Suddenly when you become a mother, poop takes on a whole new meaning and you find yourself inspecting your baby's poop, talking about your baby's poop, and researching poop to make sure what you find in the diaper is normal. The reason for this weird obsession we moms get over our baby's poop is that we can learn a lot about what is going on with our babies based on what is going on in their diapers. The reason for this weird obsession we moms get over our baby's poop is that we can learn a lot about what is going on with our babies based on what is going on in their diapers Often the first sign of illness or a problem can be found in the diaper. It can also provides good reassurance that everything is fine, your baby is healthy, and getting plenty of nutrition. The contents of your baby's diaper will change over the first few days of your child's life and again a few months later and then again when you introduce solids. What you find in your baby's diaper will vary depending on if you are breastfeeding or bottle-feeding.

Poop stages

Your baby’s first poop - meconium

During your pregnancy your baby’s digestive system starts to work by swallowing amniotic fluid. Meconium, which is made up of amniotic fluid, bile, and shed skin cells, begins to collect in your baby’s intestines while he is in your womb.

The Age: 0-4 months
The Stage: Infant

Once your baby passes the meconium out of his system, his poop will begin to change colors. If you are breastfeeding, your baby’s stools will be mustard colored, seedy, and runny. If you are formula feeding, they will be tan colored and soft. Formula-fed babies’ stools are firmer than breastfed babies but they should not be any firmer than a peanut butter consistency. Some moms say that a breastfed baby’s poop doesn’t stink. It has a distinct smell that some describe as sweet but it still has an odor.

The Age: 4-12 months
The Stage: Baby

Now that your baby has started solids, you'll start to see the contents of her/his diaper bear an uncanny resemblance to the contents of her/his lunch. When you feed her/him carrots, her/his poop will be orange; when you feed her/him peas, her/his poop will be green. Her/his system is still so pure at this point that what goes in is literally what comes out. By the end of the first year, when s(he)'s eating a variety of foods, her/his poop will become less Technicolor and more brown – a melting pot of all the yummy foods you're feeding her/him.

The Age: 12-36 months
The Stage: Toddler

Here's where the poop gets truly gross, because it now resembles your own. This presents tremendous motivation to potty-train your child as soon as humanly possible. It just seems wrong to be changing diapers of fully formed, brown, adult-like poop. That stuff goes in the potty.

Some problems with babies related to poop

Babies that poop a lot

If your baby is breastfed expect a lot of poop, at least in the beginning. Breastfed babies often have a bowel movement after every feeding for the first few weeks. If your baby is breastfeeding, he may go after every feeding or he may go several times a day. Don’t be alarmed by this. If it is runny and seedy that is perfectly normal for a breastfed baby. A lot of new moms mistake breastfed stools for diarrhea.

If your baby is a formula-fed baby, he will poop a lot in the beginning too. Formula-fed babies do not have as many bowel movements, generally, as breastfed babies but you can expect four or five poops a day in the first few weeks.

Babies that don’t poop for several days

Once your baby is about one month old, he may start having fewer bowel movements. If your baby is breastfed, he may go several days to a week without having a bowel movement. This is nothing to worry about. Exclusively breastfed babies rarely have problems with constipation. If he goes longer than a week, he seems to be in pain, or if you are concerned, call your pediatrician.

Formula-fed babies poops slow down at about a month as well. However, formula is more likely to cause constipation than breast milk. Most formula fed babies will have about one bowel movement a day. Stools should be soft. If you notice your baby’s stools are firm or hard and pellet-like, he may be constipated. If your baby goes longer than two or three days without a bowel movement and he is formula fed, you should give your pediatrician a call.

Babies that grunt and cry when they poop

If your baby does a lot of grunting when he poops don’t worry. This is normal. Babies sometimes grunt, cry or turn red when they have a bowel movement. This is nothing to worry about. A lot of new parents mistake this grunting for straining and constipation. Once your baby gets used to his bodily functions and how they feel, he won’t be as vocal about having them.

Green Poop

If your baby has green, frothy poop it is likely caused by too much lactose. This can happen when your baby feeds often but not long enough on one breast to get the rich hind milk. There is more lactose in the fore milk. It is important to let your baby finish on the first breast before offering her the other breast. The green poop can also be a sign of a stomach bug. If it persists longer than 24 hours you should head into the pediatrician to have your baby checked out.

Black poop

Black poop can be seen from iron supplementation. If your baby is taking an iron supplement or is on iron-fortified formula, he may have black or dark colored stools. Black stools, on the other hand, can also be of intestinal bleeding. If your baby has black tarry looking stools you should call your pediatrician.

Blood in baby’s poop

If you notice blood in your baby’s stool this may be alarming. Small streaks of blood in the stool are usually not something serious. However, if your baby has stools that look like dark red jelly or are streaked with mucous you should call your doctor right away. You should also call your doctor if your baby seems to be in pain or if your baby has persistent bleeding that does not go away.

Some other causes for blood in the stool are:

• Small cuts or tears on the baby’s anus - Sometimes babies will develop an anal fissure (tear) from straining. You may notice small streaks of blood in baby’s stool.
• Diaper rash - If baby has had a diaper rash that has resulted in skin breakdown, he may end up with tiny amounts of blood in his diaper.
• Food sensitivities - Dairy sensitivities may cause baby to have bloody/mucousy stools.