Recent Feedback
Our 1-month old has had diarrhea for 5 days with greenish stools that occur with every feeding. She is otherwise healthy, no temps, normal behavior. In the beginning, we called our doc, she said that was normal. Now we are getting worried, should we start her on Pedialyte and if so, how much should we give?
Can you describe what you mean by 'diarrhea'? I've found different people mean different things. What is her current diet? Does she take regular infant formula or breast milk?Normal infant stools are of a 'toothpaste' consistency, and can occur as often as with every feeding or as seldom as once every 5 days. They can be just about any color from green to yellow to dark brown. The only colors I worry about are red (blood) or white, and both of those colors should prompt a visit to your physician. If she is having loose, watery stools and seems to be losing a lot of fluid, then the best way to see if she's becoming dehyrdated is to make sure she is urinating. Lack of a wet diaper for more than 8 hours is concerning. As far as the pedialyte goes, I don't recommend switching to it. It will not stop the diarrhea, and it doesn't provide the calories she needs to grow on. If the baby is truly having watery frequent stools, then 1-2 oz of pedialyte substituted for a single feed may help give her gut a rest, but ultimately formula is still the best thing.
Diarrhea is what I see-loose watery BMs, with bubbling froth occasionally that comes out of her anus in small amounts during some feedings, it is frequent, and she is being breastfed. She is getting fussy a lot lately, and cannot sleep much in the afternoon with cries. I have some medical background, but not with peds, and this is my child. Giving her formula once didn't stop the greenish stools.
Okay, so there could be a couple things going on. What's mom's diet like? Any recent changes or tendency to eat spicy foods? Mom's diet will affect her breast milk composition which in turn can affect stool consistency. It's also possible that the baby has picked up a slight tummy bug, but as long as she's not becoming dehydrated and as long as there's no fever above 100.5, I would just give it time and follow up with your pediatrician. I would also recommend continuing feeding through the loose stools. Whether you use breast milk or formula isn't important (though if you want to continue breast feeding, make sure mom uses her breast milk instead of formula supplementation), but no water (infant kidneys can't handle free water). Mom could also try eating a bland diet for the time being. None of this sounds like a milk allergy, so I would not try soy formulas or other hypoallergic formula.
Experience: Pediatric hospitalist at a dedicated children's hospital