7 Things You Should Know About... Baby'S Diarrhoea

Should you worry when your little one has runny stools? Eveline gan asks the doctors.

- Eveline Gan

1 Frequent runny stools are normal in breastfed babies.

How much poo should you expect from a baby? The answer is a lot, especially if she is on breast milk, which has a natural laxative effect.

Your baby’s bowel movements may be as frequent as seven to eight times a day. But it could also swing to the other extreme, and may be as infrequent as up to once a week as breast milk is so well digested, there may not be much left to be excreted, says Dr Ong Ian, paediatrician at Thomson Paediatric Centre (Katong).

What’s important is your baby feeds well and gains weight, and that the stool remains soft when she does a bowel movement, she adds.

Breastfed babies also tend to have softer and runnier stools than formulafed babies, who generally pass stools with a thicker consistency (think toothpaste texture), Dr Ong adds.

2 It’s diarrhoea if Baby is passing a lot more watery stools than normal.

If you’re a first-time parent, it can be hard to figure out if your little one is having the runs. First, consider what her normal bowel movements are like.

An occasional bout of loose stools is not a cause for alarm. But if she starts pooping a lot more frequently and her stools look more watery than usual, she probably has diarrhoea.

See a doctor if she has watery stools for more than two days, or if she is showing signs of dehydration or other symptoms, Dr Ong advises.

But seek medical attention at once if:

● the condition seems to be worsening, instead of improving.

● your baby is younger than three months and has a fever above 38 deg C.

● she is older than three months and has a fever above 39 deg C.

● there is blood or mucus in her stools.

● she appears to have severe tummy pain. Baby’s belly may look inflated or tensed. She may also cry nonstop, squirm a lot more than usual, or pull up her legs.