Warning: this post is going to be graphic. I can’t write a post about Luke’s digestive issues without going into details about his stools. I figured if I’m going to talk about his stools, I might as well include pictures (which I’ve taken to show his doctors). I know when I was googling “blood in baby stool” I wanted to come across some pictures. I hope these will help others who are searching, wondering if what they are seeing in their baby’s diapers is normal.
You’ve been warned. If you’re squeamish about this kind of thing, feel free to stop reading and come back on Wednesday when I’ll be posting a new dinner recipe for a meatless burger.
If you’re still reading, you must be interested in what’s been going on with my little man. He’s been diagnosed with MSPI, which stands for Milk Soy Protein Intolerance. This means that his immature digestive system has trouble breaking down the proteins in milk and soy. It does not mean he is lactose intolerant or that he is necessarily allergic to anything (although he may be, it’s too early to tell).
We’ve been lucky in that many babies with MSPI cry all the time or are extremely fussy. Luke’s never been that way. The main way we knew there was a problem was through his irregular stools. Normal breastfed baby stools are mostly yellow, sometimes seedy, with a watery or creamy consistency. Luke’s dirty diapers have always been slimy and full of mucus.
Green stools is another indicator. (Occasional green diapers can be normal, but early on his were consistently green. I don’t have any pictures of his early green stools.)
Occasionally they are specked with blood, both black and red.
He was also extremely congested early on in his life, a sign of a dairy sensitivity.
Another symptom is erratic sleep patterns. Luke can easily go from an angel sleeper to a nightmare with no rhyme or reason. Over time I’ve noticed a correlation with blood in his stool and his most mucus-y diapers to his worst sleep. Whatever is going on in there to cause the irregular stools must not feel great and therefore causes sleep disruptions.
The only way to “treat” MSPI is to eliminate the culprits from my diet (since I’m breast feeding). At 8 weeks I eliminated all dairy. It takes at least a month (probably more) for all dairy to be out of your system, so it was a waiting game. The only improvement I saw was his congestion cleared up, but his stools remained the same.
At 12 weeks there was still a lot of mucus in his diapers and also visible blood, so the next step was to eliminate soy. After this his diapers turned from mostly green to mostly yellow and his projectile spitting up stopped (I didn’t know if that was related or not and still can’t be sure). The mucus and blood were still present in his stools.
This is when his pediatrician referred us to gastroenterologist. By the time we got in, Luke was 19 weeks and I’d been off of dairy for 11 weeks. The doctor still thought, however, that dairy was in my system and causing the problems. He said I could have unknowingly eaten hidden dairy. This is true, but highly unlikely given my diet. I don’t eat a lot of processed foods, which is where hidden dairy lurks. He advised me to either switch to a hypoallergenic formula or wait and hope Luke outgrows the intolerance by 9 months.
I took Luke back to his pediatrician and she said it’d be worthwhile to cut out more foods that could be causing him problems. I then cut out wheat, eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts. After two weeks his diapers were still full of mucus, but I hadn’t seen any visible blood in that time. I decided to start adding back in foods to see what the reaction would be. I added back in eggs first, and there was no change.
A week later, I added back in peanuts and tree nuts. I’m not sure why I did these at the same time; I should have done one at a time. Within days, I saw visible blood again. I can’t be sure if they were the cause, but I decided to cut them out again. I put in a call to the pediatrician and she advised me that although it could be the peanuts or nuts, wheat also takes at least a month to get out of your system, so the wheat could still be the cause.
After 6 weeks of eliminating wheat, Luke’s stools finally started to look normal. They were consistently yellow, more creamy, and without visible blood.
We had two weeks of normal-looking stools. This was the good news. The bad news was it took me eating a diet free of dairy, soy, wheat, tree nuts (except coconut), and peanuts to get there.
After 2 solid weeks of good diapers, we decided to start solids (a few weeks earlier than we planned at 5.5 months old) Details about that are a whole different post, but I will give an overview as it relates to his digestive issues. We started with yellow squash. The first two days there was no mucus or blood in his stool–they stayed the same. On the third day there was still no mucus, but there was a small amount of blood. It seems the solid food, even the very small amount, was difficult for his digestive tract to handle.
The next day I accidentally used almond-coconut milk in my oatmeal. I’d been using coconut milk and for some reason just grabbed the wrong box. Later that day, I was so hungry (snacking is the most difficult on this restrictive diet) and figured I’d already had almonds that day so I might as well go all-out and I had a banana bread Larabar, which has almonds. Later that night, his stools were back to mucus-y. I couldn’t believe how quickly they changed his stool consistency. That was on Wednesday and his stools have been full of mucus ever since. I guess it will be a while before I can have almonds. 🙁 I am just waiting for them to work their way out of my system (should be less than a week) in hopes that his diapers go back to normal.
We’ve decided to hold back on any more solids until his next doctor’s appointment this week. We’ll see what she advises. I can tell that the road to feeding Luke is going to be filled with twists and turns and will most likely not be easy any time soon.
I breastfed Meghan until she was 2 and assumed that I’d do the same with Luke. At this point I am just taking it one month at a time. I love breastfeeding and think it’s hands down the best nutrition you can provide for your child, but eating such a restrictive diet has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.
At this point I am just praying that Luke with outgrow his food sensitivities and be able to eat a normal, non-restrictive diet one day. Breast feeding a baby with MSPI is a crazy journey, but I’m grateful I’ve been able to continue to provide Luke with the nourishment of breast milk despite the challenges.
Curious about how this journey continued with Luke? Here’s an update at how things are going with breastfeeding with MSPI at 15 months!
Healthy Living Playbook!
Poor little guy. I’m not going to lie, why I saw the warning, I had to leave and come back until AFTER I finished my breakfast. I’m glad I did. 🙂 It’s interesting how many foods effect his system. I wonder if he’ll grow out of these things or if he’ll have these allergies his entire life.
I’m so glad I didn’t ruin your breakfast! 🙂
Hi My name is Loredana ,
I saw youR blog abut Luke and his allergies and I have a 3 months And a half baby boy that has the same thing . I ll go through the story fast so you can get the picture and then ask you the question .
When he was only three weeks all of a sudden an extreme eczema came on his face and around his neck , we went to te dr and he did not mention anything about the dairy specifically but as to keep a diary and check and guided us to a skin dr . My LO was prescribed cortisone cream , fenistil ( antihistamine and anti allergic drops ) and a bioderma soap to bath him with .
The eczema went away and he remained just with A wheezing sound every now and then , after a while he stools started to be green more often and at one point he would start to vomit ( which he doesn’t do ) and having blood in his stools like Luke s .
The other dr concluded that I have to keep off the dairy . Well I tarted to stay off the dairy and he improved his stool became yellow and seedy . Towards the end of three months he started to have loose stools and very tiny particles in it like tiny sand but very few ones not a lot let’s say 3 or four you could spot in the stool and very tiny . Then two weeks ago the blood came back and the mucus , terrible terrible stomach ache and gas and he was startin to sleep four hours and then wake up now he wakes up every two hours :((( .
He doesn’t cry now just when he what’s to be down for his nap or sleep or his is hungry .
He was born 3,570 kg and at 13 weeks he was 5, 700 kg ( three months and one week ) the dr said he maintains on the same line in the graphic and he is average and progresses . And that it is okay for an exclusive breastfed baby .
I’m 11 days clear of fish and eggs , citrus , soy strawberries , grapes .
And 8 days clear from WHEAT.
After all these days last night I saw again mucus and a bit of bright red blood in his diaper .:(
I eat rice, chicken , Potatos , chicken soup ( boil the chicken without skin and put carrots very little onion green peppers zucchini and potato ) . I eat apple Compot with a by of sugar and cinnamon and pears, grilled beef .
Sunday I ll go see my dr again , I’m sure she ll tell me it’s my choice to go for formula or breastfed.
I don’t know what to do …. My questions are :
1. It can be still the egg or the fish or the wheat in my body or his abd make him blood after 11 days and 8 days of fastin those aliments ???
2. You think he can be allergic to chicken ???
3. When it’s safe to add first eggs and WAITE 4 -5 days and then add fish and WAITE 4-5 days and then bread to see his reactions ??? 11 days off egg and fish cleared them out of our
System ?!
4. Will I hurt his gut and digestive system Doig this trial and error ? Will he be able to eat solids after that ?
5 . What shall I chose breast or formula ?!
My dr said that we can not run a blood allergy test now because he is exclusively breast feed it won’t show his immunoglobulins but mine .
Hi, I just wanted to say that my older son had FPIES to rice (FPIES is the same as MSPI except the name doesn’t specify a certain food like milk or soy, it means food protein induced enterocolitis syndrome). Rice and oats are two of the most common triggers. We never figured it out until we started him on solids and he had the full-on FPIES reaction (projectile vomiting every 5 mins for 8 hours, lethargic etc). The solid? Rice cereal. At first I assumed it was a stomach flu but when we tried the rice cereal again 2 weeks later, whamo. Same thing. (He’d been fine on bananas in between). So, it may be worth cutting out rice and oats? Just a thought! You can google FPIES for other common triggers if those don’t work. Good luck! It’s hard but it gets much easier. My son is only 2 now and can already eat rice and oats without any problems. 🙂
Wow! Thanks for sharing your story. I didn’t realize rice and oats could cause such a severe reaction. We didn’t do rice cereal as a first food (actually we never did rice cereal) so I really can’t say if Luke’s reaction would have been the same. He’s 2 now as well and doesn’t really like rice so he’s hardly had more than a bite or 2.
Oh, I should add he’s been eating oats with no problem for a long time.
Hello my baby girl is almost 4 months and she started having this problem also she is only breastfed. Like around 3 months I started seeing these brownish strings they look kind of like the brown strings that the banana has. I took her to the doc cuz she had 2 specks of blood but doesn’t get them anymore they said she was maybe allergic to milk so they were going to test her poop and that I couldn’t eat no dairy for a week. A week later I went to see her results but everything was normal she had no infection or salmonella but she still had those brown strings. So now they told me to stay 2 weeks with no dairy foods but she did get 1 diaper with the brown stuff n then it stopped but yesterday I forgot about the no dairy and ate pizza and today she pooped but everything was normal but now I found her pop a little greenish with a greenish string just like in your baby’s poo but I just don’t get I’ve been eating all dairy before and she didn’t have it and now all of a sudden she does. Doctor told me if she’s the same there going to do an ultrasound or check her inside because she seems fine she’s not fussy and her tummy feels normal. Also I’m worried that they might say I can’t breastfeed no more because of this
If I were in your situation, I would just keep up the elimination diet and continue breastfeeding.Good luck!
Maryea,
Me and my baby boy have been dealing with this since he was only 3 weeks old! I was breastfeeding exclusively until that point. Due to moving across States for my husbands job, I had to start bottle feeding in the car for our 12 hour drive! I am positive it is what caused the allergy. He was too young, and so I have guilt now seeing how it has affected him. He started out with a rash that was on his cheeks and then spread to his arms. At first I thought it was just baby acne or a reaction to my detergent. After it began spreading I knew something else was going on. I took him to the pediatrician and she diagnosed him with MSPI! I couldn’t believe that there was such a thing that babies could get… I mean the only thing infants eat is milk. So just like you I cut milk out of my diet, but ate some cheese and other diary products. My doctor told me to eliminate diary completely and soy. So I went to the store to see what my new diet would consist of. That first grocery store trip was eye opening. Diary and soy were in almost EVERYTHING!!! Again, I was baffled… I started eating cuscus, and black beans, with gluten free bread and veggies with all different meats. He still wasn’t cleared up and it was a month after we started no diary. So I looked online to see what else could be causing his discomfort. As you know the most common are Wheat, diary, soy. The list kept going further fish, nuts, beef, shellfish, oats, chocolate, coffee. I started to cut everything listed. That did the trick! Nothing is harder to do when you already need to eat more calories worth of food. Somehow, I am doing it too. He is only 2 mo. now but some days I go out to eat and forget to ask what is in things, and just try to pump it out. It’s challenging. I wanted to quit breastfeeding this week, but he keeps me going. I never would have imagined after 9 mo. of not eating feta or sushi I would be actually waiting 18mo. or longer possibly. I am thankful I am not alone in this! I hope you keep sharing, because there are so many of us out there.
Thanks
Krista,
I know how challenging it is. Hang in there! ~Maryea
Hi!
Thank you so much for sharing! I feel so alone in this journey and it’s nice to know I’m not.
Mine LO was diagnosed with MSPI at 3 weeks due to blood in her stool. She is my first so I’m learning what is normal baby behavior and what is not due to her intolerances.
It will be 2 weeks tomorrow since I cut dairy/soy/eggs almost a week for wheat. How long does it take for wheat?
I also started to cut nuts and fish. She’s still having the occasional dot of blood but poops are green now and then and mucousy. I’m guessing it’s going to take a month to see a real difference. I just want to see a difference now but I’m sure everyone feels that way. Did you cut beef and coffee?
Thank you!
Kori
It takes 2-4 weeks for wheat. The waiting is the hardest part! I didn’t cut out beef or coffee. I didn’t eat a ton of beef, but sometimes at a restaurant steak was the only thing on the menu I could get!
Hello,
My baby girl is currently 6 weeks and struggling with green poops, rash on bottom and extreme discomfort. I have cut out dairy, soy, gluten, eggs, peanuts, citrus fruits, and certain veggies. I saw your post stating you cut out nuts except coconut, did you see this effect your son at all? i’m wondering if I should stop drinking coconut milk. At this point i’ll do anything to help my little one feel better!
My son’s stools were mostly clear while I had coconut in my diet. He seemed to tolerate it okay. Every baby is different, though! Did you cut out treenuts? I couldn’t have any tree nuts.
hi. how did they diagnose your son with MPSI?
What are the symptoms.
My 2 month old baby has mucous all the time and sometimes has small specks of blood. Dr says its normal? he has explosive poops after or during his feed. I thought by his age it should slow down.i am so worried but doctors arent. There is so much mucous.
The main symptoms were the mucous in the stools as well as blood and explosive poops. There was also reflux/spit up that could have been related. I don’t think mucous or blood in stools are ever normal. I would get a second opinion!
Hello!
My baby boy Easton is currently going through the exact same thing! He is about to be 2 months old & this has just started around 3 weeks ago. I wasn’t sure what was causing all the congestion and the mucus and blood in his stool until I came across your post. I’m going to try to cut out dairy and soy first to see what happens. The only problem is I’m not to sure as to what I can eat. If you could just give me some ideas of different meals to help with my transition to this new diet.
Thanks!!
Julianne
Hi Julianne! Here’s a post that shows what I ate in a day when I was breastfeeding Luke: https://happyhealthymama.com/what-this-breastfeeding-mama-eats-in-a-day.html Also, if you go to my recipe page, you will find a lot of dairy and soy free recipes!
Oh Maryea – I’m so sorry that you and Luke have to go through this. You have been so strong and persevered when many would have not. Breastfeeding is best and I’m all for it (thankfully mine were easy like Meghan), but I do think you have to do what’s right for the whole family and if stopping short of your original goal adds more calm and freedom to your home, then you can’t feel bad about it.
I wish I lived closer so I could do something to help – like bring you some apples, which seem to be the only thing you can eat. 🙂
ps – this is the first post I’ve ever read with dirty diaper pictures. Made me so glad to be out of the diaper phase.
Haha! I really contemplated if I should or should not post the pictures. In the end, I think they can help a lot of women, so I’m glad I did. Hopefully I didn’t scare off too many readers! 🙂
Definitely helped me! My daughters look exactly like this. I thought it was dairy, but after thinking it through more, I’m convinced it’s nuts/peanuts. Eliminating now and hoping to see no more slime poops! About how long did it take for the nuts to clear your system?
From what the doctor told me, nuts take about a week. Good luck!
Yes! Thank you for posting the pictures, minus the blood, it is exactly the same. I cut dairy around 2 weeks and was good for a while and now is worse. So I am strictly vegan for now until we figure out what it is. Thank you for your blog and yes for the beautiful pictures 🙂
Oh, Maryea, I feel for you! This sounds (and looks) like an exact replica of Drew’s situation! I cut out all nuts and wheat at 4 months, and Drew was like a new baby. Sleeping, eating and diapers weren’t green and gaggy.
We just had an allergy retest 5 years later, and the nut side of his poor back blew up like a balloon.
I was so scared to have Jordan go through the same thing, that I quit nursing her at 5 weeks. She turned out just fine on more formula, and go figure, with not an allergy in sight…
Sometimes I sneak nuts at school because I miss them so much…and I’d do anything for a big old PBand J sandwich!! haha!
You are my breastfeeding hero 🙂 I can’t imagine how difficult it’s been. You are amazing! Poor little Luke, I bet he really wants solid foods but maybe he’ll have to wait a little longer until his digestive tract is ready.
Oh goodness, Maryea. What a journey you and Luke have been on- I don’t know what I would do if I were in your shoes. I love how much you have advocated for your little angel and kept with it for his benefit; that is true love at its finest! ….Those are super mucus-y diapers; I couldn’t believe it when I saw it. Wow, that is definitely not the way it is supposed to be.
I admire that you’ve kept with it to help your little one. YOU’RE A CHAMP!! 🙂
Poor Luke! And you as well! I hope that he gets over this hump and you can go back to what you are used to eating. Food allergies can be challenging — I have found it better to focus on what I **can** have and not what I **can’t**. Praying for you and him! I hope things settle down!
I’ve been working on that, too, Jane! One thing that I’ve really come to appreciate is that I’m learning to not rely on certain food crutches in my cooking, like cheese. Making a dish taste good is so much easier with cheese. I really have to concentrate on the flavors of my food and I think it’s making me a better cook.
Good luck with everything. My son, who is now almost 2.5 years old, is allergic to nuts, lentils, and eggs. I think he is also sensitive to dairy. I had no idea when he was younger and was eating TONS of trail mix with peanuts while nursing. I had no idea that he was allergic at that time. We are still learning to handle the eating challenges/restrictions, and I have become a very careful label reader!
Does the no lentils also mean no green beans, black beans, etc.?
If you cut out all legumes you would cut out lentils and beans.
Whoa, thanks for the warning! But I have to say, it is all very interesting!
Poor Luke 🙁
Thank you so much for this post and the graphic pictures. I have been dealing with MSPI for the last year. It is so important for this information to be on the web because it can be a very lonely issue. It is also one that isn’t well known. I had to diagnose this myself without any help from our pediatrician. Blogs like this will help other women in the future.
I can tell you that it can be worse and it will get better. Throughout my struggle, my son dropped from the 50% to the 0.5% in weight. At 1 year old, he is gaining about 1 pound a month and has gone up to the 2%. He and I are able to eat some processed dairy (it was requested to help him gain weight).
You are not alone in this and you are an amazing woman. Keep up the good work and keep getting the knowledge out.
You are so welcome! It’s nice to hear that this post is appreciated because I was really hesitant to post it. What really prompted me to do it, though, was the lack of information I was able to find when I was searching. So I hope you are right that this will help other women looking for answers.
My sons poop looks the same thank u for ur help. I feel better.
You’re welcome!
Really interesting! Thanks for sharing! Do babies with MSPI usually have difficulty gaining weight and growing? I’m really glad to see that Luke is still growing like a weed!
That actually reminds me… I believe I had MSPI when I was a baby. According to my mother, I refused to breastfeed and she didn’t really push it. It makes me sad but I guess back then, people just didn’t know about all of the benefits to breastfeeding. Formula just seemed like the easiest answer. I was fed soy milk and formula but it made me really sick. My parents switched me over to goat’s milk and that is what I drank for a long time. Maybe that explains why I can’t stand the taste of goat cheese now…I did grow out of the allergy (if that is what it was) and I can eat dairy products and soy products with no issues now. I was also allergic to corn as a baby…my parents have always liked to remind me that I was sick for the entire 2 weeks when they took me with on a tropical vacation 😉
Some babies with MSPI have malabsorption issues and therefore don’t grow well. We’ve been really fortunate that’s not the case with Luke!
Would you have changed your approach if he had had malabsorption issues and was not gaining well? Our 4 mo son has had green diapers since getting a cold at around 1 mo and we started seeing blood and mucous in his stools at around 3 mo. I went off dairy, soy, eggs and we saw some improvement in color (turned back to mostly yellow) but still mucousy and intermittent blood flecks. I’m on day 12 of TOtal Elimination Diet and we are not really seeing much of a change. Maybe even worsening?!? I am already back down to pre-pregnancy weight myself and am trying to get all the calories I need but it feels hard to do with such lean meats (turkey & lamb) and rice, millet, potatoes, squash, and pears. I am desperate to continue breastfeeding but am worried that he is not gaining at a strong rate. His wellness visit is tomorrow and we will know more regarding his weight but the pediatrician had already mentioned possibly trailing specialized formula if he”s not gaining well. We’re prepared to request a second opinion and referral to ped. gastroenterologist but I guess I am seeking advice one how long these symptoms can persist without causing him harm or developing into something worse. I believe the blood is fairly minimal but there is a fair bit of mucous. What timeframe or weight circumstance would you have considered formula? Can these symptoms develop into a more major health risk if left to continue as is while trialing elimination diet? Thank you so much for sharing your and Luke’s story! I am comforted to know I am not the only mom out there grasping at straws in this! So glad that you could report a happy ending to you and your boy’s gi journey!!
I do think there are some health risks if the symptoms continue. My doctor was concerned about iron levels. I probably would have approached it differently if malabsorption was an issue for Luke. Talk with your doctor and see if he is staying on his growth curve or falling off of it. There’s also no guarantee that your little one will tolerate the formula either. It’s so complicated! I hope you find some answers and your little guy gets some relief soon!
Hi Maryea,
Do you think you will be doing a post on the foods you are eating on this elimination diet? The reason I ask is because I am also eliminating lots of foods due to breastfeeding my son who has some digestive issues and am having a hard time finding foods I can eat. I would be interested to see what you are eating these days. Best of luck to you and Luke!
I can definitely do that! I’ve had questions about it, so I’d love to share. It’s been challenging, but in the end I think it’s actually making me eat even more fruits and veggies than I normally do, so I think that it’s a good thing!
Sorry to hear about your challenges, Maryea! It must be difficult having to watch what you eat! I give you credit for adhering to the best nutrition a baby can have… Breastfeeding! Some women would have given up. But, personally, I would do the same thing you are doing.
http://faithfulsolutions.blogspot.com/
I am so glad I found this!!! My son is 14 weeks and has had green and yellow slimy poos! They look just like your pics. He hasn’t had any blood though. I just started to eliminate milk but the more I read the more I see that soy kinda goes hand in hand. He also has reflux (which I believe is his intolerance to something I am eating). My doctor keeps telling me it is normal but I breastfed my daughter too and never had this! I would also love to know what you are eating for this elimination diet. Should I do a total elimination diet and then add in to see what he is having issues with? I eat a ton of wheat, eggs and nuts too :(. His poops are also sometimes foamy when I have been in the middle of a change and he poops.
I eliminated dairy for 8 weeks and when it didn’t completely clear things up, I eliminated soy. After another 6 weeks of being dairy and soy free, I started to eliminate more foods because he still had the slimy stools and occasionally blood. At that time I eliminated wheat, nuts, and eggs. I eliminated them all at once with plans of adding them back in one at a time to see which was causing problems. Through this I found out eggs were okay, but wheat and nuts seem to irritate his system. You can do a total elimination diet or take one out at a time. From what I’ve heard, most babies do much better with just eliminating the dairy. So I would try that first (like you are) and see if there is an improvement and then go from there. The problem is that it takes forever for dairy to get out of your system (up to 8 weeks!). Wheat takes a long time, too. The rest of them are much quicker, which makes it easier to tell if they are causing problems.
A typical day of eating looks like this: breakfast-oatmeal w/ coconut milk, banana, berries, and sunflower seed butter, lunch-a huge salad with some sort of protein (either beans, eggs, or grilled chicken), dinner-stir fry veggies with quinoa. Snacks-fruit, veggies w/ hummus, nut free trail mix w/seeds, dried fruit, chocolate chips, gluten-free muffins (I have a recipe posted here and another one coming). Hope this helps!
Thank you so much! I really hope it is just the milk.
Nichole’ this sounds exesctly like my son. He would have foamy poops and often won’t even go unless I help him with leg exercises and such (sometimes the rectal stimulation of changing a diaper). I am so frustrated trying to figure out what is what and wondering if you had success since your case sounded so similar. I have cut out dairy for three weeks and am not seeing much difference. He’s on reflux mesds and often won’t eat very much at a sitting because he seems to be backed up or in pain. I just want him to be comfortable!
Hi, Maryea, thank you for sharing the story with us. May I ask how long it takes for SOY to get out of the system.
My doctor told me 1 week, but after I trialed soy it was longer than that before his stools returned to normal. More like a month I believe.
Hi Maryea,
I was searching for mucusy breasfed poop, and google brought me to you blog. My daughter is now 5 months old, wakes up several (4-7) times in the night and she is always passing gas… Always. Her poops changed about 2-3 months ago from the yellow seedy poops to a more caramel like poop (sorry for the visual). I’m not sure yet if it is mucus, but I’m thinking it might be. Was your son up frequently at night? Was he very gassy? I am thinking that it might be a milk allergy or sensitivity. I gave up all milk for 2 weeks and switched to soy, but I am now realizing that it was a) not long enough and b) probably not best to switch to soy as she may also have a soy sensitivity. I have an appt with our family doctor on Tuesday and I would like to give her as much info/evidence as I can that is relevant. How is Luke sleeping now? I wish you all the best of luck and thank you for your help!
Yes, he was up frequently at night AND was very, very gassy. Now at 6 months he just started stretching out his sleep and for the last 2 nights has only woken once. I’m hoping the trend continues. I’m still eating no dairy, soy, nuts, or wheat. He is also now on solids (so far just pears, peaches, and avocado) and it’s going well; his stools are normal looking. I plan to start re-introducing foods around 9 months to see if he’s outgrown his sensitivities.
I meant to add–good luck to you! I know what a hard road it is trying to figure everything out.
Thank you for this post! My daughter is 4.5 months old, and I have been dairy free since she was maybe 2 months old. After it was all of out our systems, her diapers went back to normal breastfed baby poop. It wasn’t too much later that her stools started to change again, so I had to figure out what else was bothering her because I know I hadn’t eaten any hidden dairy. At this point I know she can’t tolerate dairy, tomatoes, pork, or corn. I don’t know how sensitive she is to corn, but so many things are derived from corn. It has been harder than dairy. This week I began an elimination diet because I am also wondering about soy, wheat, and almonds. I think peanuts are okay, but we shall see. This diet is so challenging. I am trying to make sure I eat enough, but it is hard. I feel so limited, but I am hoping it’s just for a short period of time.
Oh, and I loved your poo pics. That’s how I found your website. People keep telling me this is all in my head, and baby’s are just gassy. I am thinking that my daughter’s sleep issues are related to a food intolerance I have yet to discover. Good luck to you!
I can’t let my typo slide. The above should read “babies are gassy” and not baby’s are gassy. Oops. Guess it’s time for bed!
Thank you, Monica. Good luck to you, too!
Maryea- I also found your blog through a google image search! We recently came to the conclusion (at 5 months old!) that my son has an intolerance to something I’m eating. We have started with dairy and soy, but I’m only on day 9, so really time will tell. Just wanted to say that I am thankful to find others that are experiencing the same thing; so glad I found your blog!
Good luck on your journey figuring it all out! I’m glad this post is helping others as they research.
I am so happy to have found this post. I am going through the exact same thing right now with my 3 and a half month old son. I could have written and posted these pictures myself! It all sounds and looks the exact same. I have been off dairy for many weeks now but just found out a few weeks ago about the hidden dairy. I have been advised by both my doctor and pediatrician to completely stop breastfeeding and put him on hypoallergenic formula. I am so upset by their advice and now worry that I am hurting my son with my breastmilk. Have your doctors given you any encouraging words in continuing breastfeeding?? I am just so worried that if I don’t put him on the formula that he will be really sick. So far everything seems to be exactly like your son. He has already more than doubled his birth weight so growing extremely well. His sleep is terrible. He is gassy and his stools tend to be mucusy yellow with occasional blood streaks.
My doctor gave me the opposite advice! She said even with the sensitivity, breast milk is the best thing for the baby. She said the only time she’d advise stopping breast feeding is if the baby had extreme growth issues, which was not the case with my baby. It sounds like that is not the case with yours, either. I would definitely seek another opinion before switching to formula. And it could be more than dairy that your son is sensitive to, so you may have to eliminate more foods like I did. It’s really challenging, but it’s not forever and I think it’s worth it to continue breast feeding if that’s what you want to do. My son is over 7 months now and breast feeding is going well. His stools are totally normal. I’m hoping to add back in foods in a few weeks and see if he’s outgrown his sensitivities (I hope so!). Good luck to you!
Hi, I see these posts are a bit dated but wanted to chime in. My son’s stools look just like the pics. I have eliminated dairy, soy, wheat, and nuts. He continues to have mucous and blood in his stool along with eczema and congestion. His pediatrician recommended formula, so I pumped and tried Nutramigen. After three days, his eczema became quite severe. His pediatrician recommended Neocate last week, but I would like to continue breastfeeding. She and I are not in agreement on the best treatment for him. I say continue breastfeeding and eliminate ingredients. She says formula. Any advice? His is a big boy, so weight gain is not a problem. He is also on Ranitidine which has helped with his reflux. As for sleep, he has not slept well during the day but has always slept well at night. I think he sleeps well at night because he is exhausted from crying during the day. Anyway, I am glad I found this blog. It inspires my to continue to eliminate more foods and breastfeed.
I kept meaning to come back and provide an update. Since my last post in July, I eliminated the top 8 allergens along with corn, beef, citrus and tomatoes. I refused to take my pediatrician’s advice and put my son on Nutrimigen or Neocate because a lot of what I had read stated that breasfeeding was best for these babies. I am so glad I listened to my gut (and the posts I read here)!! In September, we finally had a videoconference meeting with a pediatric GI specialist who stated that he was so happy to hear that I did not stop breastfeeding because most of these babies do poorly on those formulas. We were also linked to a pediatric GI dietician. I am happy to report that my son has had zero blood or mucus in his stool for nearly 2 months now. He is 7 and a half months old and this problem started almost immediately after he was born. I also learned that I did not have to cut out quite that many foods but I was desperate to find a solution at the time and didn’t really have anywhere to turn in terms of help in my small town. I have since added corn and tomatoes back into my diet. The dietician is now helping us introduce food into our son’s diet, as well as some of the foods back into mine. Here are a few things I learned: 1) when re-introducing something into my diet, I need to wait 10-14 days for a reaction before labelling it a success. So when I added corn back into my diet, I had to wait 14 days before I could say that the food was safe. He had zero reaction. 2) I also learned that when introducing solids for the first time, the same rule applies. So when we first introduced a vegetable, we had to wait 10-14 days before introducing another food. Since he “passed” the vegetable introduction, every vegetable from then on is the normal 4 day wait rule. We then did a fruit, waited 10-14 days and can now do any other fruit every 4 days since he also “passed” that food group. We’re now onto rice cereal and still doing great 🙂 3) Oh yes, and whenever introducing something new in my diet, I cannot introduce something new in his until the wait time is over and vice versa. The dietician stressed the importance of the 10-14 days wait rule especially when introducing something new in mom’s diet. 4) The dietician would like to see all of the foods I cut out back into my diet except dairy, soy, wheat and eggs (and any food that he may react to.) I am so happy I found this site when I did because it really offered me encouragement. Don’t get me wrong, we still have a long way to go in terms of food introduction for the both of us but I definitely have a more positive outlook! I would be happy to help any other mom going through this in any way that I can 🙂
Great news! Thank you so much for coming back and posting your update. I know it will help a lot of moms, myself included. I am in the process of re-introducing some foods into my diet to see how Luke does (he’s 11 months now) and I haven’t had the same guidance that you have. My son’s pediatrician actually didn’t give me any guidance at all. My gut told me to wait at least a week before introducing another new food into my diet, but I’m glad I read your advice to wait at least 10-14 days. So far Luke is doing well with adding back in nuts and wheat. I’m nervous to try dairy and soy again, though. Thanks again for your update!
What are the top 8 allergens? My first child was just the basic intolerances which we learned from a GI specialist. I thought I had this for round two, but daughter number 2 seems to be more severe. I’m thinking either lentils, fish, rice, oats, corn, or tomatoes. I’m not sure if it is best to cut them all out at once or do them one at a time. In your experience, if you ate lets say oatmeal in the morning would you notice mucus and blood in diaper ASAP. I’m trying to see if I can gauge right away or not. Thank you in advance!
In some cases I saw the mucous right away after eating something (almonds) other times it wasn’t until the next day (soy). So it can be tricky! Wish I could help you more. 🙁
Thanks so much for this post. My daughter is 5months now and I am facing the same issue from over a month. I am trying to eliminate dairy but it’s so really hard. Obviously I don’t take cup of milk now but the hidden ones are extremely difficult. Your efforts are giving me strength now to continue!
Your son must be big now, hope you both are doing well. 🙂
We are, thank you! Luke is 5 now! Hard to believe. He outgrew his intolerances by 2 1/2 and now he’s able to tolerate all foods. We still limit dairy as I don’t thinks it’s great to eat too much of it no matter what, but he can eat dairy without a reaction. 🙂 The hidden dairy is definitely difficult. I wish you luck on your journey!
How long have you been off of diary, soy, wheat, and nuts? I know it can take quite a while before they work their way out of both your system and your baby’s, so if it hasn’t been at least 8 weeks, I’d give it more time for sure. I agree that breastfeeding is best for these babies if it is possible, so I’d keep at it if I were you. Have you tried eliminating eggs as well? They were never a problem for us, but I know that they are a top allergen so if you eat eggs that could be causing issues, too. I’m sorry you’re having such a rough time figuring it out. I know how frustrating it can be. Hang in there!
Thank you so much for your encouraging words! I decided to cut out dairy, soy, wheat, shellfish, nuts and tree nuts and eggs as of today! I am really hoping and praying this makes a difference. I was already not eating dairy, nuts and tree nuts and shellfish. I went out today and bought only whole foods and everything in its pure form. Here’s to hoping this works because I really don’t want to see him suffer any longer! It really helped hearing from you and knowing that although it will be a challenge, in the end, we can overcome this.
Oh I hope it does make a difference for your son! If you think of it, please keep me updated!
One more question… what was your son’s sleep like? My son rarely naps and is waking up more at night. He used to sleep up to 8 hour stretches up until a few weeks ago and now won’t go more than 3-4 hours.
That sounds a lot like how Luke was. His naps were always hit or miss, but he usually did take one good nap a day. He never went longer than 3-4 hours at night until 6 months. There were times when he’d wake every 2-3 hours and I never knew why–if his stomach was bothering him or if it was something else. Now, at 7 months, he still wakes once or twice a night, but he is starting to stretch it out. He’s had a few 8-9 hour stretches so I’m hoping that sticks.
Maryea,
I found your web site through google. What you are going through sounds a lot like what we went through with our first child. Same progression of poop changes, sleep and “colic” issues till she was 12 months old and we finally got to see a specialist (we’re a family stationed in a remote lil town overseas–AKA no pediatric/professional help whatsoever). I gave up BF at 6 months, since I was unable to find out what really caused the issues (we later found out she was highly allergic to rice–which I ate a lot of, trying to eliminate wheat, duh…). I still regret that I gave up BF, since it IS the best thing to do!!! At the time, however, there was literally NO info online concerning this issue, and I am glad you are putting it out there for those who might be in a similar situation and in desperate need for encouragement.
Also, Iwant to encourage you to stick to what you are doing and to not give up hope. I never thought I’d ever see the day that my daughter is able to eat anything beyond sweet potatoes and squash, until she suddenly (at around 20 months) seemed to make rapid spurts in outgrowing a lot of her allergies (she now, at 25 months, even tolerates one string cheese and an itty bit of butter every day)! It was the hardest 20-some months in my life, even with the help of elemental formula, and/but I often wonder if she had outgrown her allergies faster had I stuck to BF!
In any case, I can tell you that once Luke outgrows some of his issues, your efforts will be greatly rewarded. The burst of joy, thankfulness, and excitement with every bite my daughter eats are absolutely priceless and too big for words! Keep it up!
Hi Daniela–thank you so much for your encouraging words! Luke failed a soy trial at 8 months and I’ve been quite discouraged about not being able to eat anything and not knowing if he’ll ever outgrow his intolerances. It’s nice to hear happy stories. 🙂 I’m planning on keeping up with breastfeeding as long as I can. I hope it works out. Thanks again for sharing your daughter’s story.
I’m also glad to have found your posts because I have had the same exact stool issues with my 6week old son. Those pics could be his stools, they changed from mustardy yellow to green (now every stool is green), mucousy, & tinged with blood streaks. My baby (Graham) is really fussy some days as well & draws up his legs & cries after feedings (breastfeeding). My ped dr also recommended to elminate dairy first, but I had a few questions still:
-Have you heard of citrus being a problem, too? (E.g. OJ)
-Is chocolate out, too? I’m assuming milk chocolate, but wondering if a little dark chocolate would be okay…
-Did you cut out all products with butter? E.g. cookies. Probably yes, but it surprises me if the small amount of butter in some foods would be causing the problem.
Did you ever find out for sure if wheat was really a problem or was it just the nuts & dairy? It seems so hard to eliminate wheat! I wonder if they can do any allergy testing of infants to make this easier!
Thanks!
I have heard that citrus can irritate acid reflux in babies, but I haven’t heard about it causing issues with stools. I’m not sure though. Chocolate is not completely out, you just have to read ingredients. For me it’s difficult because even dairy-free chocolate bars have soy lecithin and I have to avoid soy, too. Yes, I have cut out all dairy, even trace amounts. Every baby and intolerance level is different. Some babies do well with eliminating obvious dairy and not “hidden” dairy, but Luke seemed to need all dairy gone. I use Earth Balance’s soy free spread as a butter substitute and it works well. I’m fairly sure that wheat was (is) a problem because even when all the other things were out he still had mucus and/or blood in his stools. It wasn’t until I gave the wheat time to get out of my system that his stools finally went to normal. Wheat was definitely the most difficult for me to eliminate.
I did a soy trial at 8 months and his stools immediately turned back to full of mucus and one had blood. It took three whole weeks to get the stools back to almost normal (they are still a little gooey and he is 9 months tomorrow). I have his 9 month well check this week and I am going to discuss a plan for when to trial other foods. I am also going to discuss allergy testing. Our pedi. offered it when he was around 8 weeks, but I didn’t want to do it at that time. Now I think I do just to see, even though they say they aren’t 100% accurate at this age.
Good luck to you–I know how difficult what you are going through is!
Just wondering if you have chosen to vaccinate your son and if so if you have had any reactions to any of them? My son is 3 mo old & very early realized I had to cut out dairy, and later soy. Aside from a few slips (ate a meal I’d prepared & frozen before he was born without thinking about it) we have been pretty good. His diapers are still somewhat excessively loose & watery with slight mucus to me when I compare them to my daughter. However the awful gas & fussing have subsided & he is sleeping better with far less squirming in his sleep. BUT at 2 months we started a selective/delayed vaccination schedule with the DTap…awful reaction! It was as if I’d eaten a bowl of ice cream, in fact before realizing the connection my husband asked if I had. The only new thing had been the shot so I looked up the ingredient list & … It’s grown on casein protein! I told my provider’s office about it but I’m pretty sure they think I’m nuts! I feel like I need to hold off on any vaccines with this ingredient for the time being hoping he outgrows the sensitivity. I know vaccines can be hot button issue but just curious if you’ve come across anything else like this?! Thanks!
I do vaccinate on the regular schedule. Very interesting that casein is in the ingredient list! I haven’t noticed any unusual reactions to his vaccines, but then again when he had them all so far was before things normalized, so I wouldn’t have known if it was the vaccine or something else causing the issue. I will have to be more aware of this when he gets his next vaccine–thank you for the heads up!
Holy crap!!! I am sooo glad you posted this reply!!!! We are battling an unknown allergen of some sort. I too cut out dairy and overnight the gas screams that I could set my watch by, for multiple times each day, ceased. The diapers didn’t get any better though, and not he poops only once every 5-6 days. I just quit soy, wheat, eggs peanuts a few days ago, and tree nit’s the moment I saw this blog (I just made a fresh batch if almond butter last night too! They have been my go to snack). ANYWAY, my point is, yesterday we went to get my sins 3 month shots (we moved to China 5 months ago) and they asked if he had allergies. We said no, because 1.) We were merely communicating through a translation app. And 2.) I thought there would be NO WAY there could be milk protein (of all things! ) in a vaccine.
Welp, today we had a very uncomfortable boy, and it’s so stressful and heartbreaking to see him suffer. We thought maybe it’s because he’s fighting the dead viruses in the vaccines, but now….
I’m not sure what to do about the next two schedules shots for dtap etc. but this has been mighty helpful! Thanks Elizabeth!
And a huge thank you to Maryea- these pictures led me here and saved my sanity. I am so sick of hearing “baby poop are loose” and “it’s normal”. My poor babe is such a trooper, still being so happy suffering the way he is. Dr’s “aren’t concerned” because his “weight gain is good”. Well that’s not good enough for me- my baby deserves to be comfortable and have a better quality of life for his first year. Poor guy.
“My baby deserves to be comfortable and have a better quality of life for his first year.” YES! Good job, mama!
Thank you SO much for this post! The pictures are what made this post so helpful – thank you for being brave and putting them up! My son, who will be 5 months old on Wednesday, and I are/have been going through exactly the same thing. It is SO hard not being able to eat anything and, after reading your story, I am afraid I may have to eliminate wheat from my diet as well . . . He is so gassy still and has VERY watery, and sometimes mucous-filled stools and, after eliminating soy and dairy, hasn’t had any blood . . . until this past week. But I NEVER know what a “normal” exclusively breastfed baby’s dirty diaper should actually look like and I am constantly sticking my face into his diaper and examining it wondering “is this normal??” Just to clarify, the last picture you posted – is this a more “normal” looking diaper? He thrashes and fusses so much in his sleep, as well, and we’re co-sleeping, so he keeps me awake all night too . . . Now I’m wondering if this is why. He wakes me up passing gas and making grunting noises like he has to poop all night long. I feel SO badly for him and just pray that this issue gets better soon. I’m really hoping it will before the Holidays to I can EAT something!! I will be following your blog from now on for recipes and to hear your updates on this, so please, don’t hesitate to post more dirty diaper pics! SO helpful! Thank you, thank you, thank you! And GOOD LUCK! I guess the silver lining is, I’ve lost all my baby weight AND some already! HA! All my best to you 🙂
Yes, the last picture is the “normal”. It does sound like your son may be reacting to more foods in your diet. It’s such a process trying to figure out exactly which foods are causing the problems. I feel you on wanting to be able to eat during the holidays. I did a soy trial with Luke last month to see if he’d started to outgrow his intolerances and it was a big fail. His stools immediately went back to being full of mucus and 4 days later had blood again after being clear for months. And all I had was ONE soy latte. 🙁 His diapers still are gooey and its been over a month, but it’s much harder to gauge if they are normal now that he’s eating solids. (He’s 9 months now) Good luck to you and I hope your little one feels better soon.
I am so glad I came across your blog. My LO is 3. 5 months now, but started having bloody and mucusy stools when he was 4 weeks. I researched the internet and talked to my Pedi and I decided to cut all dairy from my diet. It took about 3 weeks for the blood to stop and a couple more weeks for them to be less mucusy. I am also supplementig with Similac Alimentum formula. While his stools have been clear of blood for almost 2 months, they are loose and he is still very gassy, has reflux, spits up alot and has trouble gaining weight. My Dr doesn’t think those things are related to his MPI, but after reading this, I think it probably is and maybe I should start eliminating more things from my diet.
We tried giving him some brown rice in his bottle for the last two days (to help with the spitting up and help him gain weight) but I found specks of blood in his diaper this morning : (. Ugh! I really hope he is not allergic to rice. But stupid me, we also changed from Similac to Enfamil hypoallergenic formula this weekend at the SAME time we added the rice, so maybe it’s the formula. AND I ate a bag of peanuts yesterday, which I never eat, so maybe it’s peanuts, although I eat peanut butter sandwhich nearly everyday for lunch. I am so frustrated today, I was hoping this phase was over : (
I’m so sorry, Jennifer. Hang in there; I know exactly what you are going through and just how difficult it is.
I appreciate these pictures more than anything…that is how I found your website. One thing I am noticing over and over on the posts here which I have experienced is Pediatricians NOT recognizing potential signs of food allergy and telling parents that the stools and behavior of the little one is “normal”. We have experienced this and it is very frustrating. I actually had the nurse practioner recommend that I completely resume my normal diet today after I had been on an elimination diet for 3+ weeks…4 days ago I reintroduced corn and now my daughter is very uncomfortable and screams when she poops, has green runny poops with mucous in them…yet my Ped still thinks she is “fine”. I am sad to hear that this seems to be commonplace. I was going to try to get a second opinion from another Ped but I fear it may be a waste of time. If I could get to an allergist or a GI Ped I am sure I would be given the time of day but I probably need a referral to get insurance to cover it. So lonely and frustrating.
I had a unique experience in that my son’s pediatrician was much more supportive and helpful than the GI Ped we went to. I think it’s just a matter of finding the right doctor, specialist or not. I guess we got lucky in that our regular ped mentioned the possibility of an intolerance when he was 2 weeks old. I didn’t start cutting things out until later, but if she hadn’t mentioned it, I never even would have known to think about it as a possibility. More peds definitely need to be aware of food allergies and intolerances and help educate moms about them.
I just wanted to say THANK YOU. My 3 month old has the congestion and now the mucusy poop. I took it to the ped and they tested it and it came up positive. It is great to actually see the pics, so I know what to look for in the future. I had to switch to the hypoallergenic formula, because I am a diabetic and have to follow a certain way of eating. We just started this afternoon, so I hope to see things turn around soon. Thank you again, you have helped out a crazy worried mama.
You’re welcome. I hope the special formula is easier on your baby’s system and his symptoms clear up soon!
My little one has the exact same problems and the stool is identical, she is almost 5 months now, i have been dairy free for almost 1 month and now wheat and soy free for almost 1 week, getting tougher and tougher to eat but i feel breastfeeding is worth it, her stool is still runny with small blood flecks but the consistency seems to be getting better so hopefully we are on our way, i don’t eat too many nuts anyway, the only thing i still have concerns about if
it turns out not to be wheat is corn, i eat quite a bit of that. Anyway thanks for sharing and adding pictures, that helps to be able to compare.
You’re welcome and good luck to you as you try to figure it out!
I feel so much better after reading this. I’ve been on a sort of total elimination diet for one full week. my 11 week old son’s poop has turned yellow, finally, but the mucous remains. sometimes it seems like it’s getting worse before it gets better? I don’t eat dairy or soy to begin with, but yes those are hidden in everything. I’m only eating whole foods, which isn’t to far off s stretch for me. I’m eating chicken, quinoa, olive oil, kale, carrot, all squash such as zucchini, butternut, etc, sweet potatoes, some brown rice, papaya, coconut water, coconut milk, dates, pears and apples. That’s it. maybe some Turkey? I was happy to see the yellow but still notice lots of mucous. He’s happy, sleeps very well at night, growing, and docs are very supportive of continued breastfeeding. But it makes me sad to think I’ve been hurting him. This is likely and some people don’t understand. I’m afraid I’m hurting him and will have to catch to formula or that I’ll lose my milk supply on such a restricted diet. this whole thing is very hard and I need encouragement. it keeps me up at night and I’m almost frightened of every diaper change. should I stop eating dates, coconut? I’m so confused. But thanks so very much for posting your experience with this. mashed me feel a little less lonely in this!
Sorry for the grammatical errors, this was written quickly on a phone! Any advice would be most welcome (regarding this situation, nut the grammar!) And how interesting about the vaccine…
Give it time. It took a long time of having all of the foods out of my diet to see an improvement in his stools. It takes a long time for certain foods to get out of your system (especially dairy and wheat) and also to get out of the baby’s system. I wouldn’t stop eating the dates or coconut. Just make sure you are eating enough,drinking a lot of water, and resting as much as you can and your supply should be fine. Luke is now 11 months and I’ve just started adding back foods as a trial (nuts have been okay and I’m trying wheat now; it’s too early to tell if wheat is okay or not) and my supply has held up well. I do eat plenty of calories. I know how confusing and hard it is–hang in there!
I understand some food takes a long time to leave your body, but diapers shouldn’t be getting worse unless your eating another irritating food correct? I thought I had this down with my first daughter but I have eliminated all the same food and daughter number 2 doesn’t seem to be improving. It’s been almost a month of have I think the top 8 allergens out. What would you say are the top 8 allergens?
The top 8 allergens are: peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, soy, dairy, corn, eggs, and shellfish.
Thank you so much for your post! I’m sorry to hear about Luke and his food “sensitivities.” I have a two month old baby girl that I breastfeed only who is sweet as pie one minute and – as my Dr said – “having a complete melt down” the next. At three weeks we took her to the Doctor. They said she had reflux. Her screaming fits started not lasting as long after that but she still has her moments frequently. She’s always been gassy and many times a day screams as though she’s in pain. I noticed at three weeks also her poop turned from mustard yellow to greenish..I thought this was normal variations for breastfed only babies. Last week, I noticed that there was mucous in her stool. After much research, I decided that she must have an allergy. I first stopped all dairy, which being lactose intolerant myself, wasn’t much. After a few days of no change I cut out soy, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, corn, eggs and fish. For two days, she was happy, not screaming and actually taking naps during the day. Day three…another day of meltdowns. I just started a few days ago the Dr. Sears elimination diet. The only thing I’m eating is range fed turkey, green and yellow squash, sweet and regular potatoes, pears, rice, rice milk (and added rice chex…gotta have some cereal).
No change yet but I’m not giving up. With a possible allergy combined with Laryngomalacia, it’s been a rough couple months but we’ll pull through 🙂
Good for you for sticking with it! Good luck on your journey and I hope you get it all figured out soon.
Like everyone else said, thank you for posting this!! I have felt silly for wondering about mucousy stools. My son has had mucousy stools since he was a newborn. They just recently been getting worse. I think part of it is because I have been drinking hot chocolate lately and so that might make it worse. My son is 3 1/2 months old and is 11 lbs or less. I have almost been tearing my hair out trying to figure out why he is so tiny. I am wondering now if he does have an allergy and that’s why he’s not digesting nutrients. He is a very alert boy and so his development is fine. I know you’re not a doctor, but you’ve been through this. Would you suggest eliminating dairy for a couple weeks and see how it is and then eliminate something else? Again, I am so glad I found this and that your post was recent too!!
Definitely consult your son’s pediatrician, but if he has mucousy stools and slow weight gain, I’d try eliminating dairy and possibly even soy as well to start with. Those are the top two culprits in infants, so taking those out may be all you need to do. Give it a good month until you decide if it’s working–dairy especially takes a long time to get out of your system and the baby’s system. Good luck!
Oh, also, what did you do about calcium? Did you take vitamins? Thanks so much 🙂
I eat a lot of non-dairy calcium-rich foods, like dark leafy greens, seeds, and beans. I do also take a vitamin, though. It’s a vitamin for pregnant and nursing moms, but I can’t think of the name right now. (sorry!)
Our little 7 week old boy, Greyson, has had the same exact looking diapers since 2 weeks old! I have a gluten allergy so it’s not that snce I’ve already eliminated that from my diet. So his pediatrician told me to cut out dairy. I’m 3 weeks into a zero dairy diet and his diapers havn’t gotten any better – in fact they’re looking worse! But here’s the kicker – I relaced my morning cereal milk with ALMOND MILK! Jeez!! I had no idea that could be a problem in addition to the dairy issue! Thank you for posting this and for posting pictures! I will cut out the daily dose of almond milk and hopefully we’ll see a difference! I brought a mucousy diaper to his pediatrician today and he basically said “well, sometimes babies just have funny poop.” Not really helpful, but they agreed to do a stool sample and gave me some cups. Do you have any other advice?
It’s so frustrating that some pediatricians are not knowledgeable about food sensitivities and intolerances in babies. The poor babies are suffering and the doctors don’t even realize it. 🙁 Have you cut out soy? That is often a big culprit for babies and soy is in EVERYTHING if you eat processed foods. If you haven’t seen any improvement at all I’d keep the dairy out but also cut soy. Good luck!
P.S. I love the name Greyson!
Came across your blog while googling green mucousy bloody diapers. UGH! Good for you mama for sticking it out. I am one week in and feel so discouraged at times when I still see green nasty poops but I think we are dealing with the same thing here, and my pediatrician is of no help. Keeps telling me the specks of blood are okay (from an anal fissure), the green is fine since she is EBF, and the mucus is not related to my dairy intake. WHAT??!! Yes, I am switching docs.
Thing is, she didn’t start showing any symptoms until about 3 months-poops started turning green and some had mucus. Dry patches on her face (derma said it’s just heat rash). Some diaper rash on and off. Spitting up more. Specks of blood in one diaper every day or two. Why would it take so long to show up? Also, she sleeps great and is generally a happy girl. And she also sometimes has normal yellow seedy poops and has seriously never had gas. So many questions and doubt in my head but I am so committed to breastfeeding my girl. Did you have normal poops in the mix, too? Or were they all green and mucusy?
I’ve been off dairy for almost one week now and haven’t noticed a huge difference-maybe less spit up. Did you notice any connection between things you ate a lot of during pregnancy and things that bothered your son? I ate a lot of cheese and nuts during pregnancy so I am focusing on cutting out my dairy and nuts (nuts are harder for me than dairy-I LOVE peanut butter!).
Nuts were harder than dairy for me, too! I definitely did eat a decent amount of nuts, wheat, dairy, and soy and those are the things Luke is/was sensitive to. I don’t know if there’s a connection there or not.
Overall the majority of Luke’s diapers were at least slimy. Not very many “normal” looking ones until all the foods got out of my system (which took a total of 3 months since I took out one thing at a time) They were only green until I cut out soy around 3 months, and then they stopped being green. The occasional green poop can be normal for a breastfed baby, but with other symptoms they can also be a sign of a problem. It doesn’t sound like your doctor is looking at the whole picture to me. I would probably try to get into a GI specialist. Mine wasn’t much help, but normally I think they are more knowledgeable than pediatricians in this area. And dairy can take up to 8 weeks to get out of your system entirely, so you won’t really know if it’s helped to cut it out for a while. Did your little one definitely have an anal fissure? Specks of blood every day or two seems very excessive. I only saw blood a handful of times total. Either way, I’d get a second opinion. Good luck!
Hi Maryea,
Thank you so much for your site! I, like many of the moms who posted, am struggling with this issue. My son is 5 months old and has what I *think* is mucous in his poop. I have been googling pictures to see if what I’m looking at really is mucous. How can I tell? I look at your “normal” picture and feel like it’s the same as my son’s. However, the “mucous” pics also look like his. I’m having a hard time seeing a big difference between the two. Any advice?
Erika-
I feel the same way! This is my 3rd baby, and I am a pediatric nurse, and I still find myself scrutinizing Grace’s diapers obsessively!! Since around age 3 weeks, Grace has pulled off while nursing- sometimes she screams, and other times she’ll just pull off when I feel a letdown and refuse to get back on. She is not fussy between feeds and she sleeps great. But she will turn away from the breast even when I know she must be hungry, and she pulls off almost every feed. She has no rashes, maybe some congestion, though she has 2 brothers in preschool, so the root of the ongoing congestion is up for debate. Her stools definitely don’t have blood, but are they slimy? Are they stringy? So hard to tell!!
I have been doing the dairy-free diet for about 6 weeks (with a few lapses where I think “Maybe dairy is ok! I’ll just try it! and then she gets worse). Because things have not been much better, the lactation consultant I talked to recommended definitely no dairy. Just commit to it, and don’t try to sneak it back in til she’s at least 6 months. And also no wheat. If she’s doing great in 6 weeks, she said I could retry the wheat, because it is hard to tell if her continuing symptoms are because I have not been faithful to the dairy free diet, or if she has another allergen. So for the next 6 weeks, I promise not to cheat, and we’ll see what happens. Today is day 2 no wheat, no dairy, and while it is awful for me, Grace has nursed the best she has in weeks. Seems impossible that it could happen so quickly, but who knows. By the way, her weight gain was awesome until about 6 weeks, then has been hit or miss- some weeks she gains pretty well, but she has lost an ounce 2 weeks also.
For what it’s worth, one of my sons had a dairy allergy. He had no symptoms that I noticed when I was nursing him, but he got hives the first time I gave him yogurt at age 9 months. He was blood tested at age 12 months, and had a class 2 allergy to dairy- no other allergies to foods. He outgrew the allergy at age 2 years and now eats dairy with no problems. My other son (I have identical twins) showed no signs of food allergy, but I had him tested at 12 months as well, because I wondered if identical twins could really not be allergic to the same things. Turns out, the answer is yes! Drew did not test allergic to milk (and he had never gotten hives from eating it), but he did test positive for wheat, class 2. I met with an allergist, who said that since he had shown no signs of wheat allergy, to go ahead and feed it to him. He has seemed to do fine. But now it makes me wonder if I missed signs in their stools when they were babies, etc. And it makes me wonder if it will end up that baby Grace has trouble with both milk and wheat.
Whew! That’s a lot of info! But I have been thinking about it non-stop, and it’s so hard to find someone to discuss it with.
Hope all goes well with your LO. Good luck!
Thanks for sharing your story, Betsy. I’ve been trying to decide if I should get a blood test for Luke (he just turned a year old), so it was interesting to read your experience.
Does he have any other symptoms? If you aren’t sure and that is his only symptom, then I would say he might be fine. If there are other symptoms, however, I’d definitely investigate further. I showed the doctor pictures of Luke’s stools, and that was helpful to get confirmation that they weren’t normal. I also physically brought diapers into her office. If you suspect a problem, you can also get the stools tested for blood. Even if it’s not visible, it could be there and that would be a clear indication that there is a problem.
I’m struggling figuring out Luke’s stools now that he’s fully on solids. I’ve been adding foods back in and it’s so hard to tell what is normal and not with a solid-food diaper!
Good luck to you!
Thank you so much for this post! The pediatrician we have been seeing has no clue why there is blood and mucous in my 3.5 month olds diaper so we have yet to try anything to solve it. I am now convinced that I need to change my diet since not Breastfeeding is not an option for us. We are going to remove dairy from my diet and if need be continue to eliminate from there. I am hoping that my little can still tolerate nuts though because we are vegetarian and that’s where our protein comes from lol. If he cannot is there any suggestions you have for protein replacement? I am allergic to chicken, turkey and get really bad reflux when I eat pork (hence the veggie diet!). I can eat beef in small amounts but it also causes tummy aches for me 🙁
I feel your pain with the lack of protein options! Before I had to eliminate all the foods, meat was on the menu only about once a week. Since then, I started eating it more like 3-4 times a week. It sounds like that is not a option for you. Other protein options that are not soy or nuts are: seeds (I add sunflower and pumpkin seeds to salads a lot and eat a ton of sunflower seed butter), quinoa, beans, split peas, and lentils.
Good luck!!
I could have written this post myself!!! I only wish I had come across it sooner. My little bundle is 4 months now and he has had green, mucous poos with blood (now and again) since he was about 4 weeks old. What a whirlwind it has been! I was dairy, wheat, and gluten free for 2.5 months, I know now that was not the culprit. I ended my love affair with soy about a month ago when I jumped sides on the estrogen producing controversy. Also, I have an overactive letdown with an abundance of foremilk. About two weeks ago I was at my wits end, I had an overwhelming sense of guilt. The choking while feeding, followed by refusal to latch back on after and his poos were still green mucous. How long could this go on? I was deeply concerned for his well being, even though he is the happiest, healthiest looking baby I have ever seen. Formula was never and hopefully will never be an option for us. I needed answers! I had tried everything from block feeding to eating a diet of strictly sweet potatoes and rice, for Pete’s sake. Then I decided to see a Lactation Consultant. I was only overproducing on one side, it seemed, so I was instructed to feed from little boob first…always. After about a week of this schedule we had the first yellow poop of about 3 months 🙂 Low and behold a few days later (on Christmas day)…a seedy texture. Was this a Christmas miracle? Okay, maybe not, but now I wonder who is to blame, soy or mother nature? Either way I would not eat soy for anything and meal time will ALWAYS begin with a right boobie appetizer. It was refreshing to hear that we are not alone in our trials.
Very interesting! I often wondered if oversupply/foremilk/hindmilk imbalance contributed to Luke’s stools as well. Around the time I cut out soy, I also started encouraging him to feed from one breast longer rather than switch him the first time he popped off. I was never sure if it was that or the cutting out of soy that helped his stools stop being green.(Did I write about that in the post? I can’t remember now…) At 8 months when I tried to add back in soy, however, I was sure that it was a problem for him. It resulted in horrible gas, explosive stools, and one terrible sleepless night. All that from ONE serving of soy milk. He’s over a year now and I still haven’t tried soy again. It’s not worth it!!
Great work!
A couple years ago my little guy had GERD.. And my diet affected him a great deal. I went on a total elimination diet and started introducing one food a week.. Starting off with pears and rice.. Turns out he didn’t agree with diary, soy, nuts, and the preservative they add to mince meat! That took a while to figure out, as the meat itself was fine, but whenever I are the minced version his reflux was worse and so were his belly pains. I ended up bread feeding for 17 months, and he got better each day, people thought I was insane for going through all of that, but it was worth everything to me.. Now he’s got a good strong belly, and I’m glad I didnt have to put him on formula. Its an amazing thing you’re doing, great site, keep it up! They’re the most precious gifts we get <3 good job!
Thank you, Kat!
I just wanted to thank you for your post and photos. I too could have taken these photos myself (minus the bloody one). I knew I wasn’t crazy! I KNEW there was something going on. I eliminated dairy even though the doctor said I was overreacting. The diapers are still the same but like your son, the congestion got better. So, now to eliminate more and see. I am just so glad to have some photos to refer to and to know I’m not just a paranoid mom. This is my 5th baby but only my 2nd to EBF so I always wonder if it’s all in my head. My daugther is like your son was, rarely fussy about it…so the doctors say “well if it was a problem she would be crying all the time”. Ugh. Anyway…just thank you. A lot!
You’re welcome! Thank you for sharing your story, too. Good luck as you continue to help your daughter.
As everyone has said, thanks for your post. As a first time mom, I was not sure what normal poop for a breastfed baby shoukd look like. For the first month everything was normal (mustard with seeds), and then it started to aternate between really runny or green and mucusy. Around 2 months I noticed small streaks of blood. I have been without dairy for 7.5 weeks and soy for 3.5. My daughter’s poop had seemed to be getting slightly better after being off soy for 3 weeks, but for the last day the mucus and blood have returned. Now I am trying to decide if I accidentally had soy, or if I need to eliminate more foods. When initially discussing my diet, my doctor said I could still have soybean oil, but I was wondering what your experience was with that. I have mainly avoided it, but I have had some things with it. I am trying to decide if I should eliminate the oil first or add another item like eggs or nuts.
Thanks!
That’s a tough call. I still don’t know for sure if soybean oil is an issue for Luke or not. I mostly avoided it and then had eaten it without realizing it (Chipotle uses soybean oil) and didn’t notice a difference. I have heard of others who notice obvious reactions to soybean oil, though. If it were me, I’d eliminate soybean oil and give it another week or two. If there were no improvements then I’d start eliminating more foods. Good luck whatever you decide!
I was told oil is fine because the protein is pulverized so they can digest it. My second child has the same problem but it started earlier and it seems more severe. I’m thinking I might need to cut out lentils, corn, and maybe tomatoes. These are the most recent since her diaper has been green and mucousy. Does lentils mean no green beans and black beans, etc.?
I have heard that, too, but I think it really depends on their sensitivity level. I personally prefer to avoid soy oil as much as possible anyway.
Thank you for all the information and encouragement. My daughter had very similar diapers from month 1 to 4. I thought I was doing well by eliminating dairy, eggs and soy and she was doing well for 2 months. My daughter just turned 6 months and she started eating rice cereal, oatmeal, carrots, green beans, squash, sweet potatoes, apples and pears. I was waiting 4 days between new foods and I thought she was doing well and now she is more irritable than ever. She also has had about 6 oz of alimentum 2x a week when I am at work and have to stay late. She also just started daycare 2x week and is so fussy they don’t want to keep her. I am not sure what to do next. Do I eliminate all solids and start over with the 10-14 day rule? Do I eliminate more from my diet (I eat peanut butter every day)? Do I try a different formula on the days I don’t have enough milk pumped? She is so uncomfortable and I miss my happy baby. Has anyone tried giving your infant enzymes? or probiotics? Thanks again and any guidance is appreciated
Oh, that is so rough. I’m sorry. 🙁 When did the new irritability start? Did it correlate with starting one specific food or when you started giving the formula? When did you start solids? It can take a while for their systems to get used to eating solids, so you may need to scale back and take it slower to give her system time to adjust. I started solids with Luke at 5 1/2 months and it didn’t go well–his digestive system just wasn’t ready. So I waited a month and then tried again and he did better. It’s so hard to pinpoint what is the cause; you really have to try one thing at a time until you find your answer. I’d start with trying a new formula and see if that helps. If you’ve been eating peanut butter everyday the whole time and she did improve for a time, I wouldn’t think that would be it.
I take probiotics myself, so Luke gets them that way. I haven’t tried giving him some directly, but have heard that can help a lot.
Good luck and I hope you figure it out!
What probiotics do you recommend or take. I’m not sure how to comparison shop. I was worried that I needed to add them in my diet. Thank you for this blog I’m making a list of all possible intolerances so I can narrow down my daughters issues.
Thank you so much. I feel everyone thinks I’m crazy for obsessing over this.. But you mommies understand it’s a BIG DEAL when you know you could be causing your baby pain. Luckily, our daughter doesn’t seem in a great deal since starting her reflux meds, is gaining weight and sleeping fine.. Yet I continue to obsess with the mucous-y
diapers. I also think I saw the first tinge of blood.. I’m bringing the next one in to get checked again last time it was neg, but I’ve now been soy and dairy free for about 6 weeks and blood may just be appearing 🙁 I am just so confused as to what to proceed with next.. I don’t know if I wanna attack “the big 8” or a full elimination diet. It’s isolating to feel this is happening to only you, not to mention all the diet restrictions (I’m southern and eating is a big deal! Haha) also our ped has been supportive up to this point but I am terrified of the formula talk and the decision that then ensues.. Find a new ped, go AMA, or do it.. No options sound good really 🙁
OMG – I’m so grateful I found this! My LO has been diagnosed with silent reflux, up until now his poops have always been normal. Last wk he started to have mucousy poops…..I have a very fast let down & over supply not sure if its this that’s causing it or if he’s now developed food intolerances. I have almond milk everyday with cereal followed by toast & eggs. I’m going to start cutting the wheat & almond milk out, I’ve cut out eggs for over a wk but no difference. Its going to be a tough ride to try to find out what’s causing the poop issues. He is also very congested, ESP after feeding, (I EBF) I thought this was due to the reflux. Is there a list that you compiled with the foods to avoid??
Thanks again for sharing your experience!
Sorry – I should’ve said he’s nearly 8 wks old, gaining weight like a trooper. I know chocolate irritates him so I don’t eat that anymore 🙁 I take pro biotics & I e just started him on Bio Gaia pro biotics.
Hi,
Are the biogaia probiotic drops you are giving to your son. Helping him. I am in same boat as you all here and I am completely cutting out dairy and soy but my LOhas stopped having regular poops since I eliminated dairy/soy. Not sure if it’s related. I just supplement her with 3 oz of ailementum per day for past one month. Do you think that could be causing it. It’s so confusing!
I had the same problem with my son, now 6 months old. Cutting out dairy and soy helped the most, but then eggs and nuts, too (not sure if it’s both of those or just one and I’m afraid to do a trial of one). The biggest difference has been giving him probiotics- one capsule of Culturelle in a bottle every day. If I go a couple of days and forget, he gets all messed up again.
He lost quite a bit of weight- from 95% at birth to <25% at 12 weeks. He basically had NO appetite. I now pump and bottle-feed all his meals. He liked breastfeeding but he was a "casual" feeder and never took much in. He hates bottles and it's a struggle to get them in him. Not sure, but this seems to be this might be a common problem with MSPI babies.
I'm considering stopping breastfeeding but he will not drink the elemental formulas and barely tolerates the Alimentum. Is it too early to try a regular formula? I'm wondering if that might be more palatable.
And thanks for posting the poop pics. It was the validation I needed to know I wasn't crazy.
Hmmmmm…that’s interesting. Luke never had an issue with bottles. His preferred method was (still is!) straight from the breast, but he takes bottles fine. Obviously I’m not a doctor, but in my opinion it is probably too early to start on regular formula. Every baby is different, but when I did a trial of soy at 8 months it was a disaster. I think at 6 months their little digestive systems are still pretty immature and would most likely have trouble with the proteins in regular formula. Good luck with whatever you decide to do!
I’m so glad I found your blog. My family is in the process of figuring out what is happening with my son, who is 17 weeks. He gained weight great at the beginning – regained birth weight in 4 days and he was between the 50-75th percentile curves for weight. I thought that he was going to be my big boy – my great eater! Since then, he has fallen to the 3rd percentile. Symptoms started around 4 weeks – fussiness and arching back after eating, shrieking as though in pain. Dr. and I talked about reflux and block feeding to help with gassiness. Excema began to show up around 8 weeks. By 12 weeks, eczema was so severe, it became infected, blistered, oozed. Two rounds of steroids and antibiotics did nothing. Mucus began showing up in his poo, but never any blood. He also seems to have very little appetite. Coincidentally (or not), his weight has significantly slowed since the major eczema flare up at 12 weeks (only gained 5 ounces in the past month…not good).
I went dairy and egg free 10 days ago. I went gluten, nut, everything! free one week ago. The good news? His eczema is calming down! Even the most serious looking spots only show a faint outline of pink. I was in tears when I saw how improved his skin looked. It’s not perfect, but such improvement! I’m hoping the weight improves next and that the mucus totally disappears.
I’m not sure what our diagnosis will be, but I feel like tweaks to my diet might be the key. Thanks, again. I’ll be coming back to try your recipes.
Oh, Shannon–I’m so sorry your little one is having such issues. I hope the diet tweaks will help him gain some weight, too.
I hope you enjoy the recipes you try! 🙂
This blog is fabulous. Hello from the UK. These nappies could belong to my little boy Nico ( now 15 weeks). Our story is of poor weight gain from day 1 and green nappies from around 6 weeks, which then became filled with mucous. Aged around 8 weeks I first noticed flecks of blood mixed with the mucous so initially cut out all dairy ( 21st December) and when this had little effect I then removed soya ( so difficult and I have made several slip ups including my post natal vitamins!). Nico’s stool is now yellow again but still not normal and we have around 5-9 nappies a day with continued sluggish but better weight gain.
Yesterday my helpful (??) toddler placed an apricot on Nico’s face and he develpoed an obvious red mark underlying it. I looked this up and apricots are a member of the birch pollen allergy family along with loads of other foods I have been eating! I am going to try and super exclude this week so let’s see.
I have started taking domperidone as with this exclusion my breast milk supply feels to have dipped ( my supply has never been amazing). I would love to continue as am sure that the long term benefits must be wothwhile but do wonder on a daily basis if it would be kinder to switch to an hypoallergenic diet.
Does anyone have any similar experience? Thanks in advance and for this great blog x
Hi, I have just stumbled across your blog after searching images of baby poo (I never would have imagined I’d be doing that!). My dd is 4.5 months, growing, happy and sleeping well however a few days after her 4 month vaccinations I noticed streaks of blood in her poo in a couple of nappies. It seemed to clear up but now (2 weeks later) we’ve had a few more episodes. After looking at your pic’s I’ve realized that she maybe doesn’t have ‘normal’ bf baby poo (and hasn’t for a few months) that I thought she did. I was just wondering (and really sorry if this is a stupid q’n) if that last pic in your post is a more ‘normal’ bf baby poo or if all the images are signs of the mspi in your son?
We are headed to GP on Friday, I’m guessing I’ll be told to cut dairy as a start, I’m very anxious about having a restricted diet but you blog is very inspiring and will definitely be using your recipe ideas if that’s the path we need to take. Thanks so much for posting the pic’s and your experiences, very reassuring.
Yes, the last picture is one of his most normal stools. The rest are not normal. Good luck; I hope your appointment goes well and you’re able to figure out what’s causing the issues.
Hi Maryea,
Thanks so much for responding to my query and I’m sorry it has taken so long for me reply. I just thought I should give an update on where my daughter is at in case other mums find it useful.
We went to GP re blood in stools, she was pretty vague about it, referred us to a pead but said it’s probably some kind of intolerance, that most likely she will outgrow. She went on to say that modern medicine isn’t very good at finding the problem with this sort of thing (don’t know if i like her honesty or not!) and particularly when bub is otherwise thriving.
A week later we saw the pead, a very kind and thorough dr although he pretty much reiterated what the GP said and told us to monitor her over the next 8wks. If blood / mucus continue we are to have allergy blood tests and go back to see him.
While these appoints we’re happening I decided to try some elimination diets and stopped peanuts for 3wks and all dairy for 2wks, with very little change (ie still the odd v tiny blood spec), since then I have gone back to eating whatever. We have also very slowly started introducing bub to solids (I was particularly anxious about this given her tummy issues) so just one food, then waiting a few days before something new and only one ‘meal’ per day. However since starting the solids her nappies have started to improve, we’ve been almost 3 wks with no (visible) blood and almost no mucus, stools are also a bit thicker, more like toothpaste, rather than liquid explosions.
So I don’t really know what this means, I feel that maybe the immunisations caused irritation to her gut (both dr’s said this is unlikely) and it has just taken time for this to heal. It seems from other comments online other mums have had the same experience. Also just want to say i am pro immunisation but the onset of my daughters funny stools just seems like too much of a coincidence.
Anyway we have 6 month immunisations in about 3 weeks, so I’ll be monitoring closely.
To all the mummies, keep up the great work, this job can be a tough gig.
Very interesting. My son first started having the blood the day after his 2 month vaccines. I’ve been on the elimination diet for weeks trying to pin point what is causing blood specs occasionally in his stools. I wonder if there is any relation with vaccines.
Maryea,
Were you able to eat beef? I have heard that from some people that if you are eliminating all dairy, then you need to remove beef as it can contain the cow protein. Not sure if that is true. Did you ever have deli meat either? I was trying to think of more meat to add to my diet (as I am on no dairy, soy, eggs, and nuts either) besides just grilled chicken.
Thanks for your help. This post has been a blessing!
I was able to eat beef, and as far as I know it didn’t cause any issues. I don’t really eat deli meat. We do occasionally have ground turkey. Good luck!
I’m now 2 weeks dairy, wheat / gluten & soy free. I have started eliminating nuts & eggs as still he’s very mucous. We had 1 episode of a tiny amount of blood in his stool, ironically the test we did before the blood came back negative!
Question 1: how long does it take for the possible allergen / food to be out of my body / system??
Question 2: If chickens are fed a high corn / soy grain diet would that soy be passed into the meat then onto me / breast milk??
I’m journaling my food & I’m wondering if oatmeal is an issue now…..Its so hard to not drive yourself crazy trying to figure out what in earth is causing this mucus
/ allergy.
Q1: Each food is different. Dairy can take up to 6-8 weeks. Wheat about a month. Soy and nuts are faster, around a week. These are how long they take to get out of our systems. It can take longer for the baby’s system to heal.
Q2: This is a good question, and I’m not sure the answer. I hope someone else knows and can chime in here.
I haven’t heard of oatmeal being a problematic food, but you never know!
Thanks for the reply Maryea – I’ve switched to turkey which is pasture raised & grain fed as opposed to 100% veg diet (i.e 100% corn / soy grain) Hoping this will be ok.
I’m calling the GI again tomorrow & arranging an appt with a pedi allergist to see if they can help – my LO has been on Prevacid since Monday & his stools have gotten worse, thick dark green mucus and he only poops twice a day now. I hardly ate dairy before eliminating it so it’s frustrating to have to wait for over a month for it to clear. The only thing i can think making the mucus worse is the Prevacid which i believe has lactose monohydrate…..uuugghhhh
Oh, poor thing! I have heard that Prevacid can cause problems in mspi babies because it has milk ingredients, so I would guess that’s it. 🙁 Good luck at your allergist appointment! I hope you get some answers.
So the GI assures me the lactose in the Prevacid is not causing my little man issues…….the allergen specialist said he wasn’t too concerned as my LO is gaining weight & otherwise looks healthy…….I disagree, he looks pale & his eyes are red & itchy & also he has a lot of creases under his eyes…….a symptom of the Intolerance so I have read. The GI wanted us to start Neocate ( the stuff stinks nasty!) I cried for 2 days solid! Honestly, it was like someone told me they were taking my baby away from me. I tried him on it first with breast milk mixed in but he was not having it……phew! The nurses advised me to put chocolate or strawberry syrup in it!! O.M.G ! Seriously! I’m going to pump my LO with that stuff?? I don’t think so …..goodbye GI, Goodbye pedi, we’re now on a search for your replacements!
I’m now seeing a naturopath & my LO is on allergen free pro biotics & L Glutamate (however I’m not sure if the glutamate is causing him issues) and im taking digestive enzymes. I’ve been TED for 6 wks & cut out all veg / fruit from the nightshade family as per naturopaths instructions. A recent trip back to the UK was tough but as far as I’m aware I remained on my TED apart from needing carbs a couple of times & hotel could only offer fries with my protein 🙁 I noticed a huge increase in diaper mucus so I’m guessing the nightshade family is a problem! The day of our flight home I had a craving for Bassetts liquorice all sorts & low & behold my LO’s poops were very mucusy & brown the next day…….Doh!
So all I’m basically eating is chicken, pork, bison, a little beef & lamb with root veges & fruit. Rice, quinoa & gluten free otameal. The berries I’m thinking may also be a problem – salicylates……that would take us down the salicylate, amines & glutamate road…….I eat a lot of courgettes, carrots, berries etc & these are high on the salicylate list. It’s never ending & to top it all we’re all full of some nasty cold & cough ……..
What’s the latest status on your diet & Luke’s poops?
Wow! What an ordeal you are going through. You are a rock star for eating such a restricted diet for your LO!! Luke is 14 months now and still breastfeeding. I am eating everything and am trying to figure out if his stools are normal or not. It’s much harder to tell when solids are involved! He is happy and gaining well, but does have some other signs of intolerances (creases under eyes being one). I plan to talk to his pediatrician about getting a test to see to which foods he is intolerant at his 15 month visit. I started added foods back in at 11 months and it seemed like everything was fine, but now I’m more confused than ever. I will be posting an update about everything soon!
P.s his rash has completely cleared!! YaY!
Hi Ladies,
Does this not SCREAM something is wrong with our kids, food and the way doctors shove everything off so easily… Been going threw this for a month… Daughter is almost 4 months next week… We are in Canada… Seen Dr. at urgent care (said maybe intolerance to milk) set me away, then Dr. at hospital said it was a fissure (no one not even me could see a fissure which it definately isn’t)… So on so forth… Just saw my Dr. Who I have an appointment. NOw tomorrow with a Pedi GI… And Tuesday with a Naturalpath as I have had it… Bloody is not normal, mucusy and green too… Been a month with no soy or dairy… Now going wheat free and thinking nuts… Eats nuts and use almond milk daily… Took beef out two weeks ago…. Looks got normal after first two weeks, started. Lock feeding and using a probiotic called BioGaia and it worked, then got her immunizations and back to square one… Told my cousin who lives out of town who is Naturalpath and said this is common and said I needed enzymes too… Nas the green mucusy poo is the bowls being irritated because they are not breaking down proteins… Makes sense… She sent me a probiotic and enzyme combined and been using for 5 days and seems to be working a little, I miss here and there so I think I have to be more consistent… Seems the common denominator though is proteins in poo and one should block feed for those produce lots of milk… Do not do formula if you can avoid it… Dr.’s especially in the states don’t encourage breast feeding all that much… Remember out society is full of GMO foods, nitrates, preservatives, hormones so on… I was reading on skin problems in different babies definately related to all beans and definately soy… My daughter is much happier and can sleep a bit better… No regular patterns though and anywhere from 2-3 hours and sometimes only half hour naps during the day, crazy gassy, moody as well and fussy… Her brother was so the opposite in everyway… I cry out of frustration and feel like a bad Mom and then some people say take easy way out and do formula and I see that harder in the long run trying to accommodate crazy diets and paying for it, not to mention her health! So, now do I cut its too? And definately wheat… Can’t image having to do rice, eggs and corn as well! So frustrated, tired and feel like my entire household is suffering as well
Hang in there, mama, it does get better! I agree that it’s crazy how prevalent these issues with babies are.
So nice to find this blog and know that I am not alone in this. My son has started having mucus in his stool at about 5 weeks, then his stool turned green. I did my research and found that symptoms that my son was showing were correspondent with dairy allergy. So, I decided to go on a dairy free diet. For our 6-8 week well check-up I took a sample of my baby’s poo, and my ped confirmed that it was positive for blood (even though it was not visible). She told me to eliminate dairy, nuts, eggs and soy completely from my diet and see if there is any improvement in a week. Because I started my dairy elimination before the appointment, it’s been 1.5 week dairy free and 5 days soy, nut and egg free for me. It’s not that bad, and I feel the diet is kind of cleansing – no cholesterol and processed foods. However, for some reason my son’s stool have been changing color from yellow to green and vice versa ever since I went on a diet. I know for sure I did not eat any of the four allergens. However I gave him Nutriamigen twice. Wonder if that could be the cause. I really hope my baby’s tummy will get better and I will be able to identify the culprit! All mommies with food sensitive babies, hang on there! We will get through this!
Thanks for sharing your story! I agree that the diet feels good. I was most bothered when I wanted to eat out or at social situations and I couldn’t eat anything. When I was at home it wasn’t so bad.
I have a Luke too! And I believe he has milk and soy protein intolerance. Those diapers look very familiar! I cut out dairy, eggs and beef 2 months ago and started being vigilant about soy a few weeks ago. I agree it’s hard to eat on this diet, especially snacking! But he is so much improved that its worth it. He still has minor bouts now and then even when I’m sure I haven’t had any of the restricted foods so I’m wondering if there is a food I occasionally eat that is also a problem. Anyway thanks for the pics, i too have searched for pics to figure out if his poops were normal. Lol!
I just replied to your other comment on the contact page. 🙂 The soy can take a while to work its way out of his system so that could be it. At 8 months I had ONE soy latte to test the waters and his diapers immediately went back to being full of mucous and they weren’t totally normal until about a month later. All of that from one little soy latte. Aaaah!
I just found out today that I need to cut out dairy from my diet to help my 2 month old son. Noah was having some blood in his poop on and off…I was hoping it was just from some constipation that he was having but it went on for too long, so I finally took him to the pediatrician today. So, here I go starting something that I didn’t expect. My two older sons never had any problems, so I don’t really know what I’m doing! 🙂 But I’m supposed to start with dairy and see what happens. And your pictures really helped! Even though I’ve already been through the newborn poop with 2 other children, I still couldn’t really remember what it was supposed to look like. I was easily able to see from looking at your pictures that we are probably dealing with the same issues. Thanks for telling us your experience!
I never, ever would have guessed that Luke’s poos were not normal unless his pediatrician asked me about them at his 2 week check up. (Of course until I saw blood, but that was later.) I really didn’t think anything of them until I told her the trouble he was having with settling after his feeds at night and she asked if his stools were mucous-y. I’m so grateful she was knowledgeable as I know now many pediatricians are not.
I am actually glad you posted pictures, though I have a strong stomachs for that sort of thing. It made it clear that my son’s diapers look the same the last couple of days. Yesterday there was just a hint of blood in a mucusy diaper and his stools have looked mucusy today too (no more blood, though). He is four months old, EBF, and this is the first time it has happened. I didn’t think it warranted a call to the doctor right away since he otherwise seems perfectly healthy and happy. I have just been watching those poopy diapers closely. 🙂 is it strange if an allergy crops up at this age and not earlier? In your opinion should I call his doctor even if I don’t see blood again?
I think you are doing the right thing by just watching the diapers closely. I would definitely bring it up at his next well visit. If the mucous continues but not the blood, I’d bring a diaper to be tested because there may be blood that isn’t visible. Good luck to you!
Thank you for sharing your story. I have had similar trouble with my daughter along with severely painful acid reflux. I worked on an elimination diet for months and narrowed her intolerances down to soy, eggs and dairy. So difficult to keep everything out of your diet. Dairy causes a month of colic, painful reflux and mucus poops. It is so scary to eat anywhere away from home. She is 7 months old. Fingers crossed she will grow out of it soon!!
I just found this blog, and I have got to tell you THANK YOU for posting these photos. My daughter has been consistently having green mucus-y stools, and I also cut out all dairy. I’m only on day 11, and the diapers had went back to normal seedy yellow, but now they are back to green mucus. We’ve had a stomach bug the past few days, so that may be the culprit, but I am happy to see that I’m not crazy and that this is a problem. My daughter is a very happy & easy going baby, but her diapers indicate to me that there is a problem. I hope dairy is the only thing I need to cut, but like you said, it’s a waiting game. Thank you again for the post & for the photos.
You’re welcome and good luck as you try to figure it all out!
Hi! Thank you so much for sharing your story…I’m going through the same thing! My 3 month old son has been having green, mucousy poos that look just like the pics you’ve posted ever since his 6 week dr appt and vaccinations. He also started having horrible gas pains and troubling pooping since then, but he’s had sleep disturbances and what we initially thought was “colic” since he was a couple weeks old. I removed all dairy and soy, nuts, and eggs from my diet about 6 weeks ago. He improved drastically, started sleeping better and his overall mood improved. He stopped fussing all the time. But it seems like the improvement is punctuated by bad spells, where he starts sleeping poorly, fussing and having gas pains again.
I’m thinking it could be either bc I accidentally have food with milk/soy in it or bc my son reacts to soybean oil/lecithin. I’m going to try cutting those out first, but if that doesn’t work, what other foods would you suggest eliminating next? Beef? Corn? Wheat? And how long do I trial these?
I’ve been eating wheat every day, even the days where he’s doing better so does that indicate that its not wheat? Could it be bc it’s taking a long time for the milk/soy to leave his system, ESP with minor slip-ups? If I re-introduce nuts and eggs, how do I know he’s reacting to those and not to soy/ dairy that’s still in his system? Do I have to wait until he’s better to re-introduce those?
I’ve been keeping a food diary but I can’t seem to pinpoint what is causing reactions! If he’s having a bad day do I look at the food I ate that day, or a day or two earlier?
Although its hard to not eat all my favorite foods, it’s even harder seeing my little baby in pain, and feeling like I can’t make him better!! I just want him to be the sweet happy boy he is when he’s not hurting!
Sorry for all the questions – any advice is appreciated! thanks in advance!
This post reflects my own journey.
Frequent, loose, green (sometimes completely bloody), and blood streaked diapers, along with chronic nonstop fussiness, constant ‘hunger’, poor sleeping habits, and slow weight gain.
At 6 weeks I removed any and ALL dairy protein, 20% improvement. At 10 weeks I removed soy from my diet. Another 40% improvement with the removal of soy.
And one day I was STARVING! So I ate peanut butter right off the spoon and the gas, bloating, crying and (eventually) bloody diapers started again. I assumed it was a peanut allergy/sensitivity, **but realized a month or two later that it was in fact the SOYBEAN OIL that is used to roast the peanuts and such**.
So with the realization and removal of ALL soy, including Soybean oil, Soy lecithin, mono & diglycerides etc, and vegetable oils, and any products that list ‘natural ingredients’, there was yet another 20% improvement! So totaled, by 4 months old she was 80% better, but still suffering a bit.
Finally, at 4 months old I removed all gluten and wheat from my diet. And within 10 days I noticed a BRAND NEW BABY!
BUT!!!!!!!! Turkey and Chicken aggravated her tummy and the symptoms would start up again. WTF!
After some thought, I figure it has to do with the diet of the animals – as they are fed mostly soy and some grains – if lucky). I haven’t challenged this theory by consuming ‘organic’ free-range cage-free chickens as the cost is beyond my budget and not readily available in my area, but I plan to introduce it some times between 12 – 18 months.
Wow! Great job realizing that the animals’ diet was affecting your baby. That was some seriously good detective work. Thanks for sharing as I’m sure this comment will help many others!
You mentioned in your post about BFing for 2 years. Just to share my experience…my daughter had MSPI and other food intolerances. I gave up dairy, soy, wheat, eggs, peas, spinach and tomato to be able to breastfeed her. At 10 months, I was able to start adding back (everything but tomatoes, dairy and soy) and at 1 year I could successfully eat all but tomatoes. So, (and you may know this by now) but you won’t necessarily need to have a restrictive diet yourself for the full 2 years of BFing (We made it 20 months). Now I’m off dairy again as we’re expecting #2 in a few weeks. Hoping she doesn’t have MSPI, but guessing she probably will.
Hi Wendy! Thanks for sharing. I did start adding back in foods at 11 months and it went well. After I found out he was tolerating the foods in my diet all right I started adding the foods into his diet. I was unsure if he was tolerating them in his diet or not. It’s so hard with intolerances. Just yesterday actually I brought at diaper into the doctor’s office to be tested and they found blood in it. (He’s 15 months now) I think it is dairy that caused it. His doctor did say that I most likely can keep eating dairy, but to cut it out of his diet again (he only had a very limited amount to begin with, so that won’t be difficult) I need to post an update soon as it’s been a while since this one! 🙂 Good luck with baby #2!
Just curious why spinach? I’m trying to cleanup my diet and see what I might be missing. Thank you
I’m sorry; I’m not sure what you are referring to.
I was replying to what Wendy said- I gave up dairy, soy, wheat, eggs, peas, spinach and tomato to be able to breastfeed her.
I was curious why spinach? I’ve read the entire blog trying to find out else to cut out. I’ve done the top 8 or 9 (at least a month) plus rice, corn, and oats (recently). I’m not sure what is still causing the issue. I’m waiting on a specialist, but trying to problem solve in the mean time. Thank you
Oh okay! I can only see the most recent comments from where I answer comments. I hope Wendy will see your comment and let you know why she gave up spinach. I do know that dairy and gluten can both take longer (can take 8 weeks) to get out of your system and baby’s system, so it may be that you just need more time. Good luck!
Thank you for sharing your story and pictures. We had our first child almost 2 months ago and have slowly figured out his nighttime screaming fits were not colic and his green, mucousy diapers were not normal. Thank goodness for Internet resources and a pediatrician whose daughter has MSPI. So far I have been on the MSPI journey for a week and a half. I’m starting with no dairy or soy, although haven’t cut out soybean oil/lecithin as dr. said may not be necessary just yet. I’ve noticed what I thought was baby acne on his face has cleared up significantly, although he still has dry patches. Also, only a few diapers are green each day, instead of all of them. And he is much more calm at night. We still have some fussy times but nothing like it was before.
I hate that we have to see our babies go through this but I am so very thankful to have found other moms dealing with it. I love my son and will do my best to keep him healthy and happy but I’d be lying if I said this diet was not difficult at times–and I’m only doing dairy/soy! It is a bit overwhelming to analyze everything I eat and wonder if there are more items I need to cut out. The hardest part I think is watching and waiting!. I look forward to being able to post in the near future that our tummy troubles are over! Thanks again.
Yes, I agree, the waiting is the hardest part! Good luck to you!
Hey, I just stumbled on your site. I went thru the same thing with both my boys, and I breastfed both of them thru it. I am so happy you posted these pictures. I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to link to this page because I never took any pics of my boys’ stools. Thanks for posting!!!
No, I don’t mind. You’re welcome!
Going through same thing!!! My lil guy is 14 weeks old, has had massive gas, fussiness, mucous green poos since about 3 weeks old. I cut out dairy and soy early on (big brother has milk protein allergy). Still mucousy. His peds didn’t believe me that he has an allergy. He also had a rash down both arms/chest and baby acne that lasted untul he was 3 months old. On Easter I decided to eat whatever I want for 1 day at a buffet…5 days later he had bloody poos, mucous and nasal congestion ever since. I have cut out since that bloody poo dairy, soy, wheat, egg, tomato, oranges, tree nuts and peanuts…bloody sulfur mucous poo today 🙁
Questions: do you cut out soybean oil and soy lecithin (I have not)
Did anyone’s docs do skin testing?
Did anyone’s docs check stool for infection?
Thanks so much!!
Early on I did cut out soybean oil and soy lecithin. Luke is now almost 16 months and I do eat a small amount of soy lecithin (in chocolate!) but I avoid soybean oil anyway. I think he can handle it now because he’s a bit older. We have not done skin testing, but the doctor did offer to do a blood test. At this point I really feel like he has intolerances, not true allergies, so I am not sure how helpful the testing would be for us. We also have not had any of his stools checked for infection, but he has tested positive for blood multiple times (the last time was just a few weeks ago). I hope this helps you some. Good luck as you figure it all out!
Hello,
I have never commented on a blog before but I am wondering if my daughter may have the same thing. She is 6 weeks old and has basically had green mucusy and or watery stools since she has been born. This has also led to horrible burns in her bottom from the stomach acid. At first her dr said she was just getting to much foremilk and told me to block feed and that I could only nurse her every 3 hours minimum. I tried bringing so scheduled for 2 weeks but it did not help. I took her back to the dr last week and this week and the dr is saying that its not my diet just that she is eating to frequently. So I am back to only letting her nurse every 3 to 4 hours. I have not had milk or icecream sinc she has been born. Was your sons bottom scalded from stomach acid? Also she has never had blood in stools. Any advice??
No, my son never had any sort of rash or irritation on his bottom. Maybe something else in your diet is causing that? Do you eat a lot of acidic foods? I’m sorry I don’t have any advice!
Hi Maryea!
Thank you so much for your blog and all the pictures!! At first I had no milk supply. Through endless latching on, and then pumping, 12 times a day, I was able to establish an adequate supply when my baby was 6 weeks. It was about that time when my baby has green mucousy stool, and then blood, and got diagnosed with the milk protein allergy. I have been on a TED, including wheat, all nuts and rice, for 7 weeks now, and her stool is still green. We had 3 diapers with blood, and the other ones tested positive for blood, although not visible to the eye.
Cooking without a lot of common ingredients takes some creativity. I think one of these days I am going to gather together my recipes to share!
Like you, nuts were my main snack, and I get so hungry with breastfeeding! So now I have gone to sunflower seeds. Did you find that you have to get your sunflower seeds from a source that is free of nut/ wheat/ soy contaminant? How about the sunbutter? The jar says it is from a facility that is free of nuts, but is roasted on equipment that also roasts soy. Did you make your own sunflower butter or just get the one from the store?
Thanks again for the blog! I hope to be at your stage one day, able to have yellow diapers again and then test each food to add back!
Annie
I do both–buy sunflower seed butter from the store and make my own. It just depends on how much time I have. I did use sunflowers that were not from a source totally free of soy or tree nuts and it didn’t seem to be a problem with Luke. I would guess that it will just depend how sensitive your child is and would be different for each child.
Thank you for writing this! My son was born 6 weeks early, on Easter, and was in the NICU for two weeks. I’ve been breastfeeding him exclusively however he got some Neosure in the hospital to help him gain weight. I noticed cramping during this time but took him off if it once we got home and the Dr okayed it just two days after being out of the hospital since he was gaining weight fine. His stools were great the first two-three weeks we were home. Then they started becoming mucousy and not seedy then eventually more green. Never seen blood though, sometimes small, green, hard, claylike pieces.He began spitting up a lot and they said he has reflux. So after eating I had to hold him upright for 30 min so he didn’t spit everything up. He writhed in pain. He developed an umbilical hernia. Dr took abdominal X-ray and thought he had an intestinal blockage. Sent us to ER. They performed an ultrasound and said everything looked fine. On the X-ray you could see 3/4 of the abdomen filled with trapped gas. I had cu out gluten during the pregnancy but started eating it again free he was born so went bak to gluten free. Dr also said cut dairy and eggs. I did all this for a few weeks but was getting some dairy but have now been eating dairy, egg, nut, soy, corn, and gluten free for one week. I noticed improvements with his behavior after two days. he was finally sleeping better and spitting up less. I need to stay with consistent pods though because even though I’m eating low allergen foods, two times he had had episodes where he is having stomach pain. Stools and color haven’t gone back to normal seedy yellow poop yet. He hasn’t been diagnosed with anything but sounds very similar to your situation. I did eat sunflower seed bar and a small amount of 80% dark chocolate bar the last two days and today he is having more pain therefore I’ll cut those back out. It is a challenge to eat so limited but feel its worth it or him. Thanks for this blog!
I agree it is definitely worth it. Sounds like you are doing a great job!
HI! Wow looks like you have had a ton of response to this post. Other moms searching for answers!
My question is, you said the diapers were starting to look normal again, and you posted a photo: # 5, the last one. Is that an example of a normal diaper?
Also very interesting someone else asked about vaccines. My son, coincidentally named Luke, has had normal diapers since he was born. About 3 weeks it started to look a less seedy but when I looked up online normal BF stools, it looked like those. After his 2 month vaccines last week, on the 4th day after, Luke started to have extremely slimy, mucousy poops. First they were the yellow color then they started to get some blood flecks in them. I suspected the rotavirus vaccine having caused this, because I did a lot of googling and it seems like there were many other moms talking about the same exact symptoms starting just a few days after having received the vaccines. I brought the diaper into the pediatrician and of course the doctor tells me no it could not be from the vaccines (even though the vaccine info sheet says to bring the child in if he has blood in his stools and to mention having recently received the vaccine…. ) Anyway, the doctor tells me it is probably this milk protein sensitivity, and she also told me it often goes hand in hand with soy and advised me to cut it out.
I think this is an awful coincidence that my son suddenly started having these poop issues 4 days after the vaccine. I am convinced it is from the vaccine! I even saw on a forum someone speculating that the virus/vaccine sort of temporarily damages the intestines/colon and actually sort of causes the inability to break down the milk proteins…. interesting theory… also interesting that your other reader posted about the casein link.
Although I suspect the vaccines, I am starting my journey on eliminating all dairy/soy.
I forgot to add – the day after the doctor he started to have grass green (but less mucus) poops. He has never had green poop! Now it’s sort of a yellow color but it still looks a little slimy.
I just don’t understand why all the sudden his stools would change like this if my diet didn’t change. Truly feel there is a link to the vaccines.
I am so sorry for so many comments… I saw you did say the last picture is a more normal looking diaper. I have a hard time distinguishing it from the first pic… what makes the first pic more abnormal? Shinier?? Because the last pic looks a little shiny too. I’m just trying to figure out if my son’s diapers have been normal since week 3 when I mentioned it changing and losing the seediness.
Hi! I too am also wondering about the last “normal” stool picture. While it does look maybe a little different than the first abnormal one, it still looks pretty slimy. Is there still mucous in the last picture? My daughter had green, mucousy poops from birth, but otherwise no other symptoms and great growth, so I did not think much of it until her 4 month check up when the pedi saw one of her diapers and said they were not normal. I have been dairy/ soy free for a month, and top 8 free for almost a week. Her stools are pretty much yellow or brownish consistently now, and the mucous seems to have gone from large globs to more tiny strings, although they still have a “shiny” appearance to them, which is why I am wondering about this last picture. To me, her stools are still shiny ( and therefore mucousy…right?), but they do most closely resemble your “normal” picture. Ah! Way too much time analyzing diapers 🙂 thank you!
I don’t think shiny necessarily means mucous when baby is exclusively breastfed. To me, the last picture does resemble normal. His diapers were like that until I tried to introduce soy back into my diet at 8 months and I saw them change back to mucous-y immediately. The difference was clear. It is hard to tell in the picture, though. I can see how it could look like it could be mucous-y, but it wasn’t. I know what you mean about the time analyzing diapers! Luke is 18 months now and I’m STILL studying his diapers. AAAAhhhh!
So we dont know if my daughter has MSPI yet we still have to go see the Gastroenterologist (sp?) but she started to have stools just like the ones above but now its dark hunter green and mucus. Did your child’s turn into what I described? Ive just been researching and trying to get an idea of what could be wrong with my little one. Shes four months old.
Early on Luke did have a lot of green diapers, but they mostly stopped once I cut out soy. Good luck to you! I know it’s a long journey trying to figure it out.
So glad I found this! I’ve been going crazy trying to figure out if my 7 week old has a milk intolerance. I keep asking the pediatrician but they say it could work out of his system around 2 months and that the rash on him is just baby cne. Well I tried cutting out dairy for a few weeks and my son’s stool looked better to me(still a little mucusy but better) and his baby acne got better. Well I tried dairy again in my diet and he was super gassy, fussy, more acne, bumps on his arms now, and rash behind his ear(which they tell me is from cradle cap but he has none). Also he just had a stool that was water and really acidic smelling. He never had blood but it was real stringy. Going to try going back to not eating dairy and then go from there. Any advice and is there tests the pediatricians can do with a stool sample?
So sorry you are dealing with this! It makes it so much more difficult when the doctor isn’t seeing what you are. I would just follow your gut and eliminate the dairy again. It takes a lot of time to see a clear difference, so be patient. The only test they did for Luke was to test his stool for blood. His pediatrician told me that blood in the stool indicates irritation in the intestines and almost always points do a dairy and/or soy protein intolerance in babies. Good luck to you!
I am also going through this with my 3.5 year old boy. He’s had green stools with mucus for at least a month. I cut out dairy with no improvement. Then I started to see blood, and my pediatrician recommended that I cut out dairy/eggs/soy, which I’ve done for the past few days with no improvement yet. We’re scheduled to see both a pediatric allergist and GI doc.
How long did it take for Luke’s poop to turn back to yellow from green? How strict are you with food labels- like if a package of dried cranberries states “packaged in a facility that also processes milk, wheat, and soy products” would you not buy them? Also, there is a brand of cookie that I found called Enjoy Life which are great- they’re dairy/egg/soy/peanut/tree nut free.
Also, did his poop have any particular type of odor? Today Tate’s poops smelled sour.
How long did you cut out dairy? It took Luke’s stools a total of 3 whole months of me eliminating foods before his stools got back to normal. It can take a while for first the foods to totally leave your system (dairy can take 8 weeks!) and then for the damage already done to the baby’s system to heal. You won’t see results right away, so you need to be patient. The stools did turn from green to yellow pretty quickly when I eliminated soy, however, they continued to have mucus and/or blood for a long time after that. I still ate food that was packaged in the same facility with the foods I was avoiding as long as the food itself didn’t have what I was avoiding. I don’t remember if there was an unusual odor to his stools–I think they were normal breastfed baby smelling though. I hope this helps. Good luck!
I meant 3.5 month old!!!
My daughter (now 9 weeks) has had the mucousy stool now for about 4-5 weeks. She wasn’t having really any other symptoms. No fusiness or blood in her stool. She had her 2 month immunizations last week and I noticed what appeared as blood in her stool along with more green mucousy stools. I figured it was from the cherries I had (she also developed a rash on her chest and stomach) so I haven’t had anymore cherries. I have been pumping some of the foremilk as my daughter can’t seem to keep up with my production but her stools vary from the mustard yellow to almost a greeny mucous. I am at a loss! I love breastfeeding and I don’t want to give it up, should I start with elimination of dairy, which I’m thinking this has possibly been the culprit of the mucous… Thoughts/opinions?
She sleeps great during the night, last night she slept 6 hrs straight!
Did you talk with her doctor about it? That’s what I would do first to get his/her medical opinion. You should get her stool tested for blood as sometimes you can’t see it, but it’s still there. I know green stools can also result from a foremilk/hindmilk imbalance, but I’m not sure if that causes mucous as well. If you do think an intolerance may be causing her abnormal stools, yes, dairy is usually what is recommended you eliminate first. That is the most common intolerance in infants. Soy is #2. Good luck!
Hi :)Thanks for sharing all of this. My son is also sensitive to dairy and soy since he was 5 weeks old and now he’s 5 months old. I can have soy now without any blood showing up but seems he is still experiencing flecks of blood in his stool when I have dairy. Planning in starting solids in a month. Has your son been able to have dairy yet? I hope he will outgrow this soon! At what age have you heard that babies are no longer sensitive?
Thanks again, April
Glade I found this post. I’m going through this with my 4 month old. I have been dairy and soy free for 7 weeks now but have slipped with soy a few times the last time being last week with a fruit drink with soy oil in it. I have also been gluten free for about 4 weeks and I have also cut out tomatoes. Things have improved but I was wondering how you can tell when you are at a baseline. The baby’s poos were watery with globs of mucous but never any visible blood, they have now changed to being thicker consistency more like yogurt or toothpaste but not any gobs of mucous but maybe still strings of mucous its hard to tell since the poo is so thick. Do you think this is the baseline or should I try eliminating more foods?
It is really so hard to tell. I just decided things were good when we had a few consistent weeks of diapers that didn’t seem to have any mucous in them and had a not slimy consistency. I wish I could help you more but without seeing the stools it’s tough. Good luck!
oops meant glad!
I’m curious if the last photo is a healthy stool? I’m trying to find answers to problems myself.
Thank you!
Yes, that is the healthy stool. Good luck!
Thank you all so much. While the pictures are disgusting. They are very helpful. My son had a diaper rash today and was really fussy. I thought he was trying to tell me he hurt but he didn’t say where. Then he had green, mucus-filled poo with little speck of blood. He’s a year and half. I think it is result of letting him have some whey protien lately. I sure hope its not dairy in general because cheese is his favorite food. Poor baby.
Interesting that it first happened at 18 months. Good luck figuring out what the source is!
Thank you so much for posting these! I came across your post in the wee hours while breastfeeding my baby back to sleep after the second bout of explosive diarrhea for the night. She is 16 weeks old and the nighttime disturbances and diarrhea started just under two weeks ago. I thought it was part of the 4 month sleep regression but the multiple episodes of green diarrhea soaking through her jammies and sleep sack tell me it’s something more. She has FPIES to dairy and soy but it has never bothered her for me to eat them. The only thing that changed just recently was my return to work, which meants eating eggs every morning and nuts as a snack all day while pumping. I am so glad to have found your photos because that’s exactly what my baby’s stools have changed to in the past two weeks. They look just like your son’s (without the blood). I’ll be taking eggs and nuts back out of my diet amd limit dairy and soy. If the egg/nut elimination doesn’t put us back to normal, I’ll go hardcore on the dairy and soy. Thank you so much for sharing your experience!
Good luck to you! I hope you get it figured out soon.
Hi Maryea,
I know this post is a little old but wow did it ring familiar with me. We are in week 5 of dairy & soy elimination and still seeing blood and mucousy poops (thanks for all the pics, gross but great!) I have replaced milk with Almond milk and after reading your post am wondering if I should be eliminated more! I read in one of your comments that you were going to post some foods you were eating with your dairy/soy/wheat/nut free diet. Did you ever post this? I would love to read it as I’m sitting here feeling like there is very little left to eat!
Thanks for all your time and effort putting together this post! It’s a great resource!
Yes, I did. Here’s the post showing what I ate in a day: https://happyhealthymama.com/2012/10/what-this-breastfeeding-mama-eats-in-a-day.html Good luck to you!
I think there is a caveat to be had with this story. Reading your post, I realized that my son had experienced the same symptoms (without too much fussiness) and now to a lesser degree with my second son. I was advised by both doctor, lactation consultant and a specialist to eat regularly and not proceed to cutting anything out unless it was causing adverse effects (persistent diarrhea leading to dehydration, excessive blood in stool, excessive fussiness, etc.). Much current research on food sensitivities suggests that eliminating the foods entirely is likely the cause of a lasting sensitivity or even full-blown allergy. There are studies and trials taking place all over Europe that actual expose post-6-month olds to their sensitivities with an expectation that unless the sensitivity is severe (allergic–a term almost always misused for sensitivities) the child will ultimately build up an immunity to most of these sensitivities.
I was food sensitive to peanut butter, fish, strawberries and bananas (among other things) 33 years ago. My mother lessened didn’t feed them to me for 3 months, and every 3 months reintroduced. By age 3, I was food sensitivity free (or what could pass as), something that almost certainly wouldn’t have happened if she had taken the approach most parents take these days (of cutting the culprits entirely out of the diet).
As long as my boys are functional, and not miserable, I will continue to eat an unrestricted diet, regardless of stool appearance. As for mucus and chunks, my doctor said completely normal and that many kids take up to a year for systems to function properly and develop maturely, and that mucusy stools are often as a result of that (immature digestion), not food sensitivities.
I am glad things are working better for you and your son, just alarmed by the number of responses that fail to view every case as individualistic.
=-) Keep up the awesome parenting. While our approaches are different, I think we are both interested in doing what works for us and our babies. Thanks for the pictures, btw. They were helpful in comparing the symptoms.
Interesting viewpoint! Thank you for sharing. I have continued to do trials with Luke (he’s now 21 months) and he’s still not tolerating dairy. My biggest concern is that his pedi. told me that the long-term irritation in the digestive tract can lead to malabsorption. He gained great as an infant so I didn’t worry then, but from 15-20 months he only gained about 3/4 of a pound. Of course there’s no way of knowing why, exactly, it could be just normal slow down or even a scale error. But if it’s accurate, that really is a small amount of weight gain for that age range. So for now we’re keeping dairy out of his system. I’m not a big fan of dairy anyhow. 🙂
Hi! Which first solid foods was Luke able to tolerate? After a couple months of blood, my Tate had normal diapers for a couple of weeks (our pediatrician recommended we try an infant probiotic from Klaire labs which is allergen free which seemed to help). I’m not sure if it was carrots which I just introduced back into my diet, or that we gave Tate a couple of spoonfuls of homemade applesauce, the blood came back. I’m so nervous to try something new!!
I have a 2m old that I think might have a food allergy. He suffers from reflux and eczema. He is exclusively breastfed. The dr told me to bring in any diapers that have blood or mucas in them. This is my first baby and I have only changed formula fed babies. I have no idea what’s normal. The first picture you posted is exactly what my son’s poop looks like. Is that a picture of abnormal poop? I can’t seem to find any pictures of what normal poop is supposed to look like.
Hi
What a great article to find! The pictures were so helpful. My baby has the same filled diapers and symptoms with the sleeping and congestion. As soon as I read your blog I cut out everything you suggested could be the culprits for your son. The only problem now is I’m starving, lol. We do have a peds ap’t Friday just by chance so I will talk to them about it as well, but do you have any recommendations as to what you could eat after all the foods you knocked out? I’d love to have some more ideas.
Thanks and keep blogging!
Thanks, Vera! I’m glad the pictures were helpful to you and I hope you’re seeing an improvement in your son! Here’s a post I did showing what I ate in a day when I was on this diet. I hope it helps some. Good luck to you! https://happyhealthymama.com/2012/10/what-this-breastfeeding-mama-eats-in-a-day.html
Maryea ,
Like everyone has said, thanks for posting these! I’m not afraid of “tmi” so I loved it!
My problem is, I’m still unsure of my daughters poops are considered mucousy.
She’s 4 weeks old and since about 2 weeks she’s had green in her stools. No other symptoms really at that point (maybe started to fuss more) . She seemed pretty content most of the time. Then, last weekend, she had more green poops and then some completely green ones that she had trouble passing. This one had a few strings of snot-like green mucous. Like one you pictured. Some have been sort of spinach like.
Since then she’s been way more fussy than usual. Crying most of the time she’s awake. She doesn’t sleep nearly as good. Getting up several times in the night instead of just 2 or 3.
I decided to go on Dr. Sears elimination diet and get rid of the nasty nine. ( http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/feeding-eating/feeding-infants-toddlers/food-allergies/tracking-hidden-food-allergies-3-steps). Since then she’s barely had any green in her poop.
I’m hoping it’s because of the elimination, I haven’t changed anything else.
So my main question is, how to know if they are mucousy? They are now mustard colored almost completely but seem stringy? Like little blobs of goo in there. What should the seedy pieces look like?
Sorry for the long post. I could go on and on. I get frustrated that doctors say green poop is OK. Just seems wrong to me.
Thanks!
I think occasional green poop is okay (my daughter had that), but consistent green poop is a problem. It’s so hard to say if they are moucousy. I still have issues figuring out if Luke’s diapers are “normal” or not (he’s 21 months now). How long have you been on the elimination diet? I would guess that there is still some irritation in her system so you are still probably seeing some mucous here and there, but it could clear up as everything clears your and her system. Just my guess!
Over half of them contained green and some of them were completely green with strings if mucous like your photo.
I’ve been on the elimination diet a week now.
I’ll wait until another week or two before I add anything back. Will start with nuts, then peanuts, then wheat and dairy last. Since they are hardest to get out of blood stream. Her doctor said same about clearing up slowly when we went in today for thrush treatment.
Yes, it will definitely take more time to completely clear up if it’s only been a week. Good luck! I know how difficult such a limiting diet is.
Can I ask about how Luke gained weight during the time you had issues with his poop? My son is almost 1 month old and is gaining weight like a rock star but, he poops once every other day (only breastfed) and it is slimed and a tawny yellow almost orangey brown, similar to some of your pictures. He sleeps well. He isn’t fussy, per se, however he is visibly distressed between poops. Grunting, hard tummy, etc. I thought it was a gas issue so I have been giving him mylicon drops and it helps him burp and pass the gas, but not the poop issue. At his two week check up the doctor didn’t seem concerned, but this can’t be normal. My first didn’t have this issue.
Luke was very much the same. He gained weight very well. Actually he was always in the 95-99th percentile for weight and height. He was also very mellow during his awake times, but didn’t sleep well until about 6 months. His gas was horrible, especially the first couple of months. We also used gas drops that helped some. From your description the color of your son’s stools seems fine, but I’m not sure about the texture. If there is obvious mucous, you might have a problem. It’s so frustrating that this is such a gray issue! I’m sorry I can’t help more.
I am so glad that I have found some company in this issue. my 7 month old experienced the same symptoms. At 5 months, I eliminated dairy, she continued to have blood in stool. Then I eliminated soy. She seemed to get better, but not 100%. I am now trying to figure out what else to do. I am thinking either wheat or nuts or both?
Also, my Pediatric GI, had said that I didn’t have to eliminate soybean oil or soy lecithin because they didn’t have a protein in it. Did you eliminate those? Just curious.
Thanks for any help. I feel awful that my baby has had blood in her poop for 4 months now.
I eliminated soy lecithin and most soybean oil, just to be sure, although I’d heard the same thing. I did eat soybean oil on occasion (at Chipotle because they cook their food in it) but in general I try to avoid it anyway. I didn’t ever notice a difference when I had Chipotle though.
Thank you for sharing your story (AND the pictures!)
We are having a horrible time right now trying to figure out what’s going on with our. Early 5 month old. He’s been having green stools off and on for months. Over the last 1.5 weeks we’ve been getting blood. He’s not a great sleeper but he is a happy baby.
Every doctor we see seems to think its something different. We even went for a meckels test to rule our an intestinal abnormality but they couldn’t start an IV cause he veins are too small. I don’t want to out him through that again!
I’m just SO frustrated. We just had about 48 hours of yellow seedy stools and great sleep. All of a sudden were back to green with blood and bad sleeping. I know I had some dairy yesterday aswell as peanut butter.
I’m so tempted to just go out and buy some formula in hopes that it will correct the problem. I dont know if i could cut out a million things 🙁 But I love breastfeeding and would miss it so much.
It is so hard and frustrating. You have to do what’s best for both you and your baby, so whatever you decide don’t feel bad about it. Do keep in mind, however, that often babies with sensitive digestive systems don’t tolerate formula well, either, even the special formula. So it’s not like you are guaranteed a new baby tomorrow if you start formula. Again, I’m not telling you this to pressure you or make you feel bad if you decide to stop breastfeeding, I just want you to have all the facts. I have heard from several moms who tried several formulas and none of them worked. Then of course there are those who take to formula right away. You just never know! Good luck with your journey–I know how lonely it can feel.
Thankyou so much! My daughter is 14 weeks old and has had green mucussy explosive poos for a couple if months now and today for the first time I found blood in them just like these photos. Just left the hospital and are waiting for test results but I believe this is what we are dealing with. I’m intolerant myself to dairy and wheat so I mostly don’t eat these anyways but I do have soy and lac free milk occasionally. Looks like I’m going to have to eliminate more from my diet and be a little stricter with it. Eek! Thankyou so much for your encouraging blog!!! I’m sure Ill have more questions to come.
You’re welcome! And good luck to you and your little one!
Just wondering… Did u have problems introducing solids?
I had to go very slow. His digestive system took a while to be able to handle them. But overall it wasn’t too bad.
I am experiencing something very similar with my 15 week old. I didn’t realize it took so long for the dairy to get out of their system. My son hasn’t been fussy either so I hadn’t really considered it a problem until recently when he lost 1 ounce in 3 weeks. How did your son do with his growth? Did he have trouble gaining weight? Thanks for sharing!!!
Actually as an infant he gained weight great. Between 15-20 months he gained less than a pound. I’m not sure if it was related to food issues or not, but we did trial dairy during that time period. It’s so hard to know for sure what the food intolerances are causing!
Tarah,
My daughter has MSPI and egg intolerance, we also dealt with weight gain issues from 4 months on. I had to dream feed her to make sure she gained anything at all. She is almost one and still wakes up to eat at night most nights, she is gaining very slowly. I am sure my restrictive diet may have some part in it as my boys had 5-9 lbs on her at that age. Or she may just take after me, she is also very active, I’ll never know. She is growing like weed though, so I am not too worried. 🙂
I to am grateful for finding your blog. My 7 week old has been having the same stool issues. It started a few weeks ago, I called his pediatrician and he said to cut out my dairy. I have been dairy free for a little over 2 weeks. Except today, made my older kids pizza for lunch and not thinking grabbed a slice. I realized my mistake right at the last bite. 🙁 How soon do you think the dairy would be noticed in his stool. I am asking cause he had speks of red about 3 hours later. I am wondering if it’s the dairy that caused this or something else. Thanks Liz
I am actually not sure how quickly it would show up, but with my son it seemed to happen quickly. I only know from personal experience, though, not actual medical knowledge. 🙂 Sorry you are dealing with this!
This thread is the answer to my prayers! We went through this with my daughter 3 years ago, and the allergist told us to switch to formula. I refused given that my daughter was growing fine, and the pediatrician agreed that we should just watch to make sure the bleeding didn’t increase. The blood/mucus went away when we started solid foods at 6months.
Recently my daughter has been diagnosed with nut and peanut allergies, including a trip to the ER with a swelling face… Glad we kept breastfeeding until she was 20 weeks though…
I now have a 3 month old son with identical problems. I cut out dairy out of paranoia at 2 weeks, and saw the first blood 2 weeks later :(. I found this thread 3 weeks ago and have been on a total elimination diet since. I’m hoping if I keep away from foods he’s sensitive to while breastfeeding he won’t developed the same allergies as his sister.
Thank you thank you thank you for your blog entry (including photos), I’m not alone!!!
I’m glad this was helpful for you!
I’m glad this was helpful for you! Good luck!
My daughters poops look just like the top pics minus the blood. Wonder if she is MSPI?
Could be! The only way to really figure it out is to eliminate foods and watch and wait. It’s a frustrating process.
Maryea,
I wanted to tell you how much I love and appreciate your site, it has been a life saver this year! I found it by googling poop pictures as I couldn’t figure out why my than 3 months old daughter was still having mucusy stools despite cutting out milk and eggs. Luke’s poop was a perfect match and his story was ours! I cut out soy and mucus was gone! So thank you so so much! I love healthy foods already and your delicious recipes made this past year so much more bearable! 🙂 My daughter is turning one in a week and I am searching for a simple cup cake recipe. So far she can eat sweet potatoes,
pears, quinoa flakes and flour, rice flour. I would use egg replacer and thought I could use the sweet potato for “frosting”. Do you have any simple batter recipes? Thank you so much again!
Hi Natasha! Thank you! I am sorry that this is a late reply. I’ve had family in town for Thanksgiving so haven’t been keeping up with comments here. If it isn’t too late here is a cupcake idea for your daughter’s birthday: https://happyhealthymama.com/2011/01/healthy-carrot-cupcakes-with-maple-cream-cheese-frosting.html
If you replace the eggs and experiment with the flours, it should be great. And use a different frosting. I’m sorry I don’t have a GF and dairy-free recipe on hand, but maybe the one I have you will work with some tweaking. Happy birthday to your little one! 🙂
Thank you for taking time to post this (and the pictures are very helpful). We’re going through something similar and the lack of information makes the situation even more terrifying. Again, thank you so much.
You’re welcome. I hope your little one gets some relief soon.
Thanks so much for this article – my 6 week old daughter’s symptoms seem very much like Luke and after trying to treat for lactose overload 2 weeks ago her pediatrician diagnosed MSPI and I cut out all dairy and then soy. The dairy made a big difference, with blood in nappies reducing hugely (still tiny amounts present) and the mucous reducing as well. It’s got to a manageable point and her lovely pediatrician thinks that maybe maintain this diet while EBFing. However, I was so heartened to find your article and see that by trial and error you can find a diet that leads to elimination of the symptoms more or less. I was really interested where you said dairy takes a month to eliminate from mother’s system and the different lengths of time – do you know where I can find a table of the different lengths of time? Your follow up blogs are also great and I’m so glad to hear that you managed to keep feeding til now, it makes me feel so much more hopeful about being able to keep up the elimination diet! With best wishes from Melbourne, Australia, Lizzie and baby Rosa!
I’ll join the long list of people thanking you for writing this blog. My 2nd daughter is 8 months old now, but I started noticing issues (green mucous stool) at about 3.5 months. I eliminated dairy for 4 weeks (and started using almond milk as a substitute), and also bumped up my nut consumption for protein (almonds, pistachios, pecans…I’m allergic to peanuts so already stay away from them). Anyway, after a 4 weeks of dairy free and no improvement, I remembered your blogs about MSPI so did a full elimination diet (I’ve been reading your blog for recipes for a year or so). Turns out she’s intolerant to milk, soy and nut proteins. I’m so thankful that I had you as a “resource” and should also say that my family doctor has been very supportive throughout. I’m hoping it clears up soon, but in the meantime, I’m glad I can keep her healthy! Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m so glad this post was helpful for you.
Hi :)!
Thanks for writing about your son and how you discovered what he reacted to.
My son is 5 months and reacts to a lot. The things we know of is dairy, soy, eggs, wheat, peanuts and rye. I cut dairy and eggs months ago, the rest I stopped eating three weeks ago. Now we have days where the diapers are fine and they don’t come as often, then there is a day or two with mucus and blood again. This makes me unsure, maybe he is reacting to something else. Did this happen to your sons diapers, or did they suddenly get better and stay that way?
Hanne in Norway
I’m so glad I found your blog! We started having the same issue before we left the hospital when my son was born! As his stool transitioned it had mucus and was a little bloody. He was transferred to a children’s hospital 50 miles away and put through several rounds of antibiotics, tests, IVs, 2 days in the NICU and 2 days in an intermediate nursery. Finally, after draining his stomach and starving him for 2 days they let him have breast milk again and he did fine and had normal diapers. His vitals were fine and they discharged him with no clue as to what had caused it other than it MAY have been an infection. Now we are two weeks home and his stools have mucus in them again and they are green. I’m taking him to our regular pediatrician today to see what he has to say (the hospital were my son was born only allows one group of pediatricians on call and ours is not that pediatrician). He’s not acting fussy, he likes to nurse a lot but other than that there really isn’t anything wrong with him.
I’m so frustrated after being in a hospital that deals exclusively with children that they were not able to come up with any answers as to what causes this. Not to mention racking up quite a bill for what we don’t even know. Anyway, I’m going to start by cutting out all dairy, which I don’t normally consume on a regular basis because I have a sensitivity to the proteins in it myself (cheese and yogurt and milk in small doses don’t bother me).
I hope this is what it is, I am so afraid of my poor baby having to go back to the hospital.
Thank you for posting this, graphic pics and all. I feel much better knowing this is a possibility instead of another “possible infection”.
Good luck, Mama! It is a tough road to go down, but it’s good that you are aware that something isn’t right and doing what you can to fix it. 🙂
Hi,
I’ve been having the same sort of problems with my 40 days old son…Just a couple of questions…
-Are potatoes and rice allowed in the diet when wheat is the culprit?I mean I am a bit confused about wheat and gluten and all that…I am doing an elimination diet right now to find what bothers him.
-The slimy poop will be there until his system clears out?Than you in advance for any answers, I feel at a loss tight now….
Yes, potatoes and rice are allowed as they are not wheat products and don’t contain any gluten (the protein found in wheat and some other grains). Yes, it will take a while for the foods to clear his system and therefore the slimy stools stay around a while even after the foods have been eliminated.
My baby girl now 10 weeks old has severe reflux, gas, diarea, and a constant stuffy nose. I have taken out top 8 except for wheat and cocnut along with the dairy and soy, and she isn’t gaining enough. I can’t seem to get enough calories to keep my suplie up and if it is up the dr. Thanks the caloric balance of it isn’t enough to allow her to grow properly. But since I have been on the diet for 4 weeks almost 5 it helps her majorly. The gas goes away, diarea is better, and rash is gone. However when I have to supplement with nutramgin we go back to square one. My dr. Says basically because she isn’t failure to thrive then she can’t write a prescription for elemental formula. We’re trying allimintum to see if she will tolerate that next.
Any food suggestions for fat and calories that I can take? I also took out tomatoes potatoes chocolate because I was allergic to those also when I was little. I haven’t been able to add anything back in because I can’t seem to keep my suplie up long enough to find out what bothers her and what doesn’t. Thanks for suggestions.
Is overactive letdown or oversupply? TThesecond stage of it is that mom reports reduced supply.
I thought that at the beging. I only have an oversupplie in the morning and middle of the night feedings and am pumping now because she would over eat and spit up more being a comfort feeder. But have a forcefull let down through out the day. Just not an oversupplie. I feed from one side in the middle of the night and morning. Which seems to help but when I took out the dairy and soy I noticed the most difference. But being on that restrictive of a diet (top 8 allergies) I can’t seem to get enough calories to keep my supplie up. I think it’s just because I don’t have the knowledge of how to not eat prepackaged foods and eating items with out being afraid it’s going to make her worse.
How did you fix your forceful letdown where it wouldn’t effect your babies reflux? Since I don’t have an over supply I don’t know how to slow it down. She also seems to get upset when it does slow down now that she is use to it.
Food intake has nothing to do with your supply. Women in Africa produce the same milk as well fed women in Europe and USA. In fact, a woman can starve, and be thirsty, and stop urinating, but her body will continue to make milk to sustain her baby. So your food intake does not have anything to do with the amount of milk you make. As for fixing the reflux, I was fortunate that my baby learnt to cope. What she does is unlatches during the letdown, and then relatches back, but doesn’t scream. She just figured it out. I was lucky. I suggest you contact Maria at http://helpinghanddoula.wordpress.com/contact/. I am not sure where you live, but at any rate she does a free phone consultation first. This is in no way an advertisement. she helped me tremendously by making sense of all of this. If you don’t live nearby her, she may be able to help you at least over the phone.
What she explained to me is that with the over-irritated intestines the baby gets fissures, and hence blood. Then the mucous gets created to protect them, and hence the congestion. Over time the over-irritation results in an “open gut” and hence more proteins reach it and irritate it more since they are harder to digest. So it makes sense that some protein high foods will irritate your baby, but only because her intestines are already irritated. For us it seemed to be onset with eggs, and milk doesn’t seem to do it. I wouldn’t have known if I listened to quit dairy. I kept trying it on and off just to see. And it doesn’t seem to make a difference. I bet if I ate a whole jar of almonds she may react just the same.
By the way, what I have just started doing is returning the baby to the same breast like you are doing in the evening for the nighttime feeding. I always thought she would unlatch and wanted more, but it seems she actually just wants to suck and yet milk is still flowing.
I am also paying attention to the latch again. She latches onto the nipples so that she can slow down the flow. This has been fine ever since we both got stronger at nursing but my nipples are starting to hurt again.
And here’s a study from Finland, where 80% of babies showed follow up rectal bleeding, but only 18% truly had cow milk allergy: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16585287
By the way my baby still does have reflux sort of, but what she does instead of spitting up is she swirls it around, and swallows. I often see her cough when she does this. And she had to sleep on her tummy since 4 months, after we stopped swaddling.
So if this is the case and its just an over active letdown/oversupplie how do you repair there gut enough were the proteins in your diet don’t effect them, and continue breastfeeding?
Thank you for all the info. It has me thinking but I’m just not sure. I just want to be able to take away her pain and allow her to grow properly. What ever and how ever that looks is my top priority. But it gives me some insure into some conversations to have with her pediatrtion and I think you for that.
I ate a lot of sun butter during the time when I was restricted, which added a lot of fat and calories. Also hummus is a decent source of fat and calories that you can eat with vegetables. Good luck to you-I hope things get better soon!
Very nice post, and exactly what wewent through and many moms posting here. LO is 6 mosand we jyst figured out it is Not food sensitivity but milk oversupply and overactive letdown. I was stubborn and refused to believe that sensitivity would start at 3 months, with all the other symptoms such aascongestion, and it wouldn’t be everytime. I read a Finnish study that 80 percent of babies are misdiagnosed with ccow milc allergy. Then had a fortune to run into the daughter of the first publusher on this topic. Finally it all made sense. The gut is irritated by lack of fat to the digest the lactose. THIS CAUSES fissures, and mucous production to protect the gut. Hence the congestion. The irritated gut also has issuesin thatit is more open allowing large proteins to reach it so high protein food makes it seem like food sensitivity but always ddifferent foods which is why you tried so many things and yet it was still present. It can aalsobe affected by a lot of sugar. It is genetic, and can be worse by subsequent children, causing ‘colic’
Hi Maryea,
I didn’t read thru all the comments because there were so many, so please forgive me if you’ve already touched on this. When your son was having the reaction to the foods, did he act uncomfortable when he nursed? I am going thru a similar situation with my 4.5 month old: dark specks in stool which turned out to be blood, dry skin on arms and legs. Been off dairy for a month, and now soy and eggs for about 10 days. dark specks in diaper have greatly decreased, but still a little blood detected in stool. And what really bothers me is he still acts uncomfortable when feeding — squirming, jerky arm movements, face rubbing, not relaxed. He’s on liquid prevacid as well. Just went to a GI specialist and he said since my son otherwise seemed healthy aside from fussyness and blood in stool, it was a personal decision for us as to whether to continue bfding or go on special formula. He really pushed the formula though… he was skeptical about me doing an elimination diet. It saddens me so much to think of stopping breastfeeding! I want to do what’s best for my son though. Do you recommend just doing a total elimination diet or cutting out most common allergens one at a time? Thanks!
No, Luke wasn’t uncomfortable when nursing. The GI we saw pushed formula as well, but our regular pediatrician was the opposite. She said that there are no guarantees that the baby will tolerate the formula well and many MSPI babies have trouble even on the special formula. She also said the special formula can be very hard to get the older babies to switch to since it smells so awful. I think how you do the elimination diet it personal preference. For me, I wanted to get Luke better as quick as possible, so I took all the foods out first and then added them back in one at at time to see which ones caused problems. If you cut out one at a time and he doesn’t get better with each food, you don’t necessarily know if he tolerates that food or not since other foods could still be causing problems. Does that make sense?
hi maryea,
thanks once more for your post! my story is again similar to yours and many here: green slimy poo from 4 or 5 weeks, blood at 7. i’ve been off dairy & soy for 8 weeks, but only 6 strictly. blood has greatly lessened, and color has improved, but traces of blood continue to crop up, and the sliminess is unabated! i’ve stopped peanuts a few days ago, after finding your post. tree nuts will be next, after i finish off a pot of carrot-cashew cream soup! wheat i will need to ramp up for,given the 6 weeks wait. but what is the wait time on eggs? can’t seem to find that anywhere…
meanwhile, i find the finnish study a very interesting counter perspective. i definitely have one overachieving breast… think i’ll take the advice of some responders and take up block feeding again (i was dissuaded by a lactation consultant who cautioned about driving my supply down, but that was many weeks ago, and here we are still!)
Your blog with the pictures was very helpful for me. Thank you for posting the pictures and your story!!! My son is having exactly the same…. He is now 4.5 months but his bloody and mucousy stools started about a month ago. I’ve eliminated dairy and soy since then, and the top 9 allergens with a few mishaps due to missing hidden ingredients in some foods or from eating out. I cook at home most days and eat mainly meat (chicken, beef and pork) with rice or potatoes/sweet potatoes, salad or vegetables (carrots, celery, cucumbers, zucchini, bokchoy, kale) and shopped for gluten, nut and egg-free cereal, bread and snacks. For fruits I eat organic blueberries and strawberries, cantaloupe, bananas and apples. I use rice flour for coating meat, coconut milk and creamer, and bought sunbutter to replace my PB (although I am still not used to the taste). The fussiness has decreased and the green poo/ blood streaks in the diapers became less frequent (once a day or every other day) but 3 days ago he became extremely fussy again with more bloody diapers and I realized the margarine I used on my popcorn had soy… 🙁 I am getting discouraged because it seems like such a long waiting game to see if his poop will ever improve. But aside from the TED what else can I do? Are there any other foods I am consuming that could be a culprit?
It doesn’t sound like there are more foods that could be the culprit, but I guess it’s possible. Unfortunately it can take a long time to get the foods out of the baby’s system and then their systems take a long time to heal. I’m so sorry your son is having such a hard time. 🙁
Hey Maryea!!!! Your posts have been extremely helpful! Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience. My bubby is about 7 weeks old, and its been a tough journey so far! Has had the green, mucusy, blood specked stools for a while now, and ive been off dairy, nuts, soy and eggs for about a week now… Only the blood has stopped. He started having blood in his stool when he was only 10 days old, and i immediately stopped dairy intake- things went fine, and returened to normal… Until I took an elevit tablet which contained milk!!! Since then things started again, and thats how I ended up on the dairy, soy, egg, nut free diet 🙁 I was just wondering if Luke had runny/ watery diapers. Our little boy Samuel has had very loose mucusy ones- that sometimes explode up his back or run our the sides of his diaper. Any advice whould be much appreciated. We have yet been able to find a good doc, and I truly believe mums knows best 🙂 thanks zanie
Yes, he did frequently have runny/watery stools. He still does sometimes. 🙁 It’s so hard trying to figure out what causes what! Just keep up with the diet you are on and I’m sure that his stools will improve. Unfortunately it just takes time. Good luck with finding a good doctor!
Hello Maryea
Im from China. My boy has mucus stool a month ago. Now he is 4 month old. Most of Our doctors suggest baby change breastmilk to special formula. But i really enjoy bf and think mum can give her child best nutrition. I just eat rice, millet, cabbage, lotus root and rape. At the first week the mucus was less and less. But sometimes i can find a little blood specked stools. I dont know whether ddrops and Broccoli can be an allergen. Cause i add the two things four days ago, Matt then has a little blood in his stools.
Dairy and eggs are absent in my body more than 6 weeks and wheat soy 3 weeks. One of doctors even said Matt is alergic to my milk. I should give up bf completely. Interestingly, I gave Matt cow milk twice one day, and the stool became normal. No mucus and no blood. Then Matt is not alergic to cow milk?
You know how I am frustrusted. So i just wonder how long i should insist the diet. I worry that my milk will become no nutrition. Thank u so much!!!
Your milk will definitely not become void of nutrition. Why are you only eating those 5 foods, though? Certainly there are more foods you can include in your diet. One of the doctors I took Luke to suggested I switch him to special formula. I chose not to. Yes, it took some time to get his stools to normal and a lot of trial and error, but continuing to breast feed was important to me so I did what I could to continue it. What are ddrops? Broccoli certainly CAN be an allergen, but I don’t think it’s the most likely candidate. I wouldn’t suggest giving cow’s milk to your infant again as it can be harmful for small babies. But his reaction is very interesting. The thing is, you really don’t know the timing of the damage food does to his system and when it shows up. So really, the cow’s milk could have caused blood that showed up a week later. It’s not always the food consumed that day that causes immediate issues–it can be delayed. I hope this response helps you some, I apologize that it’s a bit scattered. Good luck!
Oh thank you so much – your detailed post is just what I needed to read! My son is 6 months old, and I have been going through a similar experience for 2 months. He has had mucousy diapers as long as I can remember, but I didn’t think there was problem until my daughter accidentally spilled milk on his arm, and he broke out into hives. I cut out dairy from my diet, but he continued to get hives, forehead rashes and flared eczema every time I breastfed him. It was confusing and unnerving. I decided to cut out all 8 major allergens in an attempt to calm his system down – to no avail. He was allergy tested and tested positive for milk, eggs, nuts, tomatoes and green beans. He was still reacting (and having mucousy stools), so I have been on the Dr. Sears elimination diet for 2 weeks now. (Only turkey, sweet potatoes, squash, rice and pears). We still have not seen a single normal stool. What would you do at this point? I am considering cutting out rice as well, or maybe just spending a couple days eating one food (that sounds so desperate!). I have introduced three solids (avocado, carrots, and homemade chicken stock) and he has reacted with hives to each food. We are now back to exclusive breastfeeding. I am heartbroken and unsure what to do next. We have seen several specialists…but no answers yet. I thought you might have another idea I haven’t thought of? Thank you again for sharing your experience – much love!
Oh wow! My heart goes out to you. I actually just got a comment recently saying that rice can be a common problem, so maybe you should cut out the rice? I would just cut that out first and see if it makes a difference. I can’t imagine eating only one food! I hope for your sake it doesn’t come to that. Best of luck and if you think of it, please keep me updated on your little one’s progress.
Hi, Maryea
Iam also on same track like other moms.. i just want to know that have you ever tried Goats milk or water buffalo milk? Iam from India and we largely consume buffalo milk. Both buffalo and goats milk are very very less allergic and has higher digestive proteins.. in couple of days iam going to try Goats milk as my baby is just 4.5 months.. and would let you know the results.. Its hard to find buffalo milk were i stay..Good luck
I havne’t tried either, but thanks for the suggestions!
I’m so thankful to find this blog, Maryea!
Like so many other mommies who posted, I found your blog through poop image search…
I feel encouraged and comforted to read that I’m not alone and your perseverance in diet restriction to breastfeed inspires me…
I wished I found it earlier though…
My daughter and i went through this about 3 years ago… We noticed minor blood streaks, gassy explosive poop, mucus etc starting from when she was about 2-3 weeks old, but drs said it was normal. Needless to say, i didnt know to restrict my diet etc…This was till one morning, she shot out major amounts of blood looking like red currant jelly all over my blouse during a diaper change when she was 6 weeks old. We rushed her to the children’s emergency, and she was investigated for merkel’s diverticulum, infectious diarrhoea, ultrasound for intussuception… Finally, and thankfully all those were negative and the specialist diagnosed as milk protein allergy and asked me to strictly cut out dairy and soy, to breastfeed and see if improved. During the 1 days that my baby was placed on IV and gut rest (ie. no breastfeeding), she miraculous sleep through a 5 hour stretch (, when she has never barely slept through a moment at night during her first weeks. She would cry to nurse, can’t sleep unless carried in arms, would cry the moment we put her down. After this ordeal at the hospital, we attempted a diet restriction, which was very hard because it meant no processed food with all the hidden dairy and soy in virtually EVERYTHING. Over the next 2 weeks, baby’s mood improved dramatically, she slept MUCH better, (though it was just for 3-4 hour stretches), and actually started smiling for the first time (she was a rather frowny baby), terrible eczema on her face improved… However, every diaper still contained mucus and smaller amounts of blood… I googled, researched everywhere on my own, and wanted to restrict the top 8 allergens, even almost trying the total elimination diet on askdrsears website… It was very hard and I felt nobody would understand as I’ve not heard any friends who went through this. I was very determined to breastfeed and didn’t mind eating such a restricted diet. I guess I can say, we mommies will die for our baby if it helps. But alas, the blood still didnt go completely away. My heart went up and down during each diaper change (no blood… Yay, blood streaks… :(…).. It was the longest 2 weeks of my life. My life became isolated cos we couldn’t eat with friends at restaurants, and needed to cook everything from fresh materials at home. Husband was supportive and lovingly ate the same diet as me as moral support. Funny thing is, my husband had always had irritable bowel syndrome, get unexplained cramping, gas and mucus stool now and then. After eating the dairy and soy-less diet, suddenly he was CURED from his ibs. Mother in law then recounted that he also had terrible constipation, bloody stools and was very hard to settle as a newborn. Oops, think husband also had Mspi, only it probably didnt even have a name at that time. (Now hubby completely cut out dairy and his intestines had not given him any trouble since).
Baby however still bled, so i progressively cut out all 8 allergens (milk, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, eggs, wheat) , and as baby can be allergic to anything… I think I almost went crazy trying to figure out what else could be the culprit (corn? Citrus?…). Unfortunately, my baby probably bled too long and too much, she became anemic. I felt terrible that while I wanted so much to give her breastmilk that is best for her, I felt terrible that my milk was “poison” to her… It broke my heart. We switched her to neocate, and she hated the taste, and I had to slowly mix it with breastmilk in increasing amounts till it was finally all neocate. I continued to restrict my diet and pump and discard for a month more, hoping that once she improved we could go back to breastfeeding. She improved over the next few weeks till finally there wasn’t bloody detected in her poop at all. I finally decided to continue with neocate as I didn’t want to risk the blood coming back as I didn’t know how long the allergens would persist in my milk. It was terribly expensive, but it was liberating for me too though I was very sad to give up breasrfeeding. My son was just born in march 2014, and is now about 6 weeks old… Sad to say he started getting greenish yellow stools with mucus in it from 2-3 weeks and then last Sunday we noticed small streaks of blood in his poop. But this time round, he is much less severe in symptoms then his sister, at least he can sleep and has no eczema, no projectile vomiting, much less fussy too. That could be bcos I stopped taking obvious dairy 2 weeks before delivery. But reading your post made me think, maybe in should’ve stopped dairy even earlier in my pregnancy, as you said dairy can take 8 weeks to clear out of my system.
So now, I hope I need not go into neocate… And reading all the experiences of yours and other mommies inspires me to continue the “battle”.
A few things to share:
1) my daughter did well on neocate. She developed well, and is healthy and intelligent. After she turned one, we challenged with soy, and she was ok so we awitched to isomil (Abbott). Now she is able to eat everything except milk,nuts and peanuts, shellfish. Cos I wanted to delay introducing these into her diet. Well, I would say, if any mommy need to switch to amino acid based formula, you need not feel bad. Neocate isn’t bad apart from the price tag.
2) I read something interesting… There is anecdotal experience in lactating mothers taking pancreatic enzymes with the meal (eg creon) to help breakdown food protein before they get into mommy’s body. So this can help if mommy needs to eat at a restaurant or at a friends’.
Hopefully I can breastfeed my son this time.
Cheers to all the mommies here.
Gracie–Thank you so much for sharing your story! You’ve really been through a lot with your two little ones. That’s especially interesting about taking the pancreatic enzymes. It definitely makes sense! I hope breastfeeding goes well for you, but like you said, if you have to switch you know he’ll turn out great either way. Thanks again for your comment.
http://www.bfmed.org/Media/Files/Protocols/Allergic%20Proctocolitis%20in%20the%20Exclusively%20Breastfed%20Infant.pdf
I just read your post and the picture of the mucus poop diaper is IDENTICAL to what I deal with from my 2 month old. He has developed a weird red rash, has the mucus poop, and has gas so bad that I’ve thought my husband did it on more than one occasion. How do I eliminate dairy completely? Also, how do I know if it’s the dairy or something more?
You really don’t know except by the process of elimination. It can be a long process. To eliminate dairy completely, you don’t eat any cow’s milk, butter, cheese, yogurt, or anything with those things listed in the ingredients. It isn’t easy, but it can be done! Good luck. 🙂
Hi, my breastfed baby is nearly 17 weeks. I was lucky to have a pedi/chiro who recognised symptoms of pulling legs up n crying as a food sensitivity. These poos bar the blood are similar to Isla’s. I have eliminated wheat/gluten and dairy. This doesn’t seem like much but it has been so difficult. My pedi suggested to eliminate all grains too. I may get the strength to do this soon. Her poos have definitely improved. But every now and again it gets a green tinge back in and tiny bits of mucous. I don’t really know whether to eliminate more. So I decided to have more grains (not gluten) to see if it is going to get worse. I feel so guilty doing this (having been informed about grains and how they contain phytic acid which binds to food and can cause a lack of mineral absorption).
After she was three months she began only pooing every 2/3 days (which I have been told is still normal) so its harder to inspect the poos. She does seem a lot better with tummy aches but I wonder whether when they get older do they just get tougher too?
I have to eat a lot of protein as Im quite thin but also just to feel full! So I have been having lots of meat, I don’t think I could or should eliminate that as I would fade away. I haven’t noticed a nut correlation ( I do have almond milk) but I will keep it in mind.
If I get a nice orange and very minimal mucous poo most of the time would you keep searching?
I want to know why this happens. NO one seems to be able to answer this. I had a totally drug free pregnancy and birth (yes totally- not as much as a panadol) as I researched a lot and found connections to gut health and anything unnatural. However I am the only one in my mother’s group who did, most had C-sections and their babies are fine!!!!!! Good for them but angry for me. Isla is on metagenics flora care for kids and I have recently started taking a dairy free probiotic as well. But Im not sure if these things really do much. I feel like I have jinxed her, like I willed it to happened because I was so aware of it.
Im struggling badly some days because I just wanted a normal little child and I want to talk to someone about it however if I tell them these are my worries I think they will think Im just an anxious worrier and hypochondriac for my child.
As Im writing this I can hear Isla waking and grumbling slightly then going back to sleep. This is another thing, interrupted sleep. Some people think, oh they just wake up, but I think why- my suspicion is still little belly aches.
It would be nice if people could share some recipes maybe- it would help immensely. I just want simply yet tasty ones which can be hard to find.
thanks
I see your recipes, however I need grain free- most just focussing on meat and veg with spices. Just thought I should mention that in case you thought I didn’t realise you posted recipes. If I eliminate all grains its very hard as maltodextrin is in a lot and thickener 1422 (even a tin of tomatoes has this)
It sounds like your daughter has done great with your changes! Great job, mama! I think if her stools are normal most of the time, I wouldn’t worry too much about continuing to eliminate more foods. Sounds like she’s doing well with the diet you are following now, so I’d stick with that. I often had the same thoughts you did as I also had a completely natural birth. I also ate very healthy my whole pregnancy–lots of organic foods without a lot of pesticides, very little processed foods and limited GMOs. Sometimes I guess you just have to shrug your shoulders and realize we can’t have all the answers. It’s frustrating though!! You’re right-I don’t have a lot of meat recipes here. If you are looking for grain-free recipes, check out the blogs Against All Grain or Deliciously Organic. Both are good resources for grain-free meals. 🙂 Best of luck to you!
Hello! I’m writing on behalf of Parents magazine, where I work on the digital side. I’m putting together a visual guide to poop, and I’m sourcing photos from various outlets. I came across your photos and would love to know if you’d be willing to grant us permission to use them. Please email me and let me know — thank you!
Hi Sherry–I take email requests for such things at thehappyhealthymama {at} gmail {dot} com. Thanks!
Hello! Thanks for sharing your own experiences with your baby! I just saw a lot of comments of little babies having mucusy diapers. My baby is 3 months and he has the same problem. My question is, how bad can it be for a baby to have that kind of stools? My baby seems to be ok except for his watery stools. What could happen if I don’t do any changes in my diet? I see that generally everybody is cutting off certain foods and still have the problem, so is it worthwhile? watery stools may be not normal but they are not harmful neither. What do you think? Since I would have to cut off a lot of food, I think, how nutritious will be my milk at the end if I’m not eating a balanced diet. I’m a little bit worried because I’m not sure what to do. It is tricky to tell the difference between a normal stool from a not normal stool since breast feeding stools are so liquid.
Is it harmful for my baby to have mucusy, watery stools, bad odor stools?
I actually brought a dirty diaper into Luke’s doctor so she could analyze it. I would encourage you to do the same. It’s really hard for us to judge if they are normal or abnormal just based on your written description. Good luck!
This is the first article that I have actually been able to relate to entirely. How did you know what to eat? I have read the Dr. Sear’s elimination plan, but I am just not sure how to get enough calories on that. I feel like my milk supply has dropped already, but I want to continue breastfeeding. My son is ten weeks and I completely eliminated soy/dairy 5 weeks ago. I had to do the same thing with my daughter, so I am pretty well versed in label reading and getting it all out. I did slip up by accident yesterday, but regardless, he has still had issues the past few weeks. It is better, but still has some mucous and tonight it even looked like small turds in his diaper. Anyway, I was wondering when you completely elminated everything, where did you get your calories from? I still eat nuts often because I have a traveling husband and a 3 year old as well. I need to get more organized, but was wondering if you had any tips on where to go from here. Thank you so much for posting this!
Now that I have read more of the comments,
I see where you posted your daily eating habits. Thanks again for this!
You’re welcome, Lori!
Hello,
Like everyone else I arrived here after googling “mucus breastfed stools.” My son who is now 2.5 had mspi which cleared up after I removed dairy. I now have a sweet and happy 2 month old daughter who at 1 month old traded her perfect seedy bf poops for mucus slimed ones! She is EBF and her poops are yellow and mucusy, not green at all. As soon as I saw a speck of blood and mucus I pulled dairy and soy. 2 weeks later I pulled all other allergens plus rice and oats. Needless to say there isn’t much left for me to eat and her poops haven’t changed. We have an appt with a GI in a couple of weeks.
I know someone asked this, but not sure you answered. The last poop picture you showed you said was normal. It does still look a bit shiny. I ask bc my daughters poops are similar. When I see mucus I know by squishing the diaper together and seeing what sticks – gross I know.
Hey ladies! I’m so happy I found this post. My son has had traces of blood in his stool on and off now for almost three months, I have cut out dairy, soy, eggs, wheat, tree nuts, and even rice for a little while. It seems like no matter what I eat we will get flare ups every once in awhile. It makes me wonder if it’s even food related. Our pediatrician and GI aren’t concerned as he is super happy, gaining weight and has no other symptoms. My GI suggested supplementin with formula but I decided not to go that route because it just doesn’t make sense to me.i was wondering if anyone has gone through something like this when you can’t figure out what food is the culprit. Is this sometimes just something they grow out of? I’m at a loss and my only solice is the fact that he’s soooo happy and developing perfectly otherwise. Thanks for listening ladies <3
I would say it’s a great sign that he’s happy and growing! How long have you had all the foods out of your diet? It could be that they haven’t completely cleared your system yet, especially the dairy and wheat. Have you tried probiotics at all? It was suggested to me later in the game, but I had a friend who tried them with her infant with good success. The probiotics can help balance the gut bacteria and can help normalize the stools. My son Luke did eventually outgrow his intolerances. He was 2 1/2 when I finally felt like he could tolerate all foods. He eats everything now (he’s almost 3) with no issues that I can see.
I have been off dairy for two months but the gluten for only 3 weeks…so maybe that is still lingering. We started probiotics a couple weeks ago and they do seem to be making a HUGE difference. Did you notice more normal stools after starting solids (we haven’t even gone there yet) I have a few other random questions for you – did they ever test Luke’s hemoglobin levels? Oliver is only 6 months but our doctor wanted to test because of the blood in stool and he was on the lower end of normal so they want me to start an iron supplement – just wondering if you had any experience with this??
Also, I postponed vaccines for the past two months because I didn’t want to overload his system. I know I need to get that started again but I am just scared to upset his already sensitive tummy.
Thank you SOOOO much for taking the time to write me and all these other Moms…it’s so encouraging to know others have gone through this.
We tested his iron as scheduled at 1 year. They were on the low side of normal but still within the range of normal so I chose not to supplement. I read of a lot of side effects that can come with iron supplementation so I decided I’d rather focus on iron-rich foods.
His stools really didn’t become totally “normal” and solid until around 2 1/2. He didn’t have a solid stool until then! But they mostly didn’t have mucous and no blood for over a year.
Thanks for sharing your journey! My little guy has similar issues. I first eliminated dairy from my diet, then egg and corn, then almonds, and finally wheat and pretty much all grains except oats. It is so hard being on such a restrictive diet and you are right, snacking is very challenging! My little guy is just over 6 months now. We have not started solids yet, and I am scared to do so. I just wondered when you did end up introducing solids again and how it went? Did you do purees? Does your little one have any allergies now? Thanks so much!
Thank you so much for this post. The pics especially were reassuring. My daughter is 11 weeks and exclusively breastfeeding. I’m a vegetarian. Her weight has been slow since birth, no matter how many lactation consultants, Drs visits, le leche league meetings or change in habits or 3 hour long nursing sessions.
I did my own research after finding blood at 8 weeks (mucus since 4) and cut out all dairy, egg and soy 2 weeks ago. A trip to ER confirmed blood at 8 weeks. And MSPI was diagnosed today by a pediatric GI. She also lost 5 ozs in 3 days today.
I was accidentally fed soy after a week of no soy or dairy, when a vegan restaurant used some soy milk in a dish I ate. Sure enough , the blood and fussiness returned for 2 days.
I felt like a failure, because nothing I tried worked to help her gain weight. Being vegatarian makes it so much harder, but I am determined to help her gain. We need to fortify pumped milk with special formula, but the Dr is hopeful I can continue breastfeeding.
She also has upper lip tie as well, complicating it even more. This post gives me hope.
I’m glad you found this post–it sounds like you’ve had a hard journey. Best of luck to you!
I really feel for you hun, My lg (10 weeks now) has tongue tie. I too am a vegetarian so cutting out dairy, Soya, eggs and now wheat have been hard. Paediatrician now wants me to use a special formula milk 🙁 I am determined to keep breastfeeding so I think the formula will be used a long side breast milk. I hope it all works out for you hun 🙂
Hi Charlotte! Luke actually turned 3 in December and is doing great! I was able to breastfeed him until 3 and he’s outgrown his intolerances. 🙂 Good luck to you!
Hi, I came across your website as I came across a picture of Luke’s poo which looks just let my 9 week old daughter Syke’s poo so I followed the link. I am currently on a dairy free diet but there is still a lot of mucus in my little girls poo. I am EBF too. I Breastfed my first till he was 2 years old with no problems but with my second, it is very hard going as I feel that I am making her ill. The longer this goes on the more it looks like she has intolerances. I am so glad I came across your website. I have been taken pictures to show the paediatrician. Skye seen a GP yesterday as she has been screaming bless her when she goes to the toilet and new there is also dark dots in it. The GP told me it is normal for colic babies to have lots of mucus? I will feel more assured when I speak to the paediatrician
I have heard that colic babies have a lot of mucus. I have to wonder if the colic is BECAUSE of the food intolerances, but isn’t always diagnosed. I don’t know that I’d feel comfortable with the conclusion that it’s normal. Good luck to you!
What do you eat if you have cut out all these things? I am struggling trying to figure out what to eat.
Check out this post for some ideas: https://happyhealthymama.com/2012/10/what-this-breastfeeding-mama-eats-in-a-day.html
Hi, your blog is very helpful as we are dealing with similar issues. Our baby boy is only 4 months this week and we are trying to narrow down what is causing the mucus and blood in his stool for several weeks now. I was wondering what was the onset in your case? We got first bloody diaper week after his first vaccination. Our doctor keep assuring me that it is no correlation but we didn’t have any issue before that. I could eat whatever I wanted (except onion, garlic and lemon). I’m just a bit concern now (with second dose coming) if it will get worse.
Thanks for sharing!
Petra
Did you have mucus the whole time and then blood showed up, or it all changed after the vaccination? Luke had mucus in his stools pretty much from day #1. His stools were never normal. The blood showed up later, but I think it was because the damage was being done to his system and once enough damage was done, the blood showed up. I can’t say for sure, but I didn’t notice a correlation between the blood and his vaccines.
I found your blog post as I was searching to determine what different stools mean. I found it very helpful. My baby has no diagnosis but during my breastfeeding I have had to stay off dairy, soy,wheat, and corn. There might be other stuff too I forget. No tests have been performed but my baby did so much better after those changes. Now on solids some of the problems remain and I get all kinds of critical remarks from others about his not eating those before mentioned foods. So far he does no do great with them. Just makes me feel a little better and that perhaps things will get better
Heather
I hope it does get better for you! Hang in there, mama!
hello Myrea, so glad I’ve read your blog. the pictures really helped! its exactly what my LO has.
its been more than a month doing an elimination diet (I only eat apples, pears, chicken, turkey, lamb, rice, potatoes, sweet potato and zucchini, coconut milk and water) . Im starving and see no changes at all. moucousy with strikes of blood.
we tried giving him a week of neocate, prescribed by his GI, but he refused the bottle and we couldn’t make that challenge. It is so frustrating!! he looks like he is doing so well, gaining weight, he wakes up crying after all his naps though, may be something bothers him and wakes up..
Im afraid I’m not getting the calcium my body needs for my supply, Im thinking of adding leafy greens to the diet as you did and some dates. so many moms have told that their lo was allergic to rice and chicken? Im cutting off that too and see where it gets me.
I have a question, how about beverages? did you take coffee, tea? something? I really miss my morning coffee and my yerba mate in the evenings. which do you think can be a safe drink?
what kind of seeds did you take? sesame, pumpkin, flaxseed?
sorry for all the questions and information all in once. desperate mama here!!
Viviana
I continued to drink coffee (black)–about 1 cup a day while I was breastfeeding. I’m not sure what yerba mate is. It’s hard to say what your LO will tolerate since every baby is so different. That’s what makes this so challenging! I feel your pain. YES–definitely add leafy greens to your diet! Keep up with the elimination diet and hopefully you’ll see some relief soon. It can take a while to get the dairy, soy, and wheat out of YOUR system, and then longer for baby’s system to clear. It’s hard when you don’t see results right away, I know. Best of luck!!
Thank you so much for going into such detail and posting pictures of the soiled diapers. It’s a real eye opener for me. My son is 2 months old and has been having strange poop from the get go. I think he’s only had normal, yellow, thick, creamy (sounds like I’m describing ice cream! ;-P) stools for a couple of weeks. Shall eliminate all dairy from my diet and see if it helps. Poor baby has been given antibiotics 3 times cos paed thought it was an infection. These photos look just like the ones we took of DS’s poo. Thanks again <3
Oh poor baby–I’ll bet those antibiotics really wiped out his good bacteria. 🙁 I would find him a good dairy and soy free probiotic if he isn’t on one already!
Thanks a lot… Ur blog with the pics were xtrmly helpful… My baby was facing same problem n now after reading ur post I can identify the culprit in my diet…. Thanks once again
You’re welcome! 🙂
I know this is an old post, but just wanted to comment in case it helps someone. My boy had green poop starting at 5 weeks. I tried the whole allergen food elimination diet, but nothing helped. I finally figured out when he started daycare at 12 weeks that it was my morning coffee causing the green poop! I was so surprised, because after so much research I never once read this could cause green poop. I realized it was the coffee, since once I started taking him to daycare I had my coffee after I fed him, and then there was a long enough break to where it was no longer in my system when I fed again. Anyhow, I ended up breastfeeding until he turned 2 with no other issues, and thankfully not having to restrict my diet. Now I know for the next time!
Thanks for sharing!
Hi there
It’s comforting when you feel that’s you aren’t alone. My DD has Allergic colitis and she is breastfeeding since she was 6 weeks and she is 6 months and ten days. The blood stoped at 5.5 months and the GI prof gave us grean light to start solids. He advised us to let her what ever I eat I’m off diary egg gluten beef fish citus nuts chocolate and soya. he also adviced us to introduce the potato and rice together and meet in the second week. I followed that and unfortunately the blood is back again and a rash developed around her mouth. Seeing that blood again put me into tears as I thought I will never see it any more. May I know how did you introduce the solids and was their obstacles in the beginning?? Regards
I started solids very slowly with simple vegetables and fruits. I started at 5 1/2 months but his system didn’t seem ready so I waited a few more weeks before I tried again. I didn’t do any grains for a while. From what I’ve read, any grains can be very hard on their systems, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the rice that caused the blood. I’m so sorry you are dealing with this! I know how hard it can be. The good news is that my little one can now eat a regular diet–so there is hope! 🙂
Thanks a lot for your advice. I wish that day when she is better is soon as its really frustrating to see your beloved baby having this troubles.
I can’t thank you enough for your post, especially the diaper pics. For weeks I’ve been thinking I’m crazy…our doctor and advice nurse keep saying green stool is ok and that breastfed babies have saliva in their stool. But, I never thought my sons diapers were right…trust your instinct!
Although we are going to get an expert opinion, I am possitive my son has MSPI and I have been working on an elimination diet for weeks now. Thank you again for putting your story out there!
You’re welcome Kate! Good luck with the journey; I hope your baby finds relief soon.
Thank you so much for writing this and including the photos. I saw blood in my 4 month olds diaper and immediately freaked out until I read your story. I’m so sorry you had to go through that with Luke but it gives me insight on how to manage it with my baby.
That’s why I wrote this post! Glad it’s helped you.
Where does the last diaper photo pictured in your blog fall? Was it considered “normal”?
Yes, that was the normal diaper. At least as close to normal as my son’s stools ever got!
Thank you so much for this blog. My son is formula fed. He started having really dark green mucusy stools that tested positive for blood presumably due to a milk protein allergy. He was switched to a hypoallergenic formula. I switched him to Alimentum ready to feed on a Saturday afternoon and by Sunday morning he had perfect yellow, peanut butter consistency poops. I then started on the powder version because that’s what WIC would pay for and his poops started looking like the last one you have pictured. Yesterday I purchased another bottle of the ready to feed to see if it makes a difference, but I was concerned about the consistency of the new stools. Thanks for your response. It’s good to know it’s nothing I need to fret over.
I have found this article to be really helpful and the testimonials are incredible for MSPI babies and more. https://www.corehealthproducts.com/answers-for-infant-reflux/
Thanks so much for sharing!
Hi,
My son is 6 months old. His nappies pretty much replicate those photos above and have done more or less since day one. To start with he had pyloric stenosis and was operated on at 3 weeks. I hoped that he would start having normal nappies and stop being sick but sadly this did not happen. He had reflux but thankfully this is mostly managed with ranitidine. I have spoke to countless gp’s and paediatricians about the mucus and high water content of his stools but none seem bothered. He never seems to be particularly in too much discomfort and is a happy boy but still the nappies! I do not have dairy or wheat in my diet and eat gluten free porridge oats with rice milk for breakfast. I guess my question is “what on earth do you eat??” I’m underweight as it is and worry about my milk supply because of having such a limited diet. I am also starting to ween him but at present he really does not seem interested and turns his nose up at all food I give him.
Here’s a post showing what I ate while on this diet. I hope this helps! https://happyhealthymama.com/2012/10/what-this-breastfeeding-mama-eats-in-a-day.html
Hello!
Exactly same story here! Baby with laryngomalacia also!
I’ve cut down on dairy, all types of nuts, eggs and fish! 2 weeks without blood but a lot of mucus is still present. Colour and consistency changes but similar to your pictures…
Digestive specialist sais is benign and it will resolve with time and maturation… Not to worry, but is is quite hard!
All the support from Spain!
Hope you are doing great
Thank you, Nerea! Luke did outgrow all of his intolerances and can now eat everything! 🙂
Thank tou so much for this post. I came across it through Google. The pediatrians kept saying it’s just a cold. I knew it was something more. My baby boy had an exema out break at 3 weeks. Then at 4 weeks he caught a cold and his diaper have been mucousy ever since (now 10 weeks). I feel horrible that my diet has been causing him this pain yet relieved that we may have figured out the problem. I feel overwhelmed by what I need to eliminate. Do I do it on my own or would the doctors be able to guide me on how to figure out what his allergies are.
Thank you so very much!
There are no tests at this age that will accurately tell you about allergies or especially not food sensitivities, unfortunately. Doing an elimination diet is your best bet. You can do one food at a time and see if each one helps, or eliminate a lot at once and then add them back in one at a time. Dairy and soy are the most common problems at this age, but both can take a long time before you will see a difference.
Hello everyone!
I have 2 questions for you
1. Did someone try to investigate the FSPI reason with blood tests? Like milk intolerance test and etc instead of guessing for weeks/months?
2. Did someone get disallowance from pediatrician for regular vaccine cause of mucus/bloody stool?
Thanks in advance.
This can be helpful
http://www.health-e-learning.com/articles/Lactose.pdf
To be short – large amounts of sugars/high carb in mother’s diet can affect on lactose amount in milk. This leads to very similar symptoms as with food intolerance. Even more – these two issues are often connected.
For example large bowl of rice can be considered as “rice intolerance” issue and in the same time it’s a big amount of blood sugar(and hence mother’s milk lactose amount increase)
I am going through something similar with my son who is now 4.5 months…I was just wondering if you ever had to supplement with a hypoallergenic formula WHILE eliminating the things from your diet? Then resuming breastfeeding once 2 weeks of elimination diet???
No, I didn’t. I talked to his doctor about that, but she suggested I don’t.
Thank you for responding. I did not see where I could email you about this…I asked if you supplemented formula while trying to eliminate things from your diet. Well, yesterday I took my 4.5 month old some to dr after noticing mucus and tiny specks of blood in poop…she told me to give him formula for two weeks while I start elimination diet…but I am like you and nursed my oldest until 18 months and planned on nursing him as long as he wants to nurse. I know the dr is saying for only two weeks but I feel like it may upset his GI tract more to introduce something totally different. I am really confused. I feel like breast milk is best for him but also want him to be healthy. He has grown exceptionally well so far…he was born weighing 5 lbs 12oz and he weighs 12 lbs 2 oz now…but I’m the last week while trying to figure this out he only gained 1 oz and dr was concerned…but he did have a virus that he was getting over too…I was wondering if you could offer any advice. He is a very happy baby, sleeps great and was gaining well…only symptoms have been slight ezcema (not really blisters or anything), mucus poop, and tiny bits of blood in poop (sometimes i wouldn’t even see it if I wasn’t looking for it)…
I actually brought up the idea to my son’s doctor about supplementing for a few weeks while I went on an elimination diet, but she was hesitant to recommend it. She said many babies with sensitive digestive systems do even worse on formula, even the special kind. She also said that if babies are older they will often refuse the formula all together because it tastes awful. So clearly my son’s doctor had an opposite opinion of yours. I’m not a doctor and haven’t met your baby so I can’t tell you what to do, but I would get a second opinion.
Thank you so much for this post; I can see by the comments that many, many other parents have found it as helpful as I do!
My daughter is 6 months old. She has always has strange stools. When she was first born she would be almost constantly pooing; diaper changes were a mess. Her doctor advised I NOT eliminate anything from my diet. At 6 weeks she was ill and was on antibiotics as a precaution while the doctors tested for bacterial meningitis. Luckily she did not have it (had viral meningitis) but soon after, her stools became mucousy and green. Her doctor said it was likely effects from the antibotics. Nurses at the local breastfeeding clinic told me it was foremilk/hindmilk imbalance or overactive letdown.
By 3 months old I saw blood in her stool and finally her doctor said I should eliminate dairy and soy, and referred us to an allergist. I saw some improvement in her stools but overall not really- the blood disappeared but I still often saw mucous. At 4 months old, she saw the allergist who said I should reintroduce dairy/soy and see what happens. I did not notice any real change except maybe an increase in mucous, but as she had mucous all along it was hard to tell. He advised me to NOT eliminate anything else from my diet, and remain dairy/soy free.
At 5.5 months old, we had a follow up with the allergist; again he asked me to reintroduce dairy because she did not believe she was benefitting from me eliminating these foods from my diet. After I put my baby to bed that night I had cheese pizza. She woke up sick that night, vomiting soon after I would feed her. The allergist then said she was having a severe FPIES reaction and to stop BF for three days and give Alimentum. Well – my baby has never had formula OR a bottle and it was not a good day. She would not take in anything so we went to the hospital where another allergist and a pediatrician determined it was most likely a stomach bug. I was told to start BF again and wait at the hospital. I did, my daughter did not react, and we were sent home. Just in case, I have remained dairy/soy free.
A week later, she had blood in her diaper again. Just one diaper, but I was utterly defeated. Allergist was not concerned (unless it persisted, which it did not) and advised me to start solids, watching for vomiting in case of an FPIES reaction. Again I suggested eliminating other foods from my diet and he said he does not think I should.
This was last week. We had had avocado, apples and carrots with no vomiting. But most diapers are still full of mucous! Whats worse, my daughter is scheduled to have a milk challenge with her allergist in two weeks. I am terrified (if FPIES she could be very sick).
I am thinking of just ignoring all medical advice given to me and eliminating all the major allergens and seeing what happens. I currently eat wheat, peanuts, and eggs frequently. Also, I am thinking of cancelling her milk challenge until I feel that she has had some consistent “normal” stools.
Anyway, I just wanted to ask if you think there was any long-term damage to your son’s GI system from all the musousy diapers; I am thinking no since I see the wonderful update that he has outgrown all intolerances.
It also just helps to write this out to people who know what I am going through; my family, LOs doctors and even my husband seem to think its all ‘ok” because my daughter is growing really well, sleeps like a dream, and has no other symptoms (except stuffy nose which everyone else attributes to colds) — but I am not satisfied with the mucousy diapers and feel something has to be done. I also BF my first until 16months and plan to reach at least that milestone with this baby.
Thanks again for this post!
I don’t think it can hurt anything to eliminate all allergens and then you can at least feel like you explored all the possible causes. If it were me, that’s what I would do. Sometimes you just have to follow your mommy instincts!
I worried for a long time about long-term damage to his GI system, but at 4 he seems perfectly normal. His stools are totally normal and no issues with digestion at all.
I hope you find more answers soon! I feel for you!
We are at the beginning stages of this. My daughter is 5 months old and it started after she was fed soy formula. She had a ton of black specks in her diaper. They have decreased in amount and I have gone back to exclusively breastfeeding her. Our ped advised me to go on soy free diet first before cutting out dairy. How long does it take before I should see a difference in her diapers? Thank you for the advice and for the diaper pics
It will vary, but it was a solid month before Luke’s diapers started improving and 2 months before I considered them “normal.” I know it’s a long, frustrating road. Good luck!
Hi. I’m breastfeeding my almost 1 month old and am experiencing similar issues as you had with Luke. She had a string of blood at 1 week and the pediatrician recommended I stop all dairy. I’ve done that and haven’t seen any blood since that one time but she does have green mucousy stools and doesn’t seem to sleep as well as I would think newborns are supposed to sleep. For the last week, I’ve cut out all nuts and eggs but didn’t think of cutting out soy and wheat. The last week has been very difficult for me. I don’t know what to eat anymore. I’ve been eating chicken, potatoes, pears, rice milk with cereal and have been snacking on prunes. I had some corn tortilla chips with guacamole and some popcorn but decided to stop that today since the corn may have had something to do with her explosive poop diaper at 5am in which I had to give her a quick bath because it was just everywhere. But she’s also been spitting up since she was born. The doctors both at the hospital and her pediatrician both said it was normal since babies have an underdeveloped layer before the entering of the stomach. I don’t mind giving everything up but would like some meal ideas and some snack ideas. The total elimination diet has been hard to keep up with since you can only eat turkey, pears, potatoes and a few other things. Any help? I’d greatly appreciate it.
Dear Maryea, I was searching the web for mucus in baby stools, when I found your page today. I started crying as soon as I read your post. I didn’t know whether i was crying for you or for my self and what a strong and caring mother you’ve been. I had the same problem with my first child. I went on a strict diet for two whole years. The truth is we never found out what he was really allergic to, so we eliminated everything except for 11 things, for 2 years, i lost more than 20 kilos in just 6 months and weighed 45 kilos. 6 months after giving birth to my son. I’m happy that i was brave enough, like you to go through this, but am sad to repeat this whole diet, now that my second child (4 weeks old) is diagnosed with the same problem. I live in Iran, which makes everything worse, since allergy labeling is not common, and most people don’t even know what “allergy” means?! You can’t find restaurants,bakeries, or products that offer diary free, sesame free, gluten free or nut free products and that makes everything so much harder…..it’s soooo comforting to see that we as human beings, regardless of where we live, what religion we have, or how different our lives are, are all human beings, with shared emotions, feelings and yeah…we are mothers!!!!!….mothers who care for their loved ones…..p.s your Luke is sooooo cute and adorable!
Oh Narges–I’m so sorry you are having to go through the same thing twice! It’s definitely one of the loneliest and hardest roads as a mother. I wish you the best.
Hello! I found out my daughter has a milk protein allergy when she was a month and a half. I cut out dairy completely and the blood in her stools disappeared within a few days. Her consistency however, is very runny. It looks EXACTLY like the very last picture you posted. Is that a picture of his stool after you cut out dairy and soy? I have been wondering if her stools are normal or not because they’re so runny, and your post would give a lot of insight if it’s typical or not. Thanks in advance for your input!
Hello and thank you for your time for explaining all your story. It is so valuable for me. I have a question and I wonder if you can help me. My baby has the same issue. For solid food I am cooking from scratch for him and he can’t eat cereal. How you dealt with iron deficiency without feeding iron fortified meals. He is about 11 months and too sleepy these days. I think it is because of iron!
Thanks!
Before you decide, I would have him tested for iron. Luke was tested at 12 months. He was on the low side, but still within the normal range. I didn’t supplement, but focused on iron rich foods. Beans, greens, and broccoli are some good iron sources.
Thank you so much for writing this! I know it was a while ago but I just came across it “googling” things, concerned for my baby’s diaper. Just as your story went I am waiting to get into the Gastroenterologist but the appointment is still a few days away and I’m anxious. I’ve not been eating peanuts but drink almond milk and eat almond butter. I didn’t even think of that! Off to get coconut milk! I too have cut dairy, wheat, soy and peanuts, it’s so hard! I’m constantly concerned I’m going to eat the wrong thing! My baby is happy and there are no other signs of illness other than her mucous diapers with blood– looks like the one you pictured/ Ugh! Thanks again for sharing!
You’re welcome, Kristi. Good luck with the appointment! I know how difficult it is when you feel like you can’t eat anything. 🙁 I wish you well.
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Thank you so much for this post! I have been researching so much and your experience is so similar to mine.
My daughter has been having specs of blood in her stool almost a month now. She is 4 months. Sometimes she sleeps great at night but most nights she is waking 1-2 hours. Those are her only symptoms. Her doctor tells me she really doubts it’s a food allergy but her diapers look exactly like Luke’s. We are being referrrd to the gi but the appointment hasnt been made yet. I been patiently waiting.
I have been dairy free for 3 weeks and everything else for 2 weeks. I am currently only eating olive oil, chicken, pears, rice cereal, rice milk, green beans, zuchinni, squash, red potato and sweet potato. I haven’t seen an improvement. She did sleep three nights in a row great but that ended. I thought once I cut about everything she’d be doing much better but I’m getting discouraged! I have no one to relate to. My husband and I also don’t have allergies. I feel his family is disgusted I’m still breastfeeding when it is giving her such bad gas in the night but from what I’ve read it’s still the best thing. She is gaining great. She doubled her birth rate already and continues to gain.
I’m so scared we are going to go to the gi and him tell me to quit breast feeding her whenever I want to SOO badly. I’m just worried I’m never going to figure out what she’s allergic to!
I know your post is really old but I believe you are still responding. Again, thank you for this
Hi Ashley! The good news is that Luke is now 5 (!!!) and has totally outgrown his intolerances. So there is hope! Their digestive systems are so immature, sometimes they just can’t handle all the proteins. It takes time to get everything out of the baby’s system (and your system too) so don’t be discouraged that she wasn’t 100% better right away. The doctors I went to actually said that these babies often do even worse on formula, even the specialized ones, so breastfeeding may be your best bet! I’m glad this post helped you, if only to not feel alone! Good luck at the GI appointment.
Thank you! One more question- did you continue to take a prenatal? I was but then noticed there was soy in my vitamins so I bought a different kind but now I’m reading it has vegetable coating and doesn’t specify if it has soy or corn so I quit taking it. I found it difficult to find one without soy.
I took the Baby and Me multi-vitamin from MegaFood. You have to be really careful with the vitamins!! MegaFood’s are certified free of soy, dairy, and wheat. I’m not 100% sure about corn.
Hello,
I was just wondering if the last pictute you posted of the poo was a normal poo? That is exactly what my 4mo nappy looks like. I think it is mucousy?? He keeps having eczema flare ups, wind pain, and vomity (but not projectile) I just dont know where to start.
Yes, the last picture was Luke’s normal-looking stool. It really is so hard to judge what is normal! To me it looked shiny but there were not the definite streaks of mucous.
You can always try cutting out the two biggest offenders (milk and soy) and see if it helps. Unfortunately, it’s not a quick fix. 🙁 It can take a while for everything to normalize. Good luck!
I’m so glad you posted pics! My daughter was fine till she turned a month old and then she started screaming ALL the time. Inconsolably, it was horrible. I did a little research and came across your blog, but couldn’t bring myself to even consider that I would have to starve myself of all good things in order to continue nursing her. But it was so bad and she was in so much pain. I cried knowing my nursing days were over. I put her on nutramigen and it was almost immediate that she quit screaming! When i got her to the doc, I explained it all to him and he suggested reflux. I mentioned that we had run out of nutramigen at one point and had tried gentlease because we had it on hand and that she had immediately vomited it back up. So he agreed, probably milk protein allergy or sensitivity. However, four weeks on nutramigen and symptoms start slowly returning! I figure if she’s going to scream on formula, I’m going back to nursing! I hated the formula anyway! So I started pumping like crazy and nursing before every bottle. Going a month without nursing caused my supply to drop to only an ounce. I wished I had never stopped. I went off all milk (not hidden because I didn’t know about that until now) and since she wasn’t getting much from me, it didn’t seem to bother her that it wasn’t out of my system yet. I still wasn’t sure if she had milk protein allergy or just reflux. During the next 2 weeks we tried zantac, but it was a waste of time. I finally called the doctor and told him to please give us something good. Listed every symptom I could find while googling that she had for reflux. He gave us nexium and within a week she had quit screaming again. By this time I’ve been off milk products for a month and the meds seem to help, so I try milk again. I’m loving my cheese and sour cream! Within a week she’s starting to scream again and stools are changing back to mucous and green. I’m currently on day 3 of no milk again. I’m sad about that, but at this point, my milk supply is back up and I’m near full supply again. I currently supplement with about a 4oz nutramigen bottle a day. She’s currently not sleeping good and crying a lot during the day. I know she has reflux as well and not caused by milk because when we started her on nexium, she’d been off milk for about 6 weeks. How common is it for babies to have severe reflux AND milk protein allergy? The symptoms for both are almost identical! Its been driving me crazy trying to determine which she has. I figured out (finally!) that the stools are my clue. Your blog has been the most informative I’ve found and with pictures too! The stools above could be from my daughter! She’s had one that looks like every one of them except the blood streaked one. I think I saw blood specks a few times, but they were so small, it was hard to say and I didn’t feel like running it to the doctor. Anyway, thank you for your blog and for posting pics! Comparison is a huge help!
Yes, I think that’s very common to have both. They must be related somehow. My son was also diagnosed with reflux and was on meds for a little while, but they had awful side effects so we stopped. Thankfully he outgrew both the intolerances and the reflux. I wish you good luck–I know how hard it is.
Just to make sure, your last picture you are saying was normal right? That’s what our sons looks like now and I wasn’t sure if it’s too funny or not. I’m off all allergens and haven’t added back anything yet, he’s 3.5 months.
Yes, the last one is the normal pic. 🙂
I recently end natural treatment from herbalist healer which i used to got rid of my hives i only applied the treatment for one week. it so amazing i eliminated this disease out from my body. i also recommend everyone suffering from this horrible disease should also be cure you can reach Dr Onokun via email; [email protected]
Hello I have a question. We are going through something similar. Removed obvious dairy @wk12 after seeing blood/mucus. Dr said not to just push through but I felt need to and she was super fussy. Still now 2 mo later dealing with reflux type issues up to 1-2hrs after feeding. Hates tummy time. We had blood and mucus appear again over weekend, without eating obvious dairy. Referred to GI. Did you start elimation prior to going to GI. My ped didn’t recommend per Se but feel that I want to get a kick start on the timeline as would stil like to start solids in one month. (6mo). Goal is to BF til 2.
Oh and I’m a vegetarian so what can I eat lol.
Here’s a look at what I ate during a day while I was breastfeeding Luke: https://happyhealthymama.com/what-this-breastfeeding-mama-eats-in-a-day.html
It’s tough even if you’re not a vegetarian, so that adds another layer of difficulty! Lots of beans and rice is my recommendation. 🙂
Also, I ended up breastfeeding Luke until he was 3. I NEVER thought I would make it that long, but it got so much easier when he got older. By 2 1/2, he’d outgrown all of his intolerances. There is a light at the end of the tunnel!
I realize this post is very old but hoping you may still see comments. I’m going thru a similar situation except my pediatrician isn’t as on board as yours. Just curious…is the last picture what you consider normal poop? We haven’t had a yellow seedy poop since about 6 weeks old (4.5 mo now) so I’m struggling to figure out what is supposed to be normal. Thanks!!
Yes, the last picture was what I considered normal. Luke has mucous in his stool from birth. It took many, many months to get to that “normal.” I know exactly how you feel trying to figure it out!
Hi! I am so grateful I found this post, I’ve been reading it over and over again since I am going through the same with my 4.5 baby girl. At this point I’ve cut gluten, seafood, eggs dairy, nuts and soy. But I’m still seeing a bit of blood at least twice a week. I am wondering how you gotta solved with Luke, did he finally overcome it? It’s jard to be on such a test restrictive diet and still don’t see complete improvement
This is the same for my son! I don’t know if he ever really had a “normal” poop… and as a first time mom, I didn’t realize there was anything wrong until a month ago when there was blood and mucous.
We are seeing our doctor again next week and I am SO glad I found this so I can talk to him about MSPI. I have been off dairy for a month and there has only been slight improvement.
Pardon my ignorance, but I have a question for you… why didn’t you go to an allergist? Can babies not be allergy tested?
I asked that question. My son’s doctor said that allergy tests for babies are highly inaccurate and it’s best to wait until they are older. My son outgrew his intolerances by 2 1/2 so we never had to have him tested.
Thank you for your post! Even as a Dietitian I struggled with this whole thing (our little man was diagnosed at 11 weeks and followed many of the same symptoms you mentioned + very low weight gain) I eliminated dairy, soy, eggs, nuts, peanuts, wheat and fish. We had a HUGE improvement. At 5 months intro of fish went well but the next week nuts were a no go – diapers went to BRIGHT GREEN with black specs. I came back to read and re-read your post and the update about how reintroduction would go and how you handled introducing solids. It is SO hard to tell about fussiness vs. actual symptoms. The pictures you shared were so helpful because I see so many parallels. Anyways, just wanted to say how thankful I am for this post! When I write an update on my blog I’ll be sure to share how helpful this post was for me and link to it!