Baby has diarrhea after breastfeeding

Normally, breast milk is the best food for babies. It contains nutrients that babies need, which is very good for their health. In addition, breastfed babies generally have strong resistance. However, some babies have diarrhea after drinking breast milk. This is likely breast milk diarrhea. So what is the reason for babies to have diarrhea after drinking breast milk?

1. What is breast milk diarrhea?

Breast milk diarrhea is caused by breastfeeding and is not common in real life. When diarrhea occurs, the possibility of disease should be ruled out first.

Breast milk diarrhea has obvious characteristics. This type of diarrhea generally causes 3-7 bowel movements a day. The stools are foamy and watery, with a special sour smell. The stools are watery and slightly green, and contain foam and milk curds, and sometimes even strips of transparent mucus. When the baby has diarrhea, he or she does not have a fever, is not in obvious pain or crying, and is lively and has a good appetite. If diarrhea lasts for a long time, it may lead to serious consequences such as growth stagnation and malnutrition, and requires timely treatment.

2. Causes of breast milk diarrhea

Breast milk diarrhea is generally caused by two reasons:

1. It may be that the prostaglandin content in breast milk is high, which promotes the movement of small intestinal smooth muscles, increases the secretion of water and electrolytes, and produces loose stools.

2. It may be that the baby is intolerant to lactose and lacks lactase in the body. Lactose intolerance is divided into two categories: primary and secondary. The lead acetate method can be used to measure the amount of lactose in the child's feces for initial screening, and then it can be confirmed by the rapid effect of a lactose-free diet.

When the so-called physiological breast milk diarrhea occurs, do not switch to milk feeding in order to form stool. The baby's body will gradually adapt to the prostaglandins in breast milk, and the lactase will gradually mature. The enzyme activity will increase, and it will be able to break down, digest and absorb lactose, and the condition will gradually improve with the addition of complementary foods. In addition, be careful not to let the child cover the nipple. After each breast is basically emptied, if the child continues to suck, the amount of fat in the milk will increase, which can easily cause lipid indigestion. It is recommended that the child should suck if he wants to, and stop if he doesn't want to. It takes about 10 minutes each time and the full breasts can be basically sucked empty.

3. Symptoms of breast milk diarrhea

1. Many bowel problems

Children with breast milk diarrhea have abnormally frequent bowel movements, which gradually increase in frequency, and they usually have 3-7 bowel movements a day. Moreover, the stool is high in water, foamy and watery, and has a special sour and smelly smell. The stool is watery and slightly green, with foam and curds, and sometimes even strips of transparent mucus.

2. The baby does not show any abnormal behavior

There was no fever during diarrhea, the baby had no obvious pain or crying, and stool tests showed no abnormalities indicative of infection. The degree of diarrhea generally has no other symptoms, and the baby is lively and has a good appetite. Although the diarrhea lasts for a long time, the baby's weight gain can still be maintained at about 300g every 10 days, and the disease is not cured. If diarrhea lasts for a long time, it may lead to serious consequences such as growth stagnation and malnutrition in the baby, and requires timely treatment.