What is the cause of diarrhea and yellow water in newborns and how to care for them

Many mothers have no experience in taking care of their newborns, so it is inevitable that they will not be thorough in taking care of their newborns, which may lead to symptoms such as fever, cough, and diarrhea. Newborns are more likely to have diarrhea, which is mostly caused by indigestion or because the breastfeeding mother has eaten very greasy food. Diarrhea can cause malnutrition in your baby. So what causes diarrhea and how should we take care of it?

Causes of diarrhea in newborns

1. Gastroenteritis: Gastroenteritis (also called the stomach flu) is an inflammation of the stomach and intestines that can cause diarrhea in infants, children, and adults. Gastroenteritis is very common and can be caused by many different viruses. The most common pathogen is rotavirus. Half of the children hospitalized for diarrhea are infected with this virus, which occurs most frequently in late autumn and early winter.

2. Bacterial infection: severe diarrhea (sometimes accompanied by vomiting), abdominal pain, bloody stools, and fever are often caused by viruses or bacteria (E. coli, Salmonella, etc.). Some of these infections are self-healing, but some can be very serious, such as those caused by E. coli in undercooked meat.

3. Parasites: Parasitic infections may also cause diarrhea. For example, giardiasis (also called giardiasis) is caused by a microscopic parasite that lives in the intestines. Parasites are easily spread when living in groups and require special medications to treat. Parasites mainly enter the baby's body through drinking water (including water used to make formula milk). Tap water is stored and transported through rooftop water tanks and water pipes, which can easily cause secondary pollution and contain various parasites such as red worms and Giardia lamblia.

4. Antibiotics: If your baby develops diarrhea during or after antibiotic treatment, it may be related to the medication.

5. Food factors: Drinking too much fruit juice (especially fruit juice containing sorbitol and high concentration of fructose) or too many sugary drinks may also make your baby's stomach uncomfortable and his stool become loose.

6. Milk allergy: Milk allergy is not uncommon and can also cause diarrhea and sometimes vomiting.

How to care for newborns with diarrhea 1. Adjust the child's diet to reduce the burden on the gastrointestinal tract

Some parents try every means to feed their children high-fat, high-protein foods such as chocolate, milk, and eggs in an attempt to make up for the damage caused by diarrhea in their children. However, they do not realize that doing so will increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract and make the diarrhea last for a long time. At this time, it is advisable to give children some easily digestible food, such as rice soup, sugar and salt water, or even temporarily prohibit them from eating, so that gastrointestinal function can be restored to speed up the recovery of the disease.

2. Keep your child's abdomen warm

Children's abdomen is easily affected by cold, and for children with diarrhea, the intestinal motility is already faster. If the abdomen is further affected by cold, the intestinal motility will be even faster, thus aggravating the condition.

3. Pay attention to protecting the patient's buttocks

Due to the increased frequency of bowel movements, the skin and mucous membranes around the anus will inevitably be damaged to varying degrees. Parents should pay special attention to the anal area during care. After defecation, you should wipe gently with soft toilet paper, or wash gently with soft gauze dipped in water. After washing, you can apply some oily ointment to prevent diaper rash. Change diapers in time to avoid diapers soaked in feces and urine from rubbing against the skin and causing ulcers. The toiletry, diapers, and contaminated clothing and bed sheets used by sick children must be washed and disinfected in a timely manner to avoid repeated infection or transmission to other people.