It takes about twelve hours from the time food enters the mouth to the time it is digested and excreted from the body.
First step digestion: chewed food → enters the gut → enzymes in the digestive juices such as pancreatic and gastric juices are converted into small molecules (amino acids, glucose, etc.);
Second step absorption: digested chowder enters the small intestine → small molecules (amino acids, glucose, etc.) are absorbed into the bloodstream
Third step intestinal metabolism: the residue enters the large intestine → (intestinal flora) produces Vitamins, etc. → the large intestine absorbs water from the residue → the stool becomes dehydrated and dry
The fourth step is to excrete the body: feces are excreted through the anus.
Why does stool come in all colors
The composition of stool consists of three main components: undigested food residue, skin cells present in the digestive juices of the intestine, and bile.
What color the stool is depends mainly on the bile and intestinal bacteria:
Bile: whether it is golden yellow or brownish, the role of bile is to help the baby to digest the proteins, sugars and fats in the food;
Intestinal bacteria: the sterile state of the intestinal tract as the baby grows and develops, it begins to be full of a variety of beneficial bacteria to help the baby to digest.
How to judge the state of feces
Observation of your baby's poop can be based on four aspects: shape, color, size, and smell, and is also considered in conjunction with a number of other aspects such as your baby's sleep, appetite, and weight gain.
A Dutch research institute studied the fecal patterns of 555 babies under the age of 4 months and came up with the "Amsterdam Baby Feces Identification Chart".
First of all, babies' stools can't be the same every day, as they are different colors depending on the food they eat and the supplements they receive;
Secondly, the number of times babies have a bowel movement is closely related to the number of times they are fed. The number of feedings varies from one day to the next, and 1 to 5 times a day is normal. As long as you are eating well, not sluggish, or growing too slowly in height and weight, you don't have to obsess too much about the shape and color of your stools.
Third, if the baby's bowel movements appear dry, diarrhea, pus with blood, you need to consult a doctor.
Five types of healthy poop
Medically, the Brexit classification uses the water in baby poop as a basis for categorizing it into seven types, with the middle being normal and the further to the sides the more attention is needed.
01Newborns
Characteristics: stools are uniform, dark green and sticky.
Changes: Around 30 days old, the baby's feces will change from yellow to yellow-green and green. The baby's nerve development is not yet sound, pooping will cause the whole body muscle contraction, the little face also rose red, as they grow older, this state will gradually disappear.
02Breastfeeding
Characteristics: golden or gold color, in the form of paste or cream, with occasional granules and acidity.
Changes: As long as the baby is well developed, there is no need to worry too much about 2 to 6 times a day or once every few days.
03Formula
Characteristics: yellowish-brown, earthy yellow, dark and thick compared to breast milk, occasionally with white clots, slightly foul-smelling.
Changes: 1 to 2 times a day, more volume compared to breast milk, and easily constipated.
PS: Mixed feeding baby's stool is more similar to this type, but it will be softer and lighter in color.
04Adding complementary foods
Features: brown, thicker and smellier than exclusive breastmilk.
Changes: Baby's feces become larger in volume with the addition of proteins and starchy foods, especially with the addition of fruits and vegetables, and will slowly become similar to adult feces. Don't worry too much if there is food residue in the feces, you can cut the food into smaller pieces appropriately, and this will gradually decrease as their chewing ability improves.
Poor poop
If the baby does not have a poor spirit, poor appetite, or is growing too slowly, moms and dads can adjust the baby's diet appropriately.
01Indigestion
Characteristics: yellowish stools, greenish stools, stools with milk petals, and stools with a thin consistency.
Protein indigestion→If the stool is yellowish-brown, thin, mixed with a few milk petals, and accompanied by the smell of rotten eggs. You can reduce the amount of milk and lower the amount of protein in the complementary food.
Carbohydrate indigestion → the stool is dilute and foamy, so you need to cut down on starchy and sugary foods.
Fat indigestion → the stool is slightly buttery and thinner than peanut butter, so you need to cut down on oily foods.
02 on fire
Features: dry, grainy, cracked.
Symptoms: This is a sign that your baby is on fire. You can add some water between two feedings of formula; if you have started to add complementary foods, you need to increase the amount of fruits, vegetables and other foods containing dietary fiber and adequate water.
The need to pay attention to the poop
If the baby's poop suddenly changes on any day, mothers and fathers must pay more attention.
01Green poop
Characteristics: Green, thin, foamy mucus.
Iron in formula milk→There is some iron in formula milk, they are digested and come into contact with the air, they will show dark green color, and the poop that the baby takes after eating formula milk will also show dark green color. If they have too much poop, diarrhea, or occasional blood or mucus, they need to seek medical attention;
Hungry green poop→If babies don't have enough to eat, their intestinal peristalsis will speed up instead, and the biliverdin hasn't had a chance to turn into bilirubin, which is also prone to green poop. If your baby is crying and upset, has scanty stools, lots of mucus, and fewer bowel movements, it's likely to be caused by not having had enough to eat;
Excessive Sugar Intake→If your mom eats too much high-sugar, high-starch food, it's easy to cause your baby's poop to turn green when breastfeeding; at the same time, the second half of breast milk has a higher amount of fat than the front, so when you're breastfeeding, you need to feed the one side of the breast milk empty before feeding the other side.
02Oily and shiny poop
Features: pale yellow, shiny and oily, back and forth can be sliding
Analysis: This is because the baby ate too much food with high fat content, resulting in the production of excessive fatty acids in the intestinal lumen, stimulating the intestinal mucosa, leading to increased intestinal peristalsis.
03Too smelly poop
Protein neutralizes the stomach acid, resulting in a decrease in acidity in the gastric juices, and the protein can not be fully digested and absorbed, and at the same time, the bacterial decomposition and metabolism in the intestinal lumen, which will also lead to the baby's poop is too smelly.
If a breastfed baby's poop suddenly stinks, accompanied by diarrhea and fever, he or she should seek medical attention.
04BLOODY STOOLS
If you find any of the following four conditions, you must seek prompt medical attention.
The tarry stool: black and bright. Mostly associated with duodenal ulcer, chronic gastritis bleeding;
Bright red: sticking to the surface of the poop, mostly associated with anal and anal tract diseases;
Red jam-like: there is blood and mucus in the poop, associated with intestinal bleeding, intussusception, amoebic dysentery, acute enteritis;
Light red and fishy smell: often associated with acute hemorrhagic necrotizing enteritis.
05 Eggdrop poop
Characteristics: yellow, egg-shaped, mucus, white lumps.
It is likely that the baby has fecal viral enteritis or E. coli enteritis.
06 Lime-like stool
Features: grayish-white, hard texture, accompanied by a foul odor.
This type of stool, also known as "clay-colored stool", is commonly associated with intestinal obstruction or congenital biliary obstruction, which can lead to liver damage if left untreated.
At the same time, if a baby drinks too much milk or doesn't consume enough sugar during meals, it can also form fatty soaps, which are caused when calcium and magnesium from food combine with fatty acids in the body.
07Tofu dregs poop
Features: tofu dregs state, with mucus, predominantly yellow-green color
May be related to mycobacterial enteritis, thrush.