Diarrhea in the bf toddler?

[MommyJogger]

Hi all!
DS is taking enough solids to have "adult-style" poops now. But his tummy is bothering him lately and he's laying off the solids and pretty much just boobing it for all his nutrition. I think he has a tummy virus, but I don't know how to analyze his poop anymore. When they go off solids and take a lot of breast milk, how can you tell if it's diarrhea? He's not going often enough that I would have classified it as diarrhea in an ebf baby. But it's definitely watery like it would sometimes be when he was ebf/almost ebf and if he were an older child and not breastfed, I would definitely say this is diarrhea. Does the 3 poops in 2 hours rule of thumb still apply to bf toddlers or do adult rules where you go by consistency matter more?

 

[seaweed eater]

Just bumping for you. I don't know the answer myself. Just one thing I can say -- when you say "watery" do you mean like...actually watery? Or just very loose/liquid like EBF poop? Our clinic has never been very concerned about merely "loose," as long as it's not "watery."

 

[deafgal]

I usually can tell it is diarrhea by the smell. It's smells horrible. Breastmilk poo have a sweeter smell to it

 

[MommyJogger]

I mean watery, but he's actually had watery poop in the past that they said wasn't diarrhea and can be a normal poop for a minority of ebf babies. I would usually go by the smell, too, but if he gets even a single cheerio his poop has the 'solids stink', so it's really hard to tell. I took him to the doctor and made them let us wait around for a poop to catch a sample. They don't know if it's diarrhea either, but at least they're doing a culture. He even woke up for a while yesterday after his appt and we were able to go outside to read some books and have a short walk, so hopefully the fresh air will do him some good. I'm gonna see if he feels up to a run in the stroller today so he can nap upright for a good while. Thanks girls!

 

[deafgal]

When my ebf kids have diarrhea, even when they are wean, the smell is just foul...I can't explain it. It doesn't smell like your typical solid stink. And they usually get a bad diaper rash too because it is so acidic like. Beside, I noticed older kids digestion system are more mature so it is rare to see newborn bf poo.

 

[seaweed eater]

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful -- hope he feels better soon!

 

[summer rain]

When my ebf kids have diarrhea, even when they are wean, the smell is just foul...I can't explain it. It doesn't smell like your typical solid stink. And they usually get a bad diaper rash too because it is so acidic like. Beside, I noticed older kids digestion system are more mature so it is rare to see newborn bf poo.

^this.