The most frustrating thing about being a new parent is when you can’t tell what is wrong. Until your little one is vocal enough to say “my tummy hurts” or “I don’t feel good,” keeping an eye on his poop is one of the best ways to tell if something’s awry. Not all changes in stool are abnormal, of course, and the contents of every baby’s diaper are going to look a little different. In general, you can expect the same things. Here’s a look at (almost) everything you need to know about your baby’s poop.
Meconium
The first stool your baby passes is called “meconium.” Meconium is a dark, blackish-green stool that looks alarming but is totally normal. Even if you’ve already fed your baby, there’s no milk in there. It’s simply a combination of all the things your little one has had in her system and is now getting rid of; everything from amniotic fluid, skin cells, water, and even the fine covering of hair (called lanugo) that falls off in the last month or two of pregnancy. Meconium is a track record of everything that’s gone into either of your bodies for the past few months, but it only lasts for a day or two. The good news is, it's pretty much sterile. But it’s still poop.
Breastfed Baby Poop
As meconium fades away to be replaced by what will be more or less standard for the next few months, your baby’s poop will become less viscous, more watery, and start changing color. Babies fed only breastmilk generally develop stool similar in color to mustard and should look like it has tiny seeds or balls throughout. Another pro for breastfeeding is that breastfed babies typically poop much less often than formula infants -- sometimes going as infrequently as once or twice a week instead of a day. While this is technically in the normal range for a nursing baby, you should still pay attention. If your baby is infrequently pooping, make sure his tummy doesn’t seem tight or uncomfortable, which may signal constipation. Every two or three days is about average.
Bottle Fed Baby Poop
Babies who drink formula from the first have slightly different poop than breastfed babies. Rather than a yellow shade, formula poop is darker and tends to be less runny. It could be a dark yellow, a greenish shade, or tannish-brown in color. You can expect formula fed babies to poop anywhere from one to three times a day in the first six weeks or so. After that, it may change, but it’s almost certain to become much more regular.
Diarrhea in Newborns
Knowing what normal means concerning baby bowel movements is great, but what you really need to know is how to tell if your baby has diarrhea. Honestly, it can be difficult to tell, particularly for breastfed babies. The trick is it generally becomes much more often, and those little seed balls you’ve been seeing become nonexistent (or at least there are significantly less of them).
Constipation
On the other hand, babies can get constipated, too, particularly if they’re sick and less inclined to get enough hydration. Again, some babies can go days without defecating, so what you’re looking for here is a firm, uncomfortable tummy. If she does poop, stool that looks less like normal and more like small, hard logs or little rabbit pellets, then it's a pretty good sign she’s constipated.
All the Kinds of Baby Poop
As your baby gets older, you may see different styles and colors of stool as you start introducing new foods into his diet. For the most part, it’s likely just that slight change in diet that affects the color (like when adults eat too much food coloring and wind up with green poop). However, colors can signal something may be seriously wrong including:
- Chalky or grey: Depending on what your baby's been eating, it could be food. But it could also signal an issue with the liver or gallbladder.
- Red: A little bit of red is okay; it could be from Mom’s poor, cracked nipples, or it could be something she ate. However, if it is bright, bloody red all over the place, it’s time to call the pediatrician.
- Green: In general, green poop isn’t much to worry about. If it’s frothy and bright stool from a breastfed baby, it could be a sign of insufficient hindmilk (the part with more fat). If it’s more of a tan-green and is accompanied by fussiness and obvious discomfort, it could be a cow’s milk allergy (assuming it’s past the year mark when babies are allowed cow’s milk).
- Black: In older babies, this can be indicative of extra iron in the diet, which isn’t much to worry about. It could also, however, mean there is blood in the gastrointestinal tract, which could be something to worry about.
Ultimately, if your baby’s poop doesn’t look like you think it should or like it usually does, throw the diaper in question in a ziplock and take it to the pediatrician with you. Just don’t wait too long to schedule that appointment.
(Image via PixaBay.)
