What is the cause of the child's diarrhea and blood in the stool?

Children's gastrointestinal system is more fragile than that of adults, so when feeding children, parents must choose foods that are suitable for children's stomachs. Children are more likely to have diarrhea. In order to prevent children from becoming dehydrated due to diarrhea, parents must take care of their children when they have diarrhea. But when I was taking care of my child who had diarrhea, I found blood in his stool. What was going on?

What's wrong with my baby's diarrhea and blood?

1. The mother's nipple is ulcerated and bleeding

During breastfeeding, especially in the early stages of breastfeeding, mothers' nipples are prone to ulceration. If the baby swallows blood from the ulcerated mother's nipple while feeding, the stool will contain a small amount of pink or red substance. In this case, stool testing will not detect red blood cells, but will detect occult blood. Babies who have bloody stools due to this reason usually eat normally and are in good spirits, and it will not affect the baby's growth.

2. Taking iron supplements (iron-containing foods)

If your baby takes iron-containing multivitamin preparations or iron supplements, or eats foods rich in iron, it is impossible for all of the iron in the medicine or food to be absorbed, and a small amount will be excreted through the intestines. At this time, the stool may contain dark brown spots, and the stool occult blood will be positive. This condition has nothing to do with the baby's intestinal development or disease. As long as the baby grows normally, there is no need to worry.

3. Damage to the small intestinal mucosa

This situation is generally caused by intestinal intolerance. The intestine cannot tolerate certain foods, which damages the small intestinal mucosa and causes blood to enter the intestinal cavity. Since the blood stays in the intestine for a period of time before being excreted with the stool, it will be destroyed by the intestinal fluid during this period. Therefore, stool testing can only detect occult blood in the stool, but no red blood cells. Most intestinal damage is caused by food, the most common of which is milk. This small intestinal damage will persist without a change in diet, causing your baby's growth and development to be delayed.

4. Anal fissure

If fresh blood is visible in the stool and the blood is attached to the surface of the stool, and examination shows the presence of red blood cells, it is most likely caused by anal fissure. The baby may cry and have difficulty defecating, but the stool may not be dry and hard. Because the baby's anal sphincter is not fully developed and the contraction and relaxation coordination is not perfect, small cracks often occur during defecation, resulting in a small amount of blood in the stool. At this time, apply a small amount of antibiotic ointment on the anus and the condition will soon improve.

5. Disinfectants damage the intestines

Some mothers believe that using disinfected facial tissue is healthier than using water to clean their baby’s hands. However, this may cause the baby to accidentally ingest disinfectant, which may cause intestinal damage. If the mother uses clean water instead of disinfectant wipes, the baby's bowel movements will soon return to normal.

What to do if your baby has blood in his stool

1. If your baby usually has only 1 to 2 bowel movements a day, but this number suddenly increases to 5 to 6 times a day, you should consider whether he is sick. If the baby has frequent bowel movements but is in generally good condition and has not lost weight, it cannot be considered that the baby is sick.

2. Children with mild diarrhea often have bloody stools. In fact, this is caused by pigments in food or medicine. Whenever there is doubt, the stool can be tested to eliminate the mother's doubts.

3. If the red substance in the stool is indeed blood and appears in streaks, the stool is very hard, or the baby shows pain during defecation, then it may be bleeding from anal fissure. This is the cause of most cases of blood in the stool. Taking a hot bath, adjusting the amount of food you eat, and taking medication can have good results.

4. The third reason for finding blood in your baby's stool is diarrhea caused by many different infections. This type of diarrhea, caused by a virus or bacteria, sometimes presents with a brief but noticeable bloody stool. Your baby may have a high fever and his stools may contain blood and occasionally pus, mucus, and undigested food. When a pediatrician sees this condition, he or she will first carefully observe whether there are signs of dehydration, and then do tests to determine not only the cause of the diarrhea and bleeding and measure the blood cell count, but also do cultures and smears of the stool to look for evidence of specific infections. Some cases of diarrhea can be treated with antibiotics, so all children with this illness should be diagnosed and treated by a doctor, especially paying attention to acute dysentery.