Reasons for watery stools in newborns

The birth of every newborn brings a surprise to the family, and the parents will feel very happy. However, with the birth of the newborn, some symptoms make the parents at a loss, such as watery stools. Every mother hopes that her child is healthy, so what should they do in the face of this phenomenon?

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.

Abnormal stool

If your baby's stool frequency suddenly increases or becomes thinner without changing the amount or type of food, this should be considered abnormal.

1. Foamy stool

Eating too much starch or sugary food can increase the fermentation of food in the intestine, and the resulting stool will be dark brown, watery and foamy.

2. Foul-smelling stool

When babies eat too much protein-rich food, the protein can neutralize the gastric acid in the stomach, thus reducing the acidity of the gastric juice and making it impossible for the protein to be fully digested and absorbed. Coupled with the decomposition and metabolism of bacteria in the intestinal cavity, the stools of these babies are often very smelly.

In the above article, we learned that the newborn's stool is watery. First of all, this phenomenon is caused by the child's inability to adapt to the use of breast milk and formula. Mothers who are breastfeeding should pay attention to their diet to prevent their children from having diarrhea.