7 Month Old and Bowel Movements

My son, also exclusively breastfed until he was 6 months, had horrible blowouts until he started on solids. The solids really solidified his bowel movements, especially after we moved on to finger foods. I used to keep stain stick in his changing table and would use it several times a day on various items, but now we rarely use it for blowouts (instead, it is for food stains!).

I would take a look at what you are eating and see if that's affecting him. What you eat - he eats.

Have you considered trying a larger diaper size? I found that having a little extra room down below can accommodate the explosion and gas with less spread up the front and back or dribble down the sides. You can't always rely on the size on the packages.

S.,

My exclusively BFed daughter did the same thing for a while. Two things that were helpful for me: Colicease and adjustments.

Colicease is a brand of gripe water, usually recommended for colic, but the essential oils in it help with BMs. 95% of the time, when my daughter has not pooped & we give her the colicease, she goes within 30 minutes. Helping her go at least once a day helps with the blowouts.

Also, chiropractic adjustments can help relax the digestive system so that they can go every day. There are some pediatric chiropractors in your area, and you can find them at www.icpa4kids.org.

I also agree with another poster that bigger diapers might help.

Good luck!

Yours in health,
Dr. Alyssa

I breastfed my son until he was 2, and he had diarrhea and loose stools the entire time...he still has loose stools most of the time and he is 9 years old! The doctor says that some kids have these problems and not to worry, but I still may have him checked out.

Perfectly normal for a breastfed baby.

Before introducing any supplements (mentioned by another poster), please consult your pediatrician. I wouldn't worry about it though, it's completely normal.

Try switching diapers. Maybe move up a size or try a different brand that may fit better and prevent blowouts. Their bodies change so quickly, the diaper you prefer as a newborn might not work as they grow.

Sounds a lot like what my daughter was doing. Our doctor had us do two weeks of prunes, so she got at least one serving a day as part of her solids. During those two weeks I think it was worse. Once they were over we went back to mixing up her solids without prunes. Now she does seem to be doing much better, she's almost on a daily schedule and the messes are much less explosive.
Oh, but the prune poo is quite fragrant, so be ware!

My son went through the same thing at that age. He was on a small amount of solids and I was cleaning up poop every day. Once he started eating more solids, it took care of itself. I hope that is the case for you, too! Good luck!

Hi S.,
Even if it doesn't seem like it, he is probably ready for the next size diaper. That is my sign every time my boys needed to move up a size. I don't think they ever really outgrew a diaper as much as needing more space for poo.
good luck!

First off, check to make sure YOU have not changed a lot of what are you eating. . AS any Doctor will tell you. What you eat goes to the breast milk.
The baby should have a bowel movement daily. If it is explosive, have you talked to the babies Doctor? The DR. needs to know, just in case there is more of a bowel problem.
New foods should be given just the new one only for 4 to 5 days to make sure baby can tolerate it. Do not add more than 1 food at a time.
Change to just cereal ( rice) for a week or 2 to see if can tolerate it with out exploding . IF this does not help it= then go see baby DR.

I don't have any advise but letting you know we are in this together. My 7 month old daughter has been eating solids since she was 4 months old. We have recently upgraded her two stage 2. She has always pooed alot. i can only tell you get good diapers (huggies or pampers, and make sure you have extra clothes. Just because you get cheaper diapers doesn't mean you are saving time or money especially if the clothes are stained. We went on vacation a couple weeks ago and had to strip her down naked in a gas station bathroom with no hot water to clean her up. that was not fun. My pediatrician said once she starts eating more solids her poo should be solid. i have yet to see this happen unless she gets constipated.

My son went through the same thing. First of all, you may need to go up to the next diaper size. In my opinion the weights noted on the boxes are inaccurate. We went more on fit and coverage (to prevent blowouts) than the weights and were usually switching to the next size up several pounds early. (I think he's been in size five since he was about 23-24 pounds and the starting weight on those is something like 26 punds.) Also, his little tummy is getting accustomed to the changes in foods. If he's having diarrhea you definitely want to pull back on what your feeding, but the explosive nature is going to happen while his body adjusts to having to digest and (sorry to be gross) push through the different foods. THat's why the bigger, better fitting diapers are better at this point. GOod luck!

Hi S.,
I have a six month old who does the same thing--explosive bowel movements every few days. He is also soley breast-fed. I asked my doctor at our six month check-up. He suggested giving baby some apple juice to move things through this system more regularly. But he also said that this was just a stage and that in a few months he should out grow it. For our family, we decided that explosive diapers, while a negative, were something we could live with. Besides, in our house there is always more laundry to do. So we just throw the soiled baby stuff in with our things and start the bath water...again.

My breastfed daughter did exactly the same thing. I'd have to send her to daycare with 3 or 4 outfits. Good thing the ladies that took care of her were so sweet!

In my case, she seemed to actually do better once she started eating more solid food (even though I continued to bf until a little over a year). I hope the same will be true for you and you'll be done with this phase soon.

That can be common in b/f babies. My mom said I was like that and she had some embarrasing moments when the explosion hit in public places or when a friend was holding me. It was just one of those things to deal with. Maybe the solid foods will help in time. I didn't have that problem with my kids but remember some of the stories my Mom told me from my baby days.

S.,
My daughter was recently the same way due to being breastfed. I found if I eat more cheese and other binding foods it is better. Also you may try adding just a little formula to your breastmilk it actually constipates my 2month old if I give her too much. she does just perfect if I give her 1/3 formula to 2/3 breast milk. This I figured out on accident. I had to go back to work and was unable to pump enough and had to supplement a little.

It is a phase and it will go away.

Hi S., my youngest was breastfed up tell 10mths of age and he would do almost the same thing I was constantly washing his and my cloths from him exploding per say but he did this a couple times a day for the longest time slowly got better. Once he broke himself from the breast and switched to regular milk his poo thickend up. You may also want to think about what you may be eating or drinking differently if you are it may be related to that, I always noticed a big difference in his bowl movement if I switched to some thing different his tummy wasn't used to. Good luck and hang in there..

Keep the solids in his diet, it will solidify that poop soon. I think the bigger they get, the worse the breastmilk poop gets. It should improve once he is on solids for a little while.

Woo Hoo for breastfed babies!! My daughter use to do it EVERYDAY!!! It has slowed down a lot. She is my 3rd and we have been through it with all of them. Where I don't have any good advice because it isn't the diapers or the solids it is more than likely the brestmilk, which is the absolute best for your baby. I thought I would let you know that you are not alone in this one!! I do not know how many times it has happened. I do just try to watch and listen and make sure that she is laying on her belly instead of her back, seems to help a little. Good Luck. This season will pass!!

I agree with everyone else: it's a phase. My little guy is almost 9 months and seems to have a phase of this that lasts a few days or a week every couple of months. I don't have any solution for you other than to just wait it out! During these times we have many an outfit soaking in the sink!

You might try going up a size in diapers. We found that when the poopy diapers hit the explosive level, going up a size contained them better.

My child who is almost 7 months old, also had this problem, not every day, but often. He would poop 2-3 times a day, until we started him on solids. After he started solids, the bowel movements came more like once every 3 days and it isn't quite as runny (my child too was solely breastfed until starting solids at 6 months old). I started with just a spoonful or two the first day and gradually increased it, so that he now takes about 1/3 to 1/2 a 4 oz jar during each of his 2 afternoon feedings, plus I breastfeed him after the solids until he is full. His breakfast and bedtime are still strictly breastfeeding, and he seems happy and contented. He also likes everything we give him and has never refused breastfeeding or any new foods. I was worried when he wasn't pooping every day, so there are always worries as a mom, and as my husband always points out to me, we will look back and miss these days and wish we had them back, the good with the bad. I hope this helped.

Ali

Do you know when he's going to go? Is there indication (there usually is) or a schedule? I found that when my daughter was about that age she was having a similar problem (holding it in for so long and then it being huge and messy, it started when she started eating solids, she was breastfed too and didn't really eat solids until 7 or 8 months) and I started putting her on the potty every morning, and after she was 8 months old I never changed a poopy diaper again! It just helped her being in that position and having the schedule. Even if that's not the reason, it's much easier to clean up. With my younger daughter I did the same thing, but she goes much more often, but I only clean a poopy diaper if we're on a weird schedule.

Anyway, it might work for you, it did for us. We used the little baby bjorn potties and they loved them.

Congrats on breastfeeding for so long, it's one of the best things you can do for your child, and yourself and certainly helps their digestive tract.

Someone I noticed mentioned acidopholis, and I thought I'd say, I gave it to my baby because of thrush, and I'm not sure if it helped with digestive problems, but it certainly helps my older children, myself and my husband with digestion issues. Might be with a try!

K.

I'm not sure I have any advice, really, but I have been there! I am sorry to say that I still have to clean up my 21 month old a few days a week from poop that comes out the back of his diaper. My daughter did this too, but it stopped after she was about 7 or 8 months old. Both were breastfed, and my son still nurses once or twice a day. I have no idea what causes it, or how to stop it. It doesn't seem to have any rhyme or reason . . . . just hang in there, and remember to keep lots of laundry detergent handy!

S.,

I have had this issue before. I just undressed them in the bath tub. You might try Lactobacilis acidophalus. You can buy it at any nutrition store. I can recommend Nutrition stop or O'fallon Nutrition in the St. Charles area. I used to give it my little guys. They make some for little people. I don't know how long you have had this, but there has been a yucky intestinal virus floating about this month. It is a doozy! Acidophalus replenishes the good bacteria in the stomach and intestinal linning and helps the digestive system. It worked for us. It takes a little while (1 week or so) for the flora to normalize. You said he was breast fed? It may be something you are eating too. Try a food diary and see if it is worse the day after you eat a specific food. Good luck!

I would say this has nothing to do with his digestive system being out of whack, but just that he's a breastfed baby. The breastmilk doesn't solidify when the body digests, and with my little girl it doesn't matter what diapers I use, it doesn't matter what position she is in, she is going to poop out the diaper, and up her back, her front, and out the sides. The liquid is shooting out into a diaper wall, and it's got to go somewhere! It comes out too fast for the diaper to absorb it. I've finally tried solids to get it to stop, but I guess I'm not giving her enough, the smell has changed, but the consistency has not!I'm planning to up her level of solids, while continuing to breastfeed. I know this will help. Also, I can guarantee that she will poop after a bath, just her way of staying dirty I guess. If you have an idea of when he is going to go, maybe be watchful and go with already stained clothes that day. Also, Oxiclean works great! Even if you don't get to the stain right away. I use the spray and let it sit on there for awhile, and the stain is gone! A clean diaper also has a little less of a mess than a wet one, but when they're explosive, there is just no helping! I have also noticed that when she goes, I hold her out away from me, and don't touch her bottom, it squirts the poop up. If possible I have someone else remove her pants, it occasionally helps save them. You may want to keep a lap cover on you most times. Just like a formula baby's mom keeps a burp rag around for all the spit up, a b/f baby's mom needs to protect from the poop! Have fun, and enjoy the less stinky, easy to clean up messes while you have them!

Hi S.-
This happened to my daughter as well & she isn't breastfed. It seems like she gets this way when she is working on getting a tooth. I agree with the other moms about it being a phase. Have you tried the BRATY (banana, rice, applesauce, toast, & yogurt) diet. You said you were introducing new foods. This might help in small portions.

Have you tried some applesauce and rice cereal mixed together - my son loved it with some cinnamon sprinkled in and it's very healthy too (if you buy unsweetened sauce or make it yourself). Bananas are constipating, maybe he needs a daily dose? Or sweet potato?

Maybe you can suppliment his mid-morning nursing with a feeding? Even a few spoons of cereal mix and then nursing until he's full could do the trick for you!

Hope you find what works for you - and soon!

T.