Slimy chair of babies – What is behind it?

Slimy stool should not be confused with diarrhea at first. In contrast to diarrhea, mucous stool is characterized by increased viscosity, whereby the stool frequency is not increased and the stool itself is not watery liquid. However, diarrhea and mucous stool can occur together.

There are several reasons why an infant’s stool can become slimy. One of the reasons is increased salivation, as can happen when teething, for example. The saliva passes through the gastrointestinal tract and enters the stool, making it mucusy.

Other reasons can be a change in diet and also food intolerance. A food allergy can also play a role. When the baby feels well and shows no signs of illness such as listlessness, fever or fatigue, the slimy stool can be observed for the first time.

It should disappear within a few days. If the slimy stool occurs with diarrhoea, it may also be due to a viral or bacterial infection of the digestive tract. If bloody admixtures are then added, this is an alarm signal. A doctor should be consulted as soon as possible. Apart from the gastro-intestinal infection, other and more serious diseases may also be possible.

Foamy chair at the baby

Greenish and foamy stool occurs especially when the baby receives a lot of lactose. This is present in breast milk and especially in the so-called front milk. If an infant is breastfed and drinks it often, but usually only briefly, at the breast, it is possible that the infant absorbs a lot of the front milk without drinking the rear milk, which is richer in fat.

Due to the increased lactose content, the stool can become foamy. One attempt is to breastfeed the infant on one breast for as long as possible until the breast is exhausted so that the hind milk is also absorbed, and to observe the bowel movement. General information on this topic can be found here: Foamy diarrhea