Parents who have been hands-on in taking care of their children since infancy are used to changing diapers and cleaning all the mess that their child leaves behind. Sometimes, some things surprise parents, and one of them is discovering that their baby's poop is green.
What causes green poop in infants
For the first few days of existence, the baby's poop is usually black known as meconium, which comes from the substance that he has ingested while inside the womb. As the days go by, the color of their poop varies depending on a lot of factors.
Typically, babies pass yellowish-brown to light brown feces. Sometimes, when they are prescribed with iron supplements, they could have dark, green poop. Babies that are exclusively breastfed could have a yellowish poop because of the fat content of the breast milk.
If you find that your baby passes green poop, here are the possible reasons:
What the mom eats
Poop of babies who are exclusively breastfeeding could be affected by the food that their mom eats. Green vegetables or other food that has artificial green coloring could cause your baby to have green poop.
Allergy or sensitivity in the food mom eats
Your baby could have green poop when he is sensitive to something that you have eaten. It can sometimes have a mucus-like consistency. Sometimes it is a reaction to a drug that you have taken, which could also be accompanied by skin or stomach problems, or breathing difficulties.
The baby is ill
A stomach bug or virus could change the color and consistency of your baby's poop. Sometimes it is in the form of diarrhea.
Imbalance or oversupply of foremilk or hindmilk
Foremilk is the milk that comes during that start of feeding, which is sometimes higher in lactose and is lower in fat. Hindmilk is the milk that comes towards the end of the feeding, mostly the creamier and higher in fat. If your baby digests mainly foremilk, he could have green, frothy, or watery poop.
What you feed to your baby
When babies start eating solid food, you might see green poop again. Feeding your baby with greens could make your baby produce greenish poop.
There may be mucus
When you see slimy green streaks in your baby's poop, then it could be called mucus. Sometimes this happens when your baby is drooling so much, or he is teething. Mucus presence could also be a sign that your baby is infected. Inform your pediatrician if it does not go away on its own.
Green poop in toddlers and older children
You may also notice that your toddler or older children could sometimes produce green poop. This poop usually is not a cause of concern because it could only be caused by natural or artificial food coloring, diarrhea, illnesses, or iron supplements.
Not only do babies or older children produce green poop. Sometimes even adults have them, but it usually is not something to make us worry. However, if the green poop does not go away after a few days, consult your pediatrician to have them checked.
