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Let the diaper tell the story

Bowel movements – also called stools – vary a great deal from baby to baby. They may vary in number, size, colour and texture. What is normal for your baby may not be normal for your sister's baby or the baby in the house across the street. At the same time, having some guidelines for what to expect can be helpful. Just remember that the information here is only a guide. Your baby's doctor or nurse can answer any questions you have.

Breastfed Stools

One thing that affects your baby's stools is what you feed your baby. The breastfed baby's normal stools are frequent, soft and loose, usually a light mustard-yellow colour with very tiny seed-like pieces. This is because breastmilk is easy to digest and contains all the nutritients needed for the baby to grow. Due to the ease of digestibility, it also has very little solid waste.

Formula-fed Stools

Babies who are fed formula often have firmer stools than breastfed babies. Stool colour varies, and yellow, green and brown are all common. Babies fed formula typically have less frequent stools than breastfed babies at least for the first 2 months of life. There may be differences in your baby's stools depending on which formula you feed.

Diarrhoea

Infant diarrhoea can be caused by many things, including virus and antibiotics taken for infections. Diarrhoea is a change to more frequent and watery stools. However, breastfed babies' frequent and soft/loose stools are normal and should not be mistaken for diarrhoea.

Constipation

Constipation may mean one or more of the following:

• Stools that are painful or uncomfortable to pass. Note: most babies strain and grunt during a bowel movement – these by themselves are not signs of constipation.
• Stools that are small and hard.
• Stools that are 2 or 3 more days apart that are passed with discomfort.

Breastfed babies are rarely constipated. For formula-fed babies, the type of fat blend in formula milk influences the stool consistency.

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