwardly," said Dr. Douglas Mogul, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of pediatrics at The Johns Hopkins University Schoolhouse of Medicine.
Colour. The well-nigh mutual baby poop color is a mustardy xanthous — yellow-tan or yellow-chocolate-brown. Merely it tin also range from any shade of yellow, orangish, brownish or green. "Really whatsoever color of fall is okay," said Dr. Lockwood — except ruby. In that location may be some variability in the color from twenty-four hour period to twenty-four hour period, she noted, or from week to calendar week or month to month. And the colour may vary a picayune more if your babe is fed formula than if she's fed breast milk, said Dr. Mogul.
1 affair that all the experts I spoke with emphasized is that parents don't need to overanalyze the colors left behind in their baby'due south diapers. "People desire to talk about daffodil versus sunflower, cappuccino versus latte — I've heard it all," said Dr. Mogul.
At that place are three colors, however, that might indicate a problem, experts noted: red, black and white.
A cerise stool could hateful that at that place is fresh claret in your child'due south poop, perchance originating from the lower gastrointestinal tract. Blackness might bespeak bleeding to a higher place in the G.I. tract. While ruddy and blackness stools ever warrant an immediate call to or evaluation by a medico, they don't e'er signal a serious trouble. Black stool, for instance, tin be caused by something as benign as an iron supplement. Common causes of cherry-red poop include swallowing claret from mom's nipples during breastfeeding, straining from constipation (which can cause piddling tears in the peel) or diaper rash. Seemingly unrelated causes of scarlet stool could also include a bacterial infection, allergies or gastrointestinal issues like haemorrhage polyps.
White stool, on the other hand, could be a sign of the absenteeism of bile — which largely gives poop its colour. Without bile, stool ends up stake or white, explained Dr. Jon Vanderhoof, M.D., a pediatric gastroenterologist at Boston Children's Hospital and senior lecturer in pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. This color could indicate a serious upshot, such every bit a status in which the tubes that conduct bile from the liver are blocked, potentially resulting in liver harm. If you lot see this hue in your babe's poop, get in touch with your pediatrician inside 24 to 48 hours.
However, seeing any of these three colors doesn't necessarily hateful a scary diagnosis. "I've seen all three of those things in perfectly normal babies," said Dr. Vanderhoof.
Consistency. Babies who are mainly fed breast milk tend to have stool that experts describe as thin, loose and seedy — like grainy mustard or cottage cheese, or a thick soup. "There'due south certainly going to be a watery component to it, and that confuses a lot of parents because they think information technology's diarrhea," said Dr. Lockwood. Formula-fed infants tend to have a slightly more than formed stool, better defined equally mushy. Simply no affair how your babe is fed, her stool should exist soft and yous shouldn't be able to pick information technology upward with your fingers. "Nosotros don't want to see hard-formed stools as an adult would have," explained Dr. Lockwood.
If your baby's stool is unusually watery (keeping in mind that runny is normal), she might accept diarrhea. If you notice very frequent watery stools in a curt time period, become in bear upon with your pediatrician. "Because babies tin easily dehydrate, yous don't want to wait two or three days," explained Dr. Lockwood.
If your baby's poop is difficult or pebble-like, or if she has difficulty during a bowel movement (though some degree of straining is normal), she might exist constipated. If the constipation doesn't coincide with other apropos symptoms, like fever or airsickness, information technology isn't necessarily an emergency, merely you should contact your doctor if it lasts longer than a calendar week.
Stools that are jelly-like or e'er mucus-y (though some occasional mucus tin can be normal) are other textures worth bringing up with your physician. Mucus could be a sign of an issue similar milk protein intolerance or an infection, and jelly-like stool could indicate an outcome with the intestine.
Frequency. As with the other characteristics of baby feces, at that place's a wide range of "normal" in terms of output. Some babies might become eight times a day while others might only poop in one case every v days. The experts I spoke with said that babies who feed predominantly on chest milk tend to have a wider range of frequencies than formula-fed infants (though they're non sure why this is the instance). "Breastfed babies can go anywhere from one time every five days to 5 times a day — and that can be totally normal," said Dr. Vanderhoof. "Whereas formula-fed babies are more like one to 3 times a mean solar day. They don't commonly skip more than a solar day." (Though it's O.K. if they exercise.) It'southward also common for both formula- and breast-fed babies to poop after feeding. This is due to a miracle called the gastrocolic reflex, a natural response in the body where the digestive organization becomes more agile when you eat food.
However, pooping much more frequently and explosively than normal could bespeak diarrhea. And waiting a week or longer to poop could point constipation (especially if she besides has the other classic symptoms of constipation mentioned above). "If they're non pooping frequently, they should be comfortable because of it," said Dr. Lockwood. "They shouldn't have a big distended belly that's hard, and they shouldn't exist crying and looking similar they're straining with nothing coming out." Both situations would be reasons to talk to your pediatrician.
Volume. The corporeality your babe poops can vary significantly, likewise. Your babe may have piddling smears of poop throughout the day, or just ane larger bowel movement. "The volume may vary based on how oftentimes they're going," explained Dr. Lockwood. However, if your child passes large volumes ofttimes — or modest volumes infrequently — it might suggest either diarrhea or constipation.
In one case y'all introduce solids, prepare for changes.
Once your infant starts eating solid foods — which often happens effectually 4 to 6 months — you lot'll probably begin to notice differences in her poop. "Once they starting time eating solids, all bets are off every bit far every bit colour," explained Dr. Mogul. The hue volition still mostly be in the yellowish, brown or tan range, just it could also vary depending on what your child eats. For example, greenish vegetables tin requite stool a green tint, while foods similar sweet potatoes or blueberries can turn poop an orange or bluish-purple color. As with the breast milk-fed or formula-fed phase, the aforementioned colour rule applies, said Dr. Lockwood — poop should never be ruby-red, black or white.
Subsequently yous've introduced solids, your babe's stool will likely become slightly denser and a bit more than formed. "Instead of beingness like mustard or cottage cheese, it could be thicker like a peanut butter," explained Dr. Lockwood. Just it should still be soft, according to Dr. Lockwood, and not hard or rock-similar. You may also see chunks of the food they've eaten, like kernels of corn — which is normal, according to Dr. Vanderhoof.
Frequency and volume will vary a lot in this stage as well. Dr. Vanderhoof said that you might find your infant pooping less frequently and a fleck more regularly in the number of stools from day to twenty-four hours. But again, call your doctor if you discover frequent or unresolved diarrhea or if they haven't pooped in more than a calendar week.
When to Worry
If your babe's stool contains more than about a tablespoon of blood, you may want to bring her straight to the emergency room, according to Dr. Lockwood. As well, contact a doctor immediately (or become to the E.R. if you tin't get in touch with a medico) if your infant looks ill, is vomiting, has a fever, loses energy, hasn't had a moisture diaper in the by 12 hours, stops wanting to swallow or has other concerning symptoms in improver to diarrhea or constipation.
Annie Sneed is a scientific discipline journalist who has written for Scientific American, Wired, and Fast Visitor.
Baby Only Poops a Little at a Time
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/article/baby-poop-guide.html