What is the stool of a six-month-old baby?

Stool is the excretion of the baby's body. Although it is very dirty, it is often the best way to see whether the baby has gastrointestinal problems or whether the food is better absorbed through the stool. In fact, it is necessary to start adding complementary foods when the baby is six months old. So what is the baby's stool like during this period? What is normal? What should be done if the stool is loose or dry? What causes it? I believe this is what many parents want to know. Let's take a look at what the stool of a six-month-old baby is like.

What is the stool of a six-month-old baby?

The stools of breastfed babies are yellow or golden yellow, uniform like ointment, but without odor. They have frequent bowel movements, usually 2 to 4 times a day, and some as many as 7 to 8 times a day. This is called physiological diarrhea. Parents don't need to worry, this is a normal phenomenon, and the diarrhea will disappear automatically when the child grows to a certain age. Babies fed with milk have less bowel movements, 1 to 2 times a day, with a slightly smelly stool.

Even if a newborn baby has not eaten anything, he or she will usually pass dark green meconium 10 to 12 hours after birth. After 3 to 4 days of breastfeeding, the stool becomes yellow-green, which is called transitional stool. After that, the stool gradually turns yellow. If the baby does not excrete meconium within 24 hours after birth, or still has no normal bowel movement after about 4 to 5 days, you should consult a doctor in time.

Some infants and young children have frequent bowel movements but small amounts of stool, and the stool is mostly green and mucous. If there are fewer curds, it means the child eats too much and the amount of milk should be gradually reduced. Some children still have diarrhea after reducing the amount of milk. This may be hunger diarrhea, and the amount of milk should be increased appropriately.

If a child fed with milk has hard and smelly stools, it means that the baby is fed too much milk and too little sugar, and some sugar should be added to the milk. If there is too much sugar, the baby's stool will be foamy, thin and yellow, and have a strong sour taste, and the amount of sugar should be appropriately reduced and the amount of milk should be increased.

If an infant or young child has been excreting grayish white stools since birth and has never had yellow stools, but his urine is yellow, it is likely caused by congenital bile duct obstruction. When infants and young children have intestinal infections, they have frequent bowel movements, loose or watery stools, smelly stools with mucus, and often experience vomiting, anorexia, fever, and even dehydration. The children should be taken to the hospital for examination in time.

The frequency and texture of infants' stools often reflect the state of their digestive function. If parents can pay attention to the texture, color and frequency of their infants' stools and correctly identify normal and abnormal stools, it will help to detect abnormalities in the baby's digestive tract early and provide valuable clues for diagnosing diseases.

Normal bowel movement

1. Meconium The main component of meconium is water, accounting for about 72%. It is composed of epithelial cells shed from the fetal intestine, bile, concentrated digestive juices and swallowed amniotic fluid. Meconium is first excreted within a few hours after birth (usually within 10 hours). It is dark green and a little shiny, much like the asphalt on the road surface melted by the scorching sun in summer. It has no odor and gradually transitions to normal baby feces within 2-3 days after feeding.

2. The feces of breastfed babies are golden yellow, mostly uniform and paste-like, with occasional small milk curds and a sour taste, 2-3 times a day. Even if you have bowel movements 3-5 times a day, it can be considered normal if the stool does not contain too much water and is mushy.

3. Artificially-fed infants’ feces: Infants fed with milk (including milk powder) or goat’s milk have light yellow feces, which are mostly formed, contain more milk curds, are alkaline or neutral, are large in quantity and smelly, and occur 1-2 times a day.

4. The feces of mixed-feeding infants: The feces of infants fed with breast milk and cow's milk are similar to those of infants fed with cow's milk, but are yellower and softer. After adding complementary foods such as cereals, eggs, meat, and vegetables, the stool characteristics become close to those of adults, and should be taken once a day.

The above is an introduction to the six-month-old baby's bowel movements. After understanding it, we know that the shape and frequency of the baby's bowel movements are different depending on the baby's feeding methods and living habits. However, it is worth noting that if the baby's bowel movements are abnormal, you must observe the baby's mental state in time. Do not blindly use medication for the baby. If necessary, go to the hospital for examination in time.