The real skinny on mucus and color in poop?

vszapp

DD has had "abnormal" stool since about 2 weeks. They were bright green and watery for awhile, and we suspected I had an oversupply. I am now block feeding. Her poop is now more of a pea green, but there seems to me to be a fair amount of mucus - it is kind of stringy across the diaper, if that makes sense. The pedi also found a minuscule amount of blood in her poop, but you can't even see it. That was about a week and a half ago, before the oversupply was managed.

She does also have some reflux, but not sure if that is just mechanical or if it is caused by a food intolerance (don't think it's an allergy since she has no rash, congestion, etc). Just in case I have cut out eggs, dairy, and soy for the past 2 weeks (dairy for 3 now).

I have read things all over the map - that green color means something, and that it doesn't. Also that mucus means something, and that it doesn't. Pediatrician hasn't been very helpful, so we're shopping for a new one. In the meantime, any thoughts? She is fussy on occasion, but it's not all the time.  I would say she usually has a good 30-45 minutes after feeding when she is happy. Maybe that's OK for a 6 wo?

I would love any thoughts or advice from those who have been there... I don't want to make something out of nothing, but I also don't want to ignore a problem! 

ILoveRunning

For us, the green, mucousy poop really did mean nothing.  DS did not have reflux, gained weight fine, seemed as fussy as any other baby, but had green, mucousy, poop and was often very gassy.  I tried a total elimination diet after cutting dairy didn't work, and nothing changed.  I am of the opinion that infants have an immature gut, and that most (not all) digestive "issues" will go away on their own.  If your LO seems to be happy, isn't screaming out in constant pain, and appears healthy (diaper output, weight gain), then I wouldn't worry to much about it.  I'm guessing that by month ~4 it will go away on its own.  

reederah

My guess would be a dairy allergy/intolerance. DS had green, mucus-y poop so I cut out all dairy in my diet and it seemed to do the trick! He also wasn't terribly fussy (although he definitely did fuss some), so your situation does sound similar. Hope you get it all figured out!

shotzie

DD2's poop turned green and mucousy around 2 wks too. One week, she had tiny specks of blood in it. The dr had a stool sample tested that had no visible blood, but it came back positive for blood. I cut dairy and soy out of my diet and after 4-5 weeks, her poop went back to normal and tested negative for blood. So green, mucousy poop for her meant she's Milk, Soy Protein Intolerant. So I'm dairy and soy free and will talk to the pedi about when she thinks I should try re-introducing those foods back into my diet. A lot of babies outgrow MSPI by 12 months (or earlier). ETA: she is on Prilosec for reflux and that has helped a lot. She also has been gaining weight just fine all along.

vszapp

ILoveRunning:

For us, the green, mucousy poop really did mean nothing.  DS did not have reflux, gained weight fine, seemed as fussy as any other baby, but had green, mucousy, poop and was often very gassy.  I tried a total elimination diet after cutting dairy didn't work, and nothing changed.  I am of the opinion that infants have an immature gut, and that most (not all) digestive "issues" will go away on their own.  If your LO seems to be happy, isn't screaming out in constant pain, and appears healthy (diaper output, weight gain), then I wouldn't worry to much about it.  I'm guessing that by month ~4 it will go away on its own.  

Good to hear. She is gaining weigh great - she was born at 6lbs12oz and is now just over 10lbs! I would say she's happy when reflux doesn't strike. When it does you can see it come up, and then she makes a horrible face and cries for a bit. 

mm614

Green mucousy stools are likely caused by an intolerance to cow's milk protein.   Green frothy stools are likely caused by foremilk/hindmilk imbalance. 

The most common gastrointestinal symptom is the development of bloody stools. Dietary proteins excreted in the mother?s milk are responsible for the majority of case.

 It can take several weeks for you to see results from eliminating dairy so I would continue with that course for a couple of months and hopefully then you'll notice a difference.

Also, try researching the issue from sources like NIAID, AAAAI, and RAND.

CA2006

For us, I am convinced it was an oversupply issue.  I think DD took in so much milk that it overloaded her intestines.  Poop was green, mucousy and had trace amounts of blood.  Once I got the oversupply under control, all was normal again.  I did cut dairy for 2 months.  But when I added it back, at 4 mo, she was perfectly fine.  Therefore, I don't think it had anything to do with dairy. DD showed signs of reflux too (again, I think it was b/c of oversupply) and she gained weight like crazy.  How could she not?  If I could pump 6 oz out of 1 side at a time when she was that little, imagine how much she was eating?! Ooof.  Poor thing.  She could never just comfort nurse.

vszapp

CA2006:

For us, I am convinced it was an oversupply issue.  I think DD took in so much milk that it overloaded her intestines.  Poop was green, mucousy and had trace amounts of blood.  Once I got the oversupply under control, all was normal again.  I did cut dairy for 2 months.  But when I added it back, at 4 mo, she was perfectly fine.  Therefore, I don't think it had anything to do with dairy. DD showed signs of reflux too (again, I think it was b/c of oversupply) and she gained weight like crazy.  How could she not?  If I could pump 6 oz out of 1 side at a time when she was that little, imagine how much she was eating?! Ooof.  Poor thing.  She could never just comfort nurse.

I just pumped for the first time yesterday and also got 6oz on one side! It was first thing in the morning, but still it seems like a lot. During the day, though, I don't think I have nearly as much. But maybe I still have more work to do on the supply?

dosafyre

SandAndsSea:

With DS, green muscousy poop means nothing.  I think 50% of his are like this and he is growing well and seems happy, so I don't worry about it.  If he was fussy or not gaining weight, I'd worry, but that isn't the case for us.

 

Same here...green-color or mucus in the poo meant nothing. The poo and consistency just changed colors sometimes, all within the normal range of colors (yellow, orange to green). Now that she's older, there's definitely no dairy or other food allergies present.

Jelliebean1982

Green mucousy poop meant nothing here too, except for oversupply.  Once I went back to work at 6 weeks and he got bottles for half the day the green poop went away.  I had an awful oversupply and block feeding helped the most.  I never went dairy free or anything like that, either.