Introduction
Green stool in babies is a common phenomenon and can be caused by a variety of causes. In most cases, green bowel movements in babies are a normal deviation of the color of the stool. As long as the color of the stool normalizes within a short period of time and no other symptoms appear in the baby, there is usually no reason to be concerned. Green stool in babies is usually a dark and slightly greenish discoloration of the stool, more rarely the stool is light and changes from a yellowish to a green color.
Causes of green bowel movements in babies
The following is an overview of the causes of green stool in babies. These will then be discussed in detail. Physiological (normal) By breastfeeding By bottled milk By teething/salivation First bowel movement of the newborn Associated with treatments Antibiotics Vaccinations Pathological (pathological) Gastrointestinal infections Gastrointestinal diseases This topic might also be of interest to you:
- Physiological (normal) By breastfeeding By bottled milk By teething/salivation First bowel movement of the newborn
- Through breastfeeding
- Through bottled milk
- When teething/saving
- First bowel movement of the newborn
- Associated with treatments antibiotics vaccinations
- Antibiotics
- Vaccinations
- Pathological (pathological) gastrointestinal infections Gastrointestinal diseases
- Gastro-intestinal infections
- Gastrointestinal diseases
- Through breastfeeding
- Through bottled milk
- When teething/saving
- First bowel movement of the newborn
- Antibiotics
- Vaccinations
- Gastro-intestinal infections
- Gastrointestinal diseases
- Bowel movement in the baby
As a result of breastfeeding, the bowel movements of babies usually take on a rather liquid to mushy consistency, the color of the bowel movements is usually light yellow to light brown.
However, many babies who are breastfed have yellowish to light green stools. This green color of the bowel movements can be completely normal for many babies. The color of the baby’s bowel movements also depends on the food the nursing mother is eating.
If there is a lot of green colorant in the food, for example from lots of green vegetables, this can color the baby’s bowel movements green. More rarely, a green bowel movement in the baby can be a sign that the baby is not eating enough nutritious milk. The most common reason for this is that breastfeeding is too short.
Babies who are not breastfed but are fed with milk from the bottle usually have a somewhat firmer bowel movement than breastfed babies. Even if they are fed bottle-fed milk, the normal color of the bowel movements can vary from yellow-brown to brown-green, so green bowel movements are usually no cause for concern. Typically, bowel movements of babies with bottled milk smell a bit more severe than those of breastfed babies.
This topic might also be of interest to you:
- Feeding the baby
In infancy and childhood, babies are vaccinated against various pathogens. Since the vaccination is administered in an attenuated form of the actual pathogen, it is perfectly normal for the child’s immune system to respond to the vaccination. Most common are local reactions such as a reddening of the injection site or an increase in fever.
However, babies can also react to the vaccination with their digestive system. This can be shown, for example, by diarrhoea with a slight greenish discoloration. More about this:
- Baby vaccinations
- Side effects of vaccinations in babies
Antibiotics are drugs that work against bacteria in the body.
However, antibiotics do not only have an effect on those bacteria that cause disease. Instead, they attack all bacteria that are found in the body. Since the intestine in particular is full of bacteria that are needed for normal intestinal function and digestion, antibiotics can change the color and consistency of the bowel movements.
Especially in babies, this so-called microbiome in the intestine is not yet fully developed, which is why it is particularly sensitive to antibiotic therapy. In addition to a green bowel movement, babies can also suffer from diarrhea or a particularly hard bowel movement. Often the babies also have stomach pains and are therefore weepy.
The symptoms usually disappear within a few days of discontinuing antibiotic therapy.When babies’ first teeth come out, this is usually a reason for parents to be happy. However, in many children, teething is associated with more or less pronounced disease symptoms. For example, children can be very restless and moody due to pain when teething.
Not infrequently, they react with mild infection symptoms such as fever, a runny nose and gastrointestinal complaints, which can lead to greenish stools. In addition, many children have to salivate or drool a lot when teething. The large amount of saliva that ends up in the digestive tract in addition to food makes digestion more difficult, which often results in greenish bowel movements in the baby.
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