What to do if a 40-day-old baby has diarrhea and watery stools

After the joy of the birth of a baby, the most troublesome thing for mothers is often to take care of the baby. Because newborn babies are relatively small and cannot express their emotions and needs, this requires special observation by mothers, especially for babies around forty days old whose stomachs and intestines are not fully developed, and sometimes they are particularly prone to gastrointestinal problems. Among them, diarrhea and loose stools in babies at forty days old are relatively common problems, but they always make parents very scared, and they don’t know how to regulate it. Let’s learn about what to do if a baby at forty days old has diarrhea and loose stools.

What to do if a 40-day-old baby has diarrhea and watery stools

(1) Never fast. Regardless of the cause of diarrhea, although the baby's digestive tract function is reduced, the baby can still digest and absorb some nutrients, so breastfed babies should continue to be fed as long as the baby wants to eat. For babies who drink milk, the amount of milk they drink can be reduced by about 1/3 each time, and a little water can be added to the milk. If the baby is not eating enough after reducing the amount, you can add salty rice soup, or feed carrot water or fresh vegetable water to supplement inorganic salts and vitamins. For babies who are already eating complementary foods such as porridge, the amount of these foods can be slightly reduced. It depends on the baby's thirst.

(2) Ensure water supply. Detect dehydration early. When an infant has severe diarrhea, accompanied by vomiting, fever, thirst, dry lips, little or no urine, sunken eye sockets and anterior fontanelle, the infant becomes "thin" in a short period of time, the skin becomes "wilted", and the infant cries without tears, this indicates that dehydration has occurred and the sick child should be sent to the hospital for treatment in time.

(3) Prevent dehydration. Dehydration will not occur by continuously replenishing the water and salt lost due to diarrhea and vomiting with oral rehydration salts. Oral rehydration salt (ORS) 1000 ml contains 3.5 grams of sodium chloride, 2.5 grams of sodium bicarbonate, 1.5 grams of potassium chloride, and 20 grams of glucose. The dosage should be followed according to the doctor's advice, but the amount and drinking speed for preventing dehydration and treating dehydration are different. Oral rehydration salts contain a sugar concentration of 2%. Studies have shown that this sugar concentration is most conducive to mediating salt and water into the body to replenish losses caused by diarrhea. Its effectiveness has been recognized worldwide and it is a good medicine for preventing and treating diarrhea and dehydration.

(4) Do not abuse antibiotics. Many mild diarrhea cases can heal themselves without the need for antibiotics or other anti-inflammatory drugs; or taking microecological preparations such as Mommy Love, or water-absorbing drugs such as Smecta can quickly cure the disease. Especially for autumn diarrhea caused by viral infection, the use of antibiotics is not only ineffective but harmful. Antibiotics can be used for bacterial dysentery or other bacterial diarrhea, but treatment must be under the guidance of a doctor.

(5) Provide good home care. Parents should carefully observe the nature, color, frequency and amount of stool, and keep abnormal stool samples for testing to find the cause of diarrhea; pay attention to keeping the abdomen warm to reduce intestinal peristalsis, and wrap the abdomen with a towel or apply a hot water bottle to the abdomen; make sure the baby gets more rest, wash the buttocks with warm water after defecation to prevent diaper rash; diapers should be cleaned, boiled and disinfected, and dried before use.

The above is an introduction to what to do if a 40-day-old baby has diarrhea and watery stools. After understanding, we know that the eating habits and bowel habits of breastfed and bottle-fed babies are different, so when making adjustments for the baby, we must also consider the baby's feeding method. In addition, if the baby is breastfed, mothers should also pay attention to adjusting the diet, and must pay attention to eating some light food. If necessary, take the baby to the hospital for consultation and examination.