How often the child should have stools. The baby's feces always have various impurities. Signs that can make mom wary

01.08.2019

In infancy, the doctor judges the health and development of the child by objective and visible factors. A newborn child cannot say that he is in pain, and by the nature of crying, even if it is different, an accurate diagnosis cannot be made. The doctor can assess the condition of the child by his reaction to sound, light, touch, as well as by the number of urinations and the consistency of the stool. It is the stool of a newborn during breastfeeding that is one of the important criteria that helps to suspect and diagnose physical health problems in time.

Features of the digestive system in children

During fetal development, the baby's digestive system does not work, since all nutrients enter the bloodstream through the placenta. The first "start" of digestion occurs in the first minutes of life, when the newborn is applied to the mother's breast. By this time, nature has already laid down some structural features of the children's digestive system.

The structure of the oral cavity. The chewing muscles are very well developed here, despite the small age of the child. The mucous membrane of the lips has a special structure, the gums are thickened, and there are special fatty lumps in the thickness of the cheeks - all this makes it possible for the child to eat mother's milk and make efforts to get it. The sucking reflex in the first days of life is extremely strong and helps to easily cope with new eating habits.

The work of the salivary glands. The glands are poorly developed and continue to mature as the child grows. Saliva of an adult, in addition to moisturizing the oral mucosa, performs two more important functions - it has a bactericidal effect and takes part in the process of food splitting. These functions are not performed in an infant. The lack of bactericidal components leads to the fact that babies often suffer from in the mouth. The lack of enzymatic activity forces the child to eat liquid and unsweetened food (it is carbohydrates that are broken down by saliva enzymes in adults).

Stomach and pancreas... Unlike adults, children have a horizontal stomach. Its volume in a child of the first month of life is approximately 30-50 ml. That is why it is necessary to feed the newborn often and in small portions. Sphincters are located on both sides of the stomach, which should not pass food in the opposite direction. However, the upper sphincter in babies is poorly developed, so frequent regurgitation becomes a natural and frequent problem. The stomach of the newborn produces an enzyme that curdles milk, but contains very little lipase, so the fats of cow's milk are not broken down in an infant. The discharge of the stomach during regurgitation is just curdled milk. Pancreatic enzymes at this age are well developed, but their activity is still much lower than that of an adult, therefore, the food of an infant should be easily digestible and easily digestible.

Liver and gallbladder. These are one of the main organs involved in digestion. If proteins are broken down in the stomach, then with the help of bile enzymes, the body breaks down fats. The amount of bile acids in a child is very small, so fatty foods should be avoided in the diet. The liver also stores glycogen, a material for energy. However, in infants, this process is poorly developed and normalizes closer to 7 years. Liver health is very important to ensure detoxification function. In newborns, the liver is not yet mature enough and malnutrition or, for example, taking medications, can disrupt its development. The diet should be followed not only by the baby, but also by the mother, since all products enter the child's body with milk. Bile is also necessary for normal intestinal motility, so problems with these organs can affect the nature of the stool.

Intestines. The motor activity of the intestines and stomach in a child is reduced, which causes constipation at an early age. By about 4 months, motor skills improve and the problem goes away. At birth, the intestines of a newborn are sterile and populated with beneficial microflora with mother's milk, therefore it is very important to adhere to breastfeeding in the diet. child. In the small intestine, the digestion and absorption of food components occurs, and its dysfunction is immediately reflected in the nature of the feces.

If the digestive function is impaired at one of the stages described above, the newborn's stool changes its consistency, color or smell, which makes it possible for the doctor to suspect the problem that has appeared.

First chair

After birth, the baby's first bowel movement is accompanied by the release of original feces, which looks like a thick mixture of black and green. This discharge is called meconium. It represents all the foods that have accumulated in the baby's intestines during fetal development. The release of meconium occurs on the first day after birth. As breast milk enters the stool, its color lightens. It is absolutely normal if this does not happen immediately, but on the 3-4th day of life, since before this time the mother secretes colostrum, which can be completely absorbed by the child's body.

Normal baby stool

To notice changes in a child's stool, you need to know which stool is considered normal.

When passing from meconium to mature stools, the discharge may have a sour odor and yellow-green color. Yellow stools are considered fully mature. Its consistency should be similar to liquid porridge, since the child feeds only on mother's milk. The smell of discharge is often unpleasant for an adult, but it can be described as sour milk, which is absolutely understandable when breastfeeding. Normally, the feces are homogeneous in structure and do not have undigested pieces or pathological inclusions.

The frequency of defecation may differ, but it always occurs several times a day (possibly even up to 10). As the child grows older, emptying occurs less frequently. Slight stools in a baby over 3 months old may be considered normal if the mother's milk is absorbed so completely that there is no accumulation of waste in the intestines. However, this rarely happens and, in most cases, insufficient defecation is considered and requires correction.

Changes in stool color, odor, uniformity, or consistency.
The appearance of pain in the abdomen, flatulence.
Difficulty defecating.
Poor weight gain.

Green chair

The greenish tint of the stool during the period when it should already be a mature yellow color should alert the mother. The reasons for this condition may be:

Dysbacteriosis. If there are not enough beneficial bacteria in the intestines, then pathogenic flora develops, which gives the stool a green tint. In this case, additional symptoms appear - diarrhea, abdominal pain, flatulence.
Inflammatory process in the intestines. It can appear as a result of poor nutrition of the mother (an abundance of dyes, preservatives, unnatural substances).
Malnutrition. "Hungry" green stools appear when the mother does not produce enough milk or the baby has a difficult sucking process. Additional symptoms of this condition will be poor weight gain, frequent awakenings, and whims when sucking.
... Sometimes green stools are observed as a consequence of intrauterine. If the child is active and gaining weight well, then pathological discharge is temporary and should soon return to normal.

Yellow chair

The yellow color of the stool can be either a variant of the norm or pathology. Additional impurities, which should not be in a healthy state, will help to distinguish one from the other:

White blotches, like lumps of undigested food. With normal weight gain, such an impurity may indicate overeating. If the child grows more slowly than normal, the lumps are the result of a lack of enzymes, which leads to poor breakdown of food. This state will pass by itself, as the child grows up. Also, the pediatrician may prescribe the intake of enzyme preparations.
Slime. Increased mucus production occurs during inflammatory processes in the intestines. It can also be observed with, runny nose, early introduction of complementary foods and other conditions. The doctor will help you to correctly determine the cause.
Foam. This symptom often indicates increased gas production and dysbiosis. Sometimes frothy discharge appears with, which is also manifested by diarrhea, fever, and abdominal pain. In any case, this condition requires the consultation of a pediatrician.
Blood. There should be no blood in the stool. This symptom is considered serious and requires immediate diagnosis. Blood may appear due to mechanical damage to the rectum, intestinal inflammation, allergies or intolerance to cow's milk.

Stool retention in a child

Delay or difficulty in emptying rarely bothers a breastfed baby. However, this criterion also needs to be monitored, since it indicates the quality of the digestive system.

However, the change in stool frequency should not be left without attention; it is better to consult a specialist once again. Your pediatrician will help determine the exact cause of delayed or difficult emptying. He will also give advice on nutrition for mom, since the correct diet is a safe, affordable and effective way to correct the functioning of the digestive system.

Frequent emptying

Diarrhea (too frequent and fluid emptying) is the other extreme in changing stool frequency. Even if diarrhea is physiological (after food with a laxative effect), it still negatively affects the health of the child, as it leads to the loss of fluid and beneficial electrolytes, which is dangerous for dehydration. The treatment regimen always includes sorbents and drugs that restore the water-electrolyte balance. Diarrhea differs from the usual one-time liquid stool by an increased frequency of discharge.

With an infectious etiology, the color of the stool can change to green, and the smell becomes very unpleasant. The cause of diarrhea must be found out without fail so as not to miss it. Its additional symptoms will be fever, deterioration in the general condition of the child. At birth, the baby's intestines are sterile and colonized with beneficial bacteria in the mother's milk. Antibodies to many infections are delivered in the same way, but the newborn's own immunity is still very weak.

Only a pediatrician should deal with the treatment of all pathological conditions. A mother can independently affect the child's stool by adjusting her own diet. To do this, you need to exclude potential allergens, harmful chemical additives, eat more vegetables. If the child is feeling well and gaining weight, some changes in the nature or frequency of stool may be considered normal. For example, during the period of the introduction of complementary foods, the baby's reaction to a new product can be different - from diarrhea or to skin rashes. Over time, the mother will already know the characteristics of the child and understand what changes need to be worried about, and what not worth it.

Baby chair is one of the problematic moments for many mothers. In the middle of the 20th century, when formula feeding became more common than breastfeeding, a new stereotype of “normal” bowel movements emerged. Children who feed on formula poop differently than infants: the stool of "artificial" is relatively infrequent, comes out shaped and smells bad, resembling the stool of adults. While the stool from breast milk in the first 6 weeks of life is usually thin and frequent, and in the future, on the contrary, it may be of normal consistency, but with delays. At the same time, often people who do not know that this is quite normal for babies begin to treat the baby either for diarrhea or for constipation ...

For a child under the age of 6 weeks, it is normal to empty the intestines several times a day, little by little, with a mass of yellow or mustard color, without an unpleasant odor. At the same time, the stool may well have a heterogeneous consistency, or cheesy inclusions, or - after a while, if the mother does not remove the diaper or diaper for a long time - you will notice that the yellow stool turns green, this is a completely natural oxidation process. These are all signs that are characteristic of a healthy infant! If you see white "pellets" in your child's chair - do not be alarmed. Most likely it is just an immaturity of the intestines. Therefore, if the child is gaining weight well and nothing bothers him, then there is no reason for your concern either.

Signs that can make mom wary:

too frequent watery stools - 12 to 16 bowel movements per day, with a strong odor indicates that the child really has diarrhea (diarrhea). It is imperative to consult a doctor, while it is very desirable to continue breastfeeding, because breast milk best of all makes up for the deficiency of substances necessary for the baby.

frequent stools (8-12 times a day), which are green and watery, often caused by sensitivity to food or treatment of the child or mother; often this reaction is caused by the protein of cow's milk.

Green, watery, foamy stools are usually a sign of what is known as an anterior-posterior milk imbalance, which doctors like to call "lactase deficiency." True lactase deficiency is relatively rare, and in the vast majority of cases, this condition of the baby can be corrected by allowing each breast to be emptied to the end before transferring to the next. In this case, the baby will receive a large portion of fatty "back" milk, which contains little lactose (in contrast to the "front" portion rich in it) and therefore is easier to digest. Clarification so as not to be confused in terms: lactose is the milk sugar found in breast milk, and lactase is an enzyme that is required to break down lactose. The reserves of lactase in the baby's body are relatively small, and if he receives a lot of "front" milk, then the lactase is not enough for its normal assimilation, so the baby is tormented by gas, and the stool takes on a characteristic appearance. Another problem that often occurs after 5-6 weeks of a child's life is a relatively rare bowel movement, which is often mistakenly considered constipation and begins to actively treat the baby. At this age, the milk finally becomes mature and the laxative colostrum component leaves it, and therefore most children begin to poop less often. By itself, a rare chair is not a cause for concern, just the child's body finds out how much it can accumulate in itself before pooping. If the process is not interfered with, the child may not poop even up to 7 days once or twice, after which the normal frequency will be restored. If you constantly intervene, forcing the intestines to empty when it is not yet ready, constipation will become habitual. BUT: Indeed, the child may not poop for up to a week, and the mother may not worry under the essential condition: the child TOO do not worry! If the child is obviously annoyed by this, the mother, of course, should not hope that everything "will be formed by itself."

Constipation in a breastfed baby

Constipation in a breastfed baby is hard, dry, formed stools, called “goat balls,” which are very painful for the baby.
The consistency of NORMAL feces, even with its relatively rare appearance, cannot be considered constipation. These are only the physiological characteristics of this particular organism, such as eye color, nose snub angle or the shape of nails. We will not treat the body because its eyes are blue, and not brown, like most?

Why does such a physiologically rare stool ("not constipation") appear in a baby?

For the urge to defecate, the little man needs to experience a chain of certain sensations. The most important of which is the pressure of feces on the intestines, it is the degree of pressure that forms the skill to relax the sphincters in response to tension, and not to contract them. A young, not fully formed intestine is just learning to react to any external changes; breast milk, the only native and adapted product, helps it gently and not stressfully at this stage of its formation. Like any student, the gut passes a series of tests or even self-tests. Therefore, the baby's feces of the first half of the year are heterogeneous - sometimes thick, sometimes liquid, sometimes often, sometimes rare. And our adult standards for such a young student are unacceptable, the adult intestine is very different from the intestines of a baby.

The main indicator with such a rare stool is the child's well-being and the discharge of gases, the most dangerous sign of constipation is the absence of gas, then you can fear for intestinal patency, but if the baby “farts like a machine gun”, then the patency is excellent. If the consistency of feces after defecation is normal, without "balls" - then the child has no problem.
The intestine is simply in a state of testing the degree of pressure of feces inside on the intestinal wall for optimal defecation, after completing such a test, the body will select a certain period for defecation. This deadline will be set until ... the next test, after which everything will change dramatically again.
That is, the main thing is to objectively assess the condition of the child, to look at the discharge of gases, and not at the calendar.
And yet it is so strange and scary when the chair is not regular and young parents so want to attend to something. What can be done to make the body "tested" faster, and parents would see the coveted poop and at the same time not harm the child and not resort to drugs.

1. Give extra liquid.

But the problem is not in the consistency of feces !!! The feces inside are soft, the additional liquid makes it generally liquid and ... postpones the period of natural bowel movements. As a result, additional mechanical stimulation is required (with a cotton swab in oil, a thermometer), but more often it turns out that due to the additional fluid and the extended period, the “front” part of the feces has formed into a dense solid “cork”, and the “above” is a very liquid watery stool. It is very painful and unpleasant for the baby to pop out the "cork".
That is, in the case of a physiological rare stool, supplementation with any liquid can worsen the situation.

Here you need to take into account that juice is a very large irritant with a high acidity factor. Complete lack of fiber, but a deadly carbohydrate environment, due to sugars. The child's intestines simply cannot yet digest this, additional enzymes are needed to digest the juice, which the pancreas of a child in infancy does not produce. And it turns out in the intestines there is an irritating product - sugar from juice. Up to a certain age, the mucous membrane of the baby is very perceptive and sensitive, through its walls, the small cells penetrate into the blood, and the sugars begin to strongly irritate the mucous membrane, the body receives a signal to get rid of the aggressors as soon as possible, the pancreas tries to form enzymes to break down the carbohydrates of the juice. The intestine collects additional fluid to partially neutralize aggressive sugars and begins to contract, removing the irritant. Outwardly, the child may have stools quickly enough after the infusion of juice. But at the cost of tremendous stress to the pancreas, mucous membranes and the body as a whole. At the same time, the necessary minerals and vitamins are washed out from the body, the child loses a lot of fluid. The carbohydrate component sucks in the intestines an ideal environment for the reproduction of pathogenic and conditionally pathogenic flora (candida, stuffylococcus), therefore, after copulation, thrush in a child's mouth is so frequent.
Juice is one of the most cruel methods of influencing the baby's body.

3. Make an enema.

The liquid will create additional pressure, the same that the intestines were waiting for and before the physiological readiness of the body there will be a chair. The "self-test" of the organism is knocked down. The defecation was caused by a mechanical stimulator, a contraction of the intestines, but the child himself needs to learn to relax. I think everyone has heard stories from two-three-year-olds who have problems with stool. Often (not always) these are babies who were either artificially fed, or the period of "learning" in a safe chair from breast milk passed against the background of stimulation of defecation.

So what do you do? Nothing. Wait. If the child behaves as usual and farts well, then this is another "test".
But if the child is pushing, blushing, gas does not go away, the abdomen is hard, and the child cries on palpation - this is a completely different matter. You definitely need help here.

If the child does not walk for a long time and is worried about it

The first step is to massage your tummy. Massage clockwise with full palm. Or exercise like a "bike".
A warm bath - it does not help anyone to relax. Mom and baby are immersed in warm water of 37 degrees, breastfeed directly in the water, then they quickly crawl out, mom or dad will rub their arms, legs and tummy with baby oil, then you can put the mole on your mother’s tummy relaxed, it’s worth remembering that it’s easier to poop while lying down on the tummy or side, than on the back, or the mother can feed in the landing position (so that the ass is sagging and the child is almost vertical) and in 80% you can expect the "coveted poop".
It is very good to hold a child complaining of a tummy over the sink under the knees, lubricating the anus with baby oil ... The posture is the same as when landing.

Only when these methods did not help, you can use the first step of mechanical stimulation. Take a hygienic stick, grease the tip liberally with petroleum jelly or baby oil and insert a little into the ass. Not more than a centimeter! It is to enter and twist a little. Put away. Put on a diaper and put your mom on her stomach, tummy to tummy ... Or press your knees to your stomach in a position on your back ...

And only if this did not help, then the next step is a glycerin candle.
But as a rule, in the first step, everything already works out.

I would like to highlight the purpose of any treatment, parents should analyze - what are they treating - the child's condition or analysis? Does your doctor prescribe bifidobacteria for you? Is there a correlation with the onset of intake and the onset of stool retention? Were you warned that bacteriological preparations containing bifidocultures affect the stool and can cause chronic constipation, which will already be constipation, and not physiological reactions? ... Always watch the child's stool very carefully when using any medication.

Breastfeeding mistakes

As practice shows, for problems with stool in infants, it is often not bacteria that are to blame, but improperly organized breastfeeding. Here are the most common breastfeeding mistakes that interfere with the development of a baby's normal gut flora:

Late attachment of the newborn to the breast.
Rare feeding "by the hour", limiting the duration of breastfeeding by the child.
Supplementing the baby with water, teas.
Early introduction of supplementary feeding with formula or gradual transition to full artificial feeding.
Introduction of complementary foods earlier than 6 months.

Misconceptions associated with problematic bowel movements in infants

1. In the same place, everything rots inside if he does not walk for more than a day !!

We hear from many mothers. We hasten to dispel this myth!

We recall the school chemistry course. Oxidation, reaction with oxygen. Now we take the child and examine the belly for holes. There is not? just the navel? So oxidation does not threaten you. If someone says "rots" - also refer him to the school chemistry course, where it says that decay is a slow burning reaction, in which the access of oxygen is a prerequisite. To do this, at least you need a hole in your stomach. And it, as we have already found out from a higher experience, is not there.

2. This is dysbiosis !!!
Dysbacteriosis is becoming more popular, however, as are the drugs aimed at treating it. In the minds of many parents, the wrong opinion has formed that every baby has dysbiosis, and biological products have ceased to be the means that a doctor should prescribe - they can simply be bought and given to your baby: maybe it will help? Let's take a look at some of the facts about this condition and speculate about them. After all, as you know, "he who is forewarned is armed."

The Truth About Dysbiosis:

Dysbacteriosis Is not a diagnosis according to the Tenth Revision International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) - the generally accepted international diagnostic classification of the World Health Organization. This is a state of imbalance of the intestinal microflora that accompanies its various diseases (for example, acute intestinal infection). Also, dysbiosis develops after surgical operations on the gastrointestinal tract, treatment with antibiotics, cytostatics, and immunity suppressants. Therefore, if a child was born healthy, gains weight well, grows and develops according to age, you should not look for dysbiosis from him.
In babies who have just been born, the period of colonization of the intestine with microbes is called transient dysbiosis and it belongs to the borderline states of newborns. The main protection and medicine for the baby during this period is the mother's breast milk. Colostrum contains a huge amount of antibodies, anti-infectious proteins and secretory immunoglobulin A, which provide the infant with primary immunological protection. In addition, the bifidus factor in human breast milk is involved in the formation of normal intestinal microflora, and lactoferrin binds iron and prevents the multiplication of those bacteria that need iron. That is why it is extremely important that from birth nothing but mother's milk gets into the mouth of the crumbs! Dysbiosis is not terrible for a healthy baby.

The analysis for dysbiosis does not reflect the true state of the intestinal microflora. Let's remember that microflora is a dynamic environment, the number of microbial units is in the millions, and these units themselves multiply (and die) rather quickly. By the time the parents receive the result of the microflora analysis (and this is at least 7 days from the date of its delivery), the microbial "picture" in the intestine will change radically. In addition, microorganisms colonize the intestines unevenly: there are more of them near the walls of the intestine, and not in its lumen, and when taking an analysis of feces, only "luminal" colonies fall into the "field of view". That is why experienced and competent specialists do not trust this analysis and are in no hurry to treat children if it is changed and there are no clinical symptoms.

A child's stool is one of the most important indicators of health. Already in the maternity hospital, when making a round, doctors always ask mothers if the baby pooped. How and how much the child poops, will be further interested in district pediatricians and nurses - during home visits and during examination in a polyclinic. In this article, we will consider everything about the stool of infants, since this is an extremely important component of the life of young children, and we will consider not only the stool of children who are breastfed, but also those who receive artificial nutrition.

Why is it so important to pay attention to how your baby poops? The frequency of bowel movements and the main characteristics of the stool (quantity, color, presence / absence of impurities, consistency, smell) make it possible to assess, first of all, the work of the child's gastrointestinal tract. In addition, according to them, you can make a conclusion about the baby's nutrition (including whether he has enough breast milk); changes in stool characteristics may indicate the presence of diseases in other organs and systems. Of no small importance is the fact that defecation in children occurs regularly (more often daily), most of the properties of feces can be easily assessed visually (during examination), and therefore, for attentive parents, any changes in stool do not go unnoticed.

But what to do when the regularity or quality of the stool changes: call a doctor, treat yourself, or don't worry at all - everything will go away by itself? How does a baby normally have to poop, and how does the chair change at different periods of his life?

About the norm and its variations

Stool frequency in infants varies from 10-12 times a day to once every 4-5 days.

Norm is a relative concept. I am always surprised when I hear “a baby has to poop 3-4 times (2-5 or 1 or 10 times, it doesn't matter) a day with yellow gruel”. Remember, your child does not owe anything to anyone. Each baby is an individuality from birth. How he will have bowel movements depends on many factors - and on the degree of maturity of his digestive system, and on the type of feeding, and even on the type of delivery, and on concomitant pathology, and on many other reasons. The main guidelines for determining an individual norm specifically for your baby are the child's well-being, regularity, painlessness of bowel movements and the absence of pathological impurities in the stool. Therefore, below I will give not only the average normal indicators, but also the extreme values of the norm and its variants, depending on the influence of various factors.

Bowel frequency

After the discharge of meconium (original feces of a viscous consistency, brown or black-green), from 2-3 days the child has a transitional feces - dark green or yellow-green, semi-liquid. From 4-5 days of life, a certain rhythm of bowel emptying is established in a newborn. The frequency of acts of defecation varies within fairly significant limits: from 1 time in 1-2 days to 10-12 times a day. Most babies poop during or immediately after a meal - after every feed (or almost after every feed). But a stool every 2 days will also be a variant of the norm - provided that it is a regular stool (occurs every two days), and the act of defecation itself does not cause anxiety or pain to the child (the baby does not scream, but only grunts slightly, the feces leave easily , there is no excessive straining).

With growth, the child begins to poop less often: if during the neonatal period he had an average of 8-10 stools, then by 2-3 months of life the baby poops 3-6 times a day, at 6 months - 2-3 times, and by year - 1-2 times a day. If, from the first days of life, the baby cocoa 1 time a day, then usually this frequency remains in the future, only the consistency changes (the mushy stool gradually becomes shaped).

Feces

The amount of stool is directly related to the amount of food consumed by the child. In the first month of life, the child poops quite a bit - about 5 g at a time (15-20 g per day), by 6 months - about 40-50 g, by the year - 100-200 g per day.

Stool consistency

The norm for newborns is a soft, mushy consistency. But here, too, fluctuations within the normal range are quite permissible - from a liquid to a fairly thick gruel. Ideally, the stool is homogeneous, evenly smeared, but it can be liquid with lumps (if the child pooped into the diaper, then the liquid component is absorbed, slightly staining the surface, and a small amount of small lumps may remain on top).

The older the child, the more dense his stool becomes, representing a thick gruel by six months, and by the year it becomes practically shaped, but at the same time quite soft and plastic.

Colour

Yellow, golden yellow, dark yellow, yellow-green, yellow with white lumps, yellow-brown, green - each of these colors will be normal for a newborn's stool. After breastfeeding is complete, the stool becomes darker and gradually turns brown.

Green feces

Please note that greenish, marsh-green, yellow-green colors are normal variants, and the green coloration of feces is due to the presence of bilirubin and (or) biliverdin in it. Bilirubin can be excreted in the feces for up to 6-9 months, that is, the greenish color of the stool during this age period is quite normal. In newborn babies, the transition from yellow to green stools and back is especially noticeable during physiological jaundice, when maternal hemoglobin breaks down and bilirubin is actively secreted. But even in the following days and months of life, until the intestinal microflora is fully established, the presence of bilirubin in the stool, which gives the feces a green color, is permissible.

It is also quite normal that the feces are initially yellow in color, and after a while it "turns green" - this means that the feces contain a certain amount of bilirubin, which is invisible at first, but upon contact with air it oxidizes and gives the feces a green color.

On the other hand, if the baby (excluding the child with) has never had a green stool before, and suddenly the stool becomes green or streaked with greenery, it is more likely that either a functional digestive disorder (against the background of overfeeding, the introduction of complementary foods, etc.) ), or a lack of milk in the mother, or some kind of illness in the child (intestinal infection, etc.).

Smell

In a breastfed baby, the stool has a peculiar, slightly sour smell. In artificial children, feces acquire an unpleasant, putrid or rotten smell.

Impurities

In general, any impurities in the stool - undigested food particles and other inclusions, blood, greens, mucus, pus - are considered pathological. But the period of newborn and infancy are exceptional periods, here even pathological impurities may turn out to be quite normal. We have already talked about greens and found out why green can (although not always) be a variant of the norm. Let us now examine other impurities in the child's stool.

Normally, the following impurities may be noted in infants in the stool:

White lumps- due to the immaturity of the baby's digestive system and enzymes, which is why the baby does not fully assimilate milk (especially when overfeeding). Subject to the child's satisfactory health and normal weight gain, these inclusions can be classified as normal.

Undigested food particles- appear after the introduction of complementary foods and are explained by the same physiological immaturity of the gastrointestinal tract. Usually, the stool returns to normal within a week, if during this time the character of the stool in the crumbs does not return to normal, complementary foods are most likely introduced too early and the baby is not yet ready for it.

Slime- mucus in the intestines is constantly present and performs a protective function. Its appearance in small quantities in breastfed babies is a variant of the norm.

What impurities should not be in the baby's stool:

pus;
blood.

Their presence is a dangerous symptom, and if even small amounts of pus or blood appear, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Stool changes depending on the child's diet

Breastfeeding baby chair

An excess of carbohydrates in the diet of a nursing mother will lead to an increase in fermentation processes in the baby's intestines, intestinal colic, rumbling, frequent, liquid, foamy stools.

The nutrition of a breastfed baby, and how the mother eats, will affect the baby's stool. If the mother observes the basic rules of nutrition for lactating women, restricting the diet of excessively fatty foods and sweets, the baby's stool usually meets all the criteria for the norm - yellowish, mushy, without impurities, regular, homogeneous. With an overabundance of fat in a woman's menu, breast milk also becomes more fatty, it becomes difficult to digest, and therefore, the baby may also have the inclusion of white lumps in the feces. A diet rich in easily digestible carbohydrates often leads to an increase in fermentation processes in the intestines of the child, and is accompanied by frequent, liquid, sometimes even frothy stools, against the background of rumbling, bloating in the abdomen and intestinal colic. With severe bloating, constipation may occur instead of loose stools.

Certain foods in the diet of a nursing mother can cause a baby, which manifests itself not only in the form, but also in the form of changes in the stool - it becomes liquid, with mucus.

With a lack of milk in a nursing mother, the baby's stool becomes first viscous, thick, then dry, green or grayish-green in color, crumbling, leaves in small quantities, or persistent constipation occurs.

Mixed and formula fed baby chair

Compared to babies receiving breast milk, bottle-fed babies poop less often (in the first months of life - 3-4 times a day, by six months - 1-2 times a day), their stools are denser, putty-like consistency, dark yellow in color, with an unpleasant putrid or sharply sour odor. With a sharp transition to artificial feeding, when changing the usual mixture, stool delays (constipation) are possible or, on the contrary, appears.

Feeding with mixtures with a high iron content (for prophylaxis) may be accompanied by the release of dark green feces due to the presence of non-absorbed iron in it.

When feeding babies not with artificial adapted formulas, but with natural cow's milk, various problems with stool are even more often observed: chronic constipation or diarrhea. The feces of such children are usually bright yellow, sometimes with a greasy sheen, with a "cheesy" smell.

Stool changes during the introduction of complementary foods

By themselves, complementary foods, which are a completely new type of food for a child, require the active work of all parts of the digestive tract and enzymes. In most cases, children do not fully assimilate the first complementary foods, and undigested particles come out with the stool, they can be easily seen in the baby's feces in the form of heterogeneous inclusions, grains, lumps, etc. At the same time, a small amount of mucus may appear in the stool. If such changes are not accompanied by anxiety of the child, vomiting, diarrhea and other painful symptoms, it is not necessary to cancel complementary foods - its introduction should be continued, very slowly increasing a single serving of the dish and carefully observing the well-being and character of the baby's stool.

Certain complementary foods, for example, vegetables with a high content of plant fibers, can have a laxative effect - the stool becomes more frequent (usually 1-2 times more than the norm for a given child), and the feces are sometimes a slightly modified dish. For example, mothers note that they gave the child boiled carrots, and after 2-3 hours he pooped the same carrots. When the initial goal was not to stimulate the emptying of the intestines of the crumbs (the child did not suffer from constipation), it is better to temporarily postpone the maintenance of the product that caused such a reaction, moving on to more "tender" vegetables (zucchini, potatoes) or cereals.

Other dishes, on the other hand, have a strengthening effect and increase the viscosity of the stool (rice porridge).

All this should be taken into account and correlated with the peculiarities of the child's digestion when introducing complementary foods to him.

In general, the introduction of any complementary foods in healthy children is accompanied by an increase in the amount of stool, its heterogeneity, changes in smell and color.

Stool pathological changes and methods of treatment

Now let's consider what changes in the regularity of bowel movements or in the qualitative characteristics of feces are abnormal and indicate a violation of digestion, diseases or other pathological conditions.

Violation of the frequency of bowel movements

Three options are possible here: constipation, diarrhea, or irregular bowel movements.

Constipation

Constipation includes one or more of the following symptoms:

delay in bowel movement - for 2 days or more; for a newborn child, constipation can be considered the absence of stool during the day, if earlier he pooped several times a day;
painful or difficult defecation, accompanied by screaming, straining the child; frequent ineffective straining (the child tries to poop, but cannot);
dense consistency of feces, "sheep" stool.

The main causes of constipation in babies:

lack of milk in mom;
irrational feeding (overfeeding, improper selection of mixtures, feeding with cow's milk, early introduction of complementary foods, lack of fluid);
low physical activity;
immaturity or pathology of the digestive system;
concomitant diseases (, pathology of the nervous system, etc.);
organic causes (intestinal obstruction, dolichosigma, Hirschsprung's disease, etc.).

Relief for constipation

In case of acute constipation in infants, regardless of the reasons for stool retention, defecation should be established. First, you can try to help the baby in this way: when he pushes, trying to poop, bring the legs bent at the knees to his tummy and lightly (!) Press on the tummy for about 10 seconds, then do a light massage of the belly clockwise around the navel, repeat the pressure ... In case of ineffectiveness of auxiliary measures, it is recommended to use children's glycerin suppositories or to give the child a micro enema ("Microlax"). In the absence of children's laxatives in the home medicine cabinet, you can perform a cleansing enema with boiled water at room temperature (within 19-22 ° C) - for a child in the first months of life, use a sterile (boiled) syringe of the smallest volume. You can also try to stimulate the bowel movement reflexively by irritating the anus (by inserting a syringe tip or vent tube into it).

Sometimes difficulties during bowel movements are caused by a large number of gas in the baby's intestines - this is quite easy to understand by how the baby cries when trying to poop, his tummy is swollen, rumbling can be heard, but gases and feces do not leave. In such situations, abdominal massage and adduction of the legs are also used; you can just try to put the baby on your tummy, wear it in your arms, putting your belly on your forearms. Warming the tummy (the mother can put the baby on her stomach, face to face; apply a heated diaper to the stomach) facilitate the passage of the gas (and after them the chair). Of the medicines, simethicone preparations (Bobotik, Espumizan, Subsimplex) give a fairly quick effect on eliminating colic, herbal remedies are used to improve the discharge of gaziks (dill water, Plantex, fennel decoction, Baby Kalm).

In case of recurrent constipation, it is not recommended to constantly use reflex stimulation of the sphincter with a tube or to use cleansing enemas - it is highly likely that the child will "get used" to poop not on his own, but with additional help. In the case of chronic constipation, it is necessary, first of all, to establish their cause and, if possible, eliminate it. Treatment of chronic constipation in infants should be comprehensive, including correction of the mother's nutrition or the selection of artificial mixtures, competent timely introduction of complementary foods, daily walks, gymnastics, massage, and if necessary, supplementing with water. Less commonly, drugs are prescribed (Lactulose, etc.).

Diarrhea

Diarrhea is understood as frequent (2 or more times compared to the individual and age norm) emptying of the intestines with the release of liquefied stools. Diarrhea does not include the constant secretion of small amounts of feces (slightly smearing the surface of the diaper) when passing gas - this is due to the physiological weakness of the anal sphincter, and with the growth of the child, when the gas passes, the stool stops coming out.

The table below lists the most likely causes of diarrhea in infants.

Cause	Signs	Treatment methods
Reaction to	Loose stools up to 10-12 times a day; feces without pathological impurities (there may be a small amount of mucus); moderate increase in body temperature (up to 38-38.5 ° C); swelling and redness of the gums; salivation.	Feeding on demand; a sufficient amount of fluid; use of antipyretic drugs, if necessary; the use of local remedies (teethers, dental gels).
Acute intestinal infection	Diarrhea of varying severity (from mild diarrhea to profuse diarrhea); the feces are liquid, may be watery, foamy, with flakes; pathological impurities are often determined - streaks of greenery, mucus, pus, streaks of blood, particles of undigested food; increased body temperature; frequent vomiting; symptoms of intoxication (lethargy, pallor, refusal to eat).	Doctor's call; treatment with drugs such as Smecta or Polysorb; soldering the baby with boiled water for 1 tsp. In 5 minutes.
Lactose deficiency	The stool is liquid, frothy, yellow; sour smell; frequent colic.	If symptoms are moderate, no help is needed. In case of obvious violations, consult a doctor, enzymes are prescribed, less often a transfer to lactose-free mixtures is required.
Functional digestive disorder (overfeeding, early introduction of complementary foods)	A clear connection with food intake; loose, copious, yellow stools, possibly with a greasy sheen, white lumps; the stool is only slightly quickened or normal; possible single vomiting after eating or regurgitation.	Correction of the diet: with breastfeeding, control the frequency of attachments to the breast; with artificial - calculate the amount of feeding depending on the weight of the child (carried out by a doctor); in the case of the introduction of complementary foods - temporarily refuse it.
Taking medications	Connection with medication (antibiotics, sulfonamides, antipyretics). When treated with certain drugs (including antibiotics containing clavulanic acid - amoxiclav, augmentin), diarrhea develops immediately by stimulating intestinal motility. Long-term antibiotic therapy can cause dysbiosis and diarrhea against this background.	Consultation with a doctor. Cancellation (replacement) of the drug or additional prescription of probiotics may be required.
Intestinal dysbiosis	Prolonged diarrhea or irregular bowel movements without fever, other symptoms are possible (lethargy, poor appetite, poor weight gain, etc.). It is confirmed by laboratory research, but it should be borne in mind that the analysis of feces for dysbiosis is not indicative in infants up to 3 months of age: during this period, the child's intestines are still inhabited by normal microflora.	Treatment is carried out according to the doctor's prescription.

Irregular bowel movements in babies

Irregular stool is an alternation of constipation with diarrhea, or alternation of normal stool with constipation and / or diarrhea. The most likely reasons are irrational feeding, intestinal dysbiosis. Irregular stool can be a manifestation of chronic constipation, when a large amount of liquid stool appears after a long absence of stool.

In case of irregular bowel movements, you should first of all pay attention to the nature of the child's diet. If errors in nutrition are excluded, there is no overfeeding, the baby receives food according to age, then you need to consult a doctor for further examination and prescription of treatment.

Changes in the amount of stool

A decrease in the daily amount of feces in infants is observed mainly with constipation and starvation - in both cases, the feces are dense, poorly flowing, dark yellow or yellow-brown in color. Abundant stool is possible against the background of overfeeding. The constant release of large amounts of feces, especially of an unusual color, with a sharp unpleasant odor, requires a mandatory examination of the child (to exclude enzymatic insufficiency, intestinal diseases, etc.).

Consistency changes

Feces become denser with constipation, dehydration and lack of food; liquid - against the background of diarrhea for any of the reasons.

Color changes

As we have already discussed, the color of an infant's feces is very variable, and most often, color changes do not pose a danger - with a few exceptions - the baby's feces should not be colorless or black.

Black color is an alarming symptom that can be a sign of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, and bleeding should always be ruled out first in black stools. In addition to black stools (melena), bleeding may be accompanied by pallor, lethargy of the child, and vomiting often mixed with scarlet blood. Also, black stools are noted when blood is swallowed in case of nosebleeds.

However, there are also quite harmless reasons for the baby's stool of black color:

taking iron supplements;
swallowing of blood by the baby while sucking with cracked nipples in the mother.

Pathological impurities

There should never be any impurities of pus or scarlet blood (even streaks of blood) in the baby's stool - if they are found, you should immediately seek medical help. Pus can appear with inflammatory (infectious and non-infectious) bowel diseases, blood - in the case of bleeding from the lower digestive tract, with severe infectious diarrhea, with, with cracks in the anus, etc.

When to see a doctor immediately

An admixture of blood in the baby's stool is a reason to immediately consult a doctor.

Immediate medical attention (calling an ambulance) is necessary if the baby has at least one of the following symptoms:

Black stools (not associated with iron supplementation).
Scarlet blood or streaks of blood in the stool.
Diarrhea with high fever, vomiting.
Stool in the form of "raspberry jelly" - instead of feces, pink mucus comes out - a sign of intestinal intussusception.
Discolored stools with yellow skin and eyes.
A sharp deterioration in the child's well-being: lethargy, pallor, monotonous cry, incessant crying, etc.

Not only the listed, but also any other "incorrect" changes in the baby's stool, for which you are not able to find an explanation on your own or are not sure of their causes, require the consultation of a pediatrician. It's always best to play it safe and talk to your doctor about your warning signs.

Which doctor to contact

When changing a child's stool, you must contact a pediatrician. After carrying out diagnostics and analyzes, the doctor can send the parents and the child for a consultation with a gastroenterologist, infectious disease specialist, allergist, endocrinologist, surgeon, hematologist.

Dr. Komarovsky on constipation in children:

(votes - 6 , the average: 3,67 out of 5)

And how does it change from month to month? Some numbers and facts will help you find out, as well as ...

2. Weight and height of the baby.

The average gain for the 4th month of a child's life is about 750 g (from the moment of birth, the average gain is about 3 kg). Do not panic if the baby weighs a little less. The permissible minimum weight gain for a child of this age is 500 g. It is this criterion that is used to assess the sufficiency of the baby's breast milk. If the child is exclusively breastfed, then an increase in less than 500 g per month will indicate the need to change the feeding regime (in favor of more frequent or longer attachments to the breast), the introduction (sometimes as a temporary measure) of supplementary feeding in the form that can be done only on the recommendation of a pediatrician.

The approximate increase in growth for the fourth month of the baby's life is 2-2.5 cm, since the birth of the baby it has already grown by 11-12 cm.

3. Walking time.

As with earlier ages, summer walks for a 4-month-old can be lengthy; on warm summer days, mom and baby can spend almost the whole day in the fresh air. In the cold season, the restriction for going outside can be low air temperature (below -15 ° C), a sharp cold wind, even in combination with warm weather. In the rain or too strong wind, an alternative to staying outside can be a child's sleep on a closed balcony or veranda.

With the birth of their first child, inexperienced parents get a number of completely new and unfamiliar problems: feeding, whims, bathing the child, development, night awakenings. Caring parents gradually gain experience and cope. One of the most common difficulties is how many times a day should a newborn have stool at 1 month? What should the stool look like in a healthy baby? After all, in a baby, he is the best indicator of the functioning of the digestive system.

How many times a day is a baby supposed to poop at 1 month old?

The frequency and appearance of infant poop cannot be compared to that of an adult. The first days after birth, the baby's body gets rid of meconium, so greenish or black blotches are visible in the feces, which usually disappear after a few days. The appearance will depend on the nutritional characteristics of the child:

with HS, the mass will be yellow or greenish, similar to thick sour cream. It is a homogeneous "mixture" with a sour smell. Lumps, mucus, foam, or undigested food may sometimes be present. Mom's food affects the color of the stool - she loves vegetables more, the baby's stool will be greenish. This shade is also the norm. At a time, the child gives out 15 grams. feces, then the figure will increase.
Mixed or formula fed babies have dark brown or mustard-colored stools. The stool has a more unpleasant odor; in terms of quantity, it can exceed feces for GW - 40g. However, parents have nothing to worry about if the baby feels happy, gains weight, sleeps well, and eats with appetite.

How many times a day does a month-old baby have stool with breastfeeding and artificial feeding

The frequency of bowel movements - there is no one accepted norm, they cannot judge how many times a day a newborn should have stool at 1 month, on a mixture or GV. Each child's body works in its own way: it assimilates food faster or slower. Basically, the frequency of bowel movements depends on this.

Conditional meaning - a baby can, on average, poop from 5 to 10 a day, often after a feeding session. It turns out, how many times the mother fed, so much the baby stained the diapers. It is known that babies on GV defecate more often than artificial ones.

Babies on mixtures sometimes linger with a chair for up to 2 days. It is too early to sin on constipation. Parents need to feel the baby's tummy, monitor their behavior. If the tummy is soft on palpation, there is no gas, then everything is in order.

Stool frequency of a 2 month old baby

During the first month, the newborn's digestive system is actively adapting to changes around. To a new feeling of hunger and satiety, to the needs of food and, most importantly, to digest the food itself. These "works" are reflected in the frequency of feces, its appearance and the behavior of the child. As a rule, by the age of 2 months, the work of digestion is gradually improving. As a result, the child's bowel movement frequency may decrease.

When observing the baby, how many times a day should there be a chair for a newborn at 2 months on artificial nutrition - at least once or twice.

There are times when the baby refrains and does not poop for one, two, up to five days, but behaves calmly, he is cheerful, cheerful and does not complain of appetite. Then there is no reason to worry, most likely, the mixture or milk is completely absorbed, leaving nothing in the residue.

There is also no specific norm on IW. Perhaps once a day, or less often.

Reasons for Panic

Each mother, observing the baby on a daily basis, begins to study the child's internal schedule and feel deviations. The best indicator of the baby's condition is still his behavior. A healthy, uncomfortable child is in a good mood, eats with appetite and constantly gains weight. His tummy is soft, he doesn't care about gaziks, nor does he have colic.

Of course, constipation is common for babies, but parents should not run after candles and put different enemas. The child's body is just adjusting its work and interruptions in the gastrointestinal tract are normal for him.

None of the experts will say how many times a day a newborn should have a chair at 1 month, the norm and where the middle is 10 times a day or less. Every child has its own. A hardened stool can be a serious sign of true constipation. Then the following measures will help:

for a baby with GV, the mother needs to revise her menu and choose products more carefully;
for a baby with IV, check the mixture, perhaps it is not given according to age or is simply not suitable.

If it does not help, contact a specialist. Hard stools for a newborn are atypical and can injure the fragile walls of the colon, causing additional pain during bowel movements.