13 Questions and Answers About Baby Poop!

Baby poop is one of the first things that parents should specialize in. Because the color, texture, smell and density of poop in babies give clues about the overall health of the baby. For this reason, the baby’s diaper is carefully examined, especially in the early stages, to look at the color of the poop and whether there is blood or mucus in the poop.

While the baby’s not pooping is a cause for sadness in itself, it can also be worrying if he poops a lot. What should be the frequency of poop in babies, what does green poop mean in babies, how many times a day does a 1-month-old baby poop, what should be done to a baby who cannot poop? You can find the answer to all of these and more in this article!

1. How about newborn baby poop?

• The baby’s first poop is greenish black. This almost black-colored poop, or newborn baby poop, is actually the tar-like meconium that fills the baby’s intestines during his/her stay in the womb. The baby expels this meconium from his intestines for the first 24 hours.
• After the first 24 hours, that is, after all the meconium is excreted, this time the intestines begin to excrete temporary stools. Temporary stool is a dark greenish yellow stool. It is watery and particulate. It is particularly common in breastfed infants.
• Your baby’s poop in this period may sometimes be a slimy liquid consistency and sometimes bloody. Blood in the poop is probably blood your baby swallowed during delivery, but we still recommend that you show it to the doctor.
• Temporary stool ends after 3-4 days. After that, your baby’s stool starts to change depending on what they eat.

2. Why do baby poop colors differ?

The appearance of poop may differ from each other depending on the baby’s diet. We have mentioned below how normal baby poop should be.

• If the baby only takes breast milk; stool color is golden yellow or mustard color. Stool can sometimes be watery and loose and sometimes particulate.
• If the baby is also fed with formula; stool color can vary from light yellow to yellowish brown, light brown to brownish green.
• If the baby is fed an iron-fortified formula or is taking iron medication; stool color can be green, greenish, dark brown or black.

3. What causes green poop in babies?

We can talk about more than one reason why your baby’s poop is green.

Why does baby poop turn green in newborns;

If newborn baby poop is green, this is normal. As we explained above, the baby will first excrete mechanium and then temporary stool from his intestines. This period lasts about 4-5 days.

In infants receiving only breast milk;

• Indicates that the mother’s diet contains a lot of dark green vegetables,
• The baby or mother is using iron pills,
• The baby is using some different drugs,
• The nursing mother is using antibiotics.

For detailed information about feeding your baby during this period, you can refer to our 0-6 month baby nutrition article.

In infants who have switched to supplementary food ;

• Her baby’s diet includes dark green vegetables.

For information about this period, you can use our 6 and 7 month old baby nutrition articles.

Apart from all these, some digestive problems and diseases are also causes of green poop in babies. Well,

• Intestinal and microbial inflammations,
• stomach flu,
• common cold ,
• Sensitivity to some foods, ( Everything You Wonder About Food Allergies In Babies In 6 Questions! )
• Excessive saliva production due to teething can cause green poop.

If green poop is caused by an ailment, other symptoms become important. For example;

• While the baby is suckling, he gets more fore milk, but he may not be able to get the fatty milk that comes later and saturates him. There is an excess of lactose in foremilk, and taking too much from foremilk can cause lactose to be indigestible. This also causes gas pains.
• Drinking cow’s milk while breastfeeding can cause digestive problems if you have a baby with a low tolerance for cow’s milk proteins.

If you notice skin rashes, rashes, eczema or extreme gas pains along with green poop in your baby, you should definitely seek help from a doctor.

4. What causes mucous poop in babies?

Let’s come to the question of what causes mucus in the poop of babies.

• If the baby has taken too much breast milk,
• If he produces too much saliva while teething and swallows this saliva, he may have a food allergy. Therefore, he may poop with mucus.

If mucous baby poop lasts for more than 2 days, it is useful to consult your doctor.

5. What causes slimy poop in babies?

If your baby is constantly having slimy yellow poop, it may be related to health, nutrition, or an infection in the gut. Due to the allergy to cow’s milk, slimy poop can be seen especially in newborns. This can also lead to noisy poop in babies. Not only breast milk, but also the foods you eat during breastfeeding can trigger this allergic condition.

If the baby has conditions such as fever, vomiting, there may be an infection in the intestines. This can lead to slimy poop.

6. What causes black poop in babies?

Black poop is a condition that can be encountered in infants when iron supplements are used. You should not neglect to consult your doctor if your baby’s stools are black in color even though you do not use iron medication. From time to time, gray poop can also be seen in babies. This can be due to the insufficiency of bile acids, that is, digestive problems. In either case, it’s a good idea to consult your doctor.

7. What causes yellow poop in babies?

It is normal for breastfed babies to have yellow stools. Especially diarrhea baby poop can be yellow and slimy in color. This may be due to the intense fore milk coming in, don’t let it scare you. However, if the diarrhea continues for 3-4 days, do not neglect to take your baby to the doctor.

8. What causes white poop in babies?

You may be surprised to see white patches in baby poop. White lumps in baby poop can be a sign of colic. But that decision should be made by your doctor. But in general, white poop in babies is caused by gallbladder and liver problems. Among the baby poops, the white one is one of the first things to go to the doctor without wasting time, attention.

9. What causes bloody poop in baby?

Seeing blood in any situation can be scary. The situation can be even more worrying, especially when it comes to the health of our children. So what causes blood in babies poop? As we mentioned above, it is normal to see blood in the baby’s poop within a few days after birth. In all other cases of blood in the stool of infants, we recommend that it be investigated.

• If there is no mucus, bloody baby poop is often a sign of food allergies.
• If your baby’s poop contains both blood and mucus, it’s usually of viral, microbial or bacterial origin.
• If the baby has constipation problems, this can cause cracks in the anus, and bleeding from these cracks can cause blood in the stool.
• If your baby has blood in his poop and also has diarrhea, he needs to be evaluated by a specialist very urgently.
• If your poop is foul-smelling and there is mucus in your baby’s poop, in addition to your baby’s fever and weight loss, your baby may have diarrhoea.

10. What causes orange poop in babies?

Orange poop is normal for babies if they are formula-fed. When you feed your baby with formula, his poop may be light or almost orange in color. Don’t be afraid that your baby’s poop will be the same color as the last time you fed her. For example, if he ate carrots, his poop might turn orange.

11. How many days do babies poop?

The frequency of poop in babies varies. Even the number of stools per day for each baby may be different every day. It is normal for the baby to poop once in 5 days or to poop 5 times in a day.

How many times a day does a 1 month old baby poop?

The amount of stool your baby eats is directly proportional to the amount of food they eat. It is possible for the baby to poop too much if he is feeding well. The frequency of 1 month old baby pooping may be 5 times a day or more. The important thing is the general condition of the baby rather than the frequency of poop. If your baby is happy, sleeps well, gains weight, is comfortable, it doesn’t matter how many times a day he poops.

Some babies may defecate many times a day for the first year. This amount may decrease as the baby grows.

12. What is the problem of not being able to poop in babies?

Constipation is described by mothers in many different ways. Mothers often worry about constipation when the baby’s pooping frequency decreases.

Babies are less constipated when they are exclusively breastfed. Because every baby’s mother’s milk is the most suitable milk for the baby’s intestines and digestion. A breastfed baby may poop once a week. However, this poop is extremely soft and does not force your baby while making it. In this case, we cannot talk about constipation.

Constipation is more common in formula-fed babies. The baby may not poop for 3-4 days, or he will poop more often, but his poop may be large and hard. Your baby may have a hard time pooping, and even cracks may occur in the anus due to straining. Constipation occurs when babies have solid poop.

So, how about constipated baby poop? Round, small, grainy poop like goat dung is a sign of constipation . It may also be due to the baby not getting enough nutrition.

13. Why do babies poop smell?

Experts say that it is normal for babies to smell bad poop, depending on the foods they eat. However, if your child’s poop smells very bad and this has been the case for a long time, a poop analysis may be required.