Rebornne Baby. American Baby
Rebornne Baby. American Baby
breastfeeding
features
quizzes experts
Breastfeeding is natural, but it
doesn't come naturally to every mom. Find out how to overcome the
most common nursing difficulties, like latch-on problems, nipple
confusion, and engorgement.
experts
Can
my baby stop sucking her thumb without using a pacifier?
My daughter is 3 weeks
old and nursing. For the last week she's had diarrhea. Should I be
worried?
Q: Babies' stools go through
many changes during the first eight weeks or so. First are the days
of slow, sticky, meconium stools, but by the end of the first week,
stooling speeds up and breastfed kids have a stool every time they
eat--or even more often. They average 8 to 10 soft, yellow, seedy
stools.
A: Over the next three
weeks, in breastfed kids, this number usually starts to drop. By 4
weeks, the average is about four soft stools a day, though there is
quite a lot of variability in this. At 8 weeks, the number drops to
an average of only one a day and some breastfed babies have only one
every several days--up to once every seven days or so can be normal.
If your baby is suffering
from diarrhea, our biggest concern is dehydration. We want to be sure
that kids are getting in plenty of fluid to replace what is lost,
and then some. If you were to notice yourself becoming engorged, or
if you notice that your baby is not making at least one wet diaper
every eight hours or is suffering from a fever, dry mouth, or dry
mucous membranes, you want her to be seen right away. Otherwise, this
type of stooling could come from developmental changes in the intestines
or from a mild virus. It could also be a reaction to a food in your
diet (the most common of these is to milk). Let your pediatrician
know about the stools in a phone call or at your baby's 1-month checkup.
Your
should know:
The
information on this Web site is designed for educational purposes
only. It is not intended to be a substitute for informed medical
advice or care. You should not use this information to diagnose
or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your
pediatrician or family doctor. Please consult a doctor with any
questions or concerns you might have regarding your or your child's
condition.
