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!
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!
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!
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!
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!
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!
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!
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!
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 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!
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 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!
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.
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.
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!
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!
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.
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
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! 🙂
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!
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!