Baby’s stool appearing green may involve various reasons, divided into non-pathological and pathological categories. Brief appearance of green stool without other symptoms is often caused by non-pathological factors; if the situation persists or is accompanied by other discomfort, it may be a pathological condition.
Non-pathological factors include:
Cold exposure: Baby being cold may accelerate intestinal peristalsis, causing food to pass through the intestines quickly, resulting in green stools. The solution is to enhance warmth, use heat pads for assistance.
Feeding issues: Especially in infants under 6 months, the interaction of iron in formula or breast milk with stomach acid may produce green stools, which is a normal phenomenon and does not require special treatment.
Abdominal cold exposure: Exposing the baby’s abdomen to cold can also accelerate bowel movements, potentially leading to green stool, and applying heat pads can help alleviate this.
Dietary influences: When introducing complementary foods, introducing multiple pigment-containing foods at once (such as vegetable puree, fruit puree) may change the color of stool. Adjusting the type and amount of complementary foods can improve this situation.
Pathological factors involve:
Viral infections (such as viral enteritis) and bacterial infections (such as bacterial dysentery), these diseases cause intestinal mucosal inflammation, resulting in green substances due to the reaction of secretions and digestive enzymes, often accompanied by symptoms such as diarrhea, nausea, etc. Viral infections require antiviral medication as per medical advice; bacterial infections require antibiotic treatment.
Other serious diseases, such as acute hemorrhagic necrotizing enteritis, intussusception, etc., may also present as green stool. These situations require prompt medical attention to determine the cause through professional examination.
In daily care, arranging the baby’s diet reasonably, avoiding overeating, is crucial for maintaining intestinal health.
