Loose Motions in Babies: Causes, Symptoms, Risks, and Cure

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In the infant age, babies suffer from so many minor problems ranging to cough cold to loose motions. The reason is they are very small and have very low immunity to fight any kind of germs and infections. Today we will be talking about loose motions in babies and infants. We will be talking about all sorts of information about it. 

Our article will mostly deal with the loose motions in babies from 6 months to 18 months of age. 

What is Loose Motions?

Loose motions or watery stools is a condition in which the kid passes motions very often in watery form. It is a minor problem but gets really bad if untreated. Continued motions can also result in severe dehydration and vice versa. 

Causes of Loose motions in babies

  • Entry of some foreign materials in body like pathogens
  • Teething
  • Food allergy
  • Antibiotic effects or overdose
  • Improper mother’s diet
  • Bacterial/parasitic infections
  • Food sensitivity (introduction to a new food)
loose motions in babies
Source: unsplash

Symptoms of loose motions in babies

As we adults, babies have the same symptoms when suffering from loose motions. Some of them are given below. Although for small babies, it’s tough to consider whether it is a loose motion or a general one. Following symptoms will help you to figure out the motions. 

  • Frequent stools with very less or no odour
  • Watery or very thin stools
  • Discolored stools with visible food particles
  • Low appetite
  • Cranckiness
  • Chapped lips and skin (specially the cheeks and tummy skin) as they are the signs of dehydration
  • Yellowis pee due to dehydration

Key point:

If the baby is only under breastfeed (under or till 6 months), then doesn’t matter the baby poops 10 times a day or just twice a week! There is a laxative effect in breastmilk which can make them poop after every feed or like that. 

So if you have introduced solids, then you can check the motions are going right or not. In small babies, 3-5 months if they are having watery potty then they can say to have loose motions. At that time home remedies are not applicable, you should always take the doctor’s consultation for recovery. 

When to see a doctor for baby diarrhea?

In adults, loose motions are a minor issue that doesn’t need any extra effort to be cured. Just a simple diet, few bananas, curd, and you are all set! 

But when it comes about babies who can’t even talk, then thing gets really problematic and difficult to be cured. The condition can worsen if the baby is a picky eater or doesn’t even open their mouth to have medicine or anything else. 

At this stage, you feel helpless. There are some risks associated with loose motions which are the immediate signs of doctor referral. Let’s have a look at the following points. 

  1. In loose motions, baby passes very frequent stools in watery form. If it is accompanied with vomiting, when water drain will be much higher. It can lead to dehydration which is the key of other health problems. 
  2. If you find baby has very less wet diapers or the skin is getting dried and chapped, then these can be the signs of extreme dehydration. 
  3. When the baby has fever (abouve 100 degrees) accompanied with the motions, then it is the hight time to rush to the hospital. 
  4. If the baby is below 3 months of age and havning even 1 or 2 loose/watery stools then its not worth waiting at home. 
  5. If you see any kind of blood stains in the stool, then it might be the sign of infection. Instead of doing any home remedies, just for the doctor. They may give antibiotics or check for stool test. 
  6. If you treat baby with all your home remedies, still the condition is same till 48 hours then you should go to hospital without doing any late.

5 Home Remedies to cure loose motions in babies

Sometimes, especially in small babies, we wait at home to try some home remedies. But in cases like parasitic and bacterial infections, home remedies may not work. So if you feel your baby is getting lethargic and cranky then see a doctor once. 

Now if you are confirmed that the baby has no infection and is just a general loose motion, then let’s move to the cure. We will be telling about some of the effective yet easy home remedies, which will help to cure the baby soon and without any harsh methods. 

This all requires the things present in your kitchen itself! So let’s see. 

1. Yummy curd rice will do wonder

If you are a South Indian then you must be familiar with the curd rice. If not then let me tell, what curd rice is. An Authentic South-Indian preparation, curd rice is eaten as lunch or side dish on a regular and daily basis. 

It has the aromatic tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves, cumin seeds, asafoetida, etc in it which makes it mouth-watering. 

Mushed rice is starchy and fresh curd is probiotic in nature. It activates friendly bacteria into your gut, which helps to regular bowel functioning. 

If your baby is above 7 months of age, then this recipe can be given as a home cure. Not just for motions, it is also good for all sorts of stomach and digestion-related disorders. 

2. Hydrate your baby with ORS

ORS or Oral Rehydration Solution is the instant and easiest way to hydrate the body and remove stomach issues. In loose motions or vomiting, lots of water is flushed out of the body leading to extreme dehydration. Doctors advise, in this case, you should first keep an eye on the baby’s water intake. 

They should take a nice amount of fluids in order to keep the body hydrated and replenished. In markets, ORS is available in powdered as well as in ready-to-serve form too. They are also available in different flavors like orange, apple, lemon, etc which makes kids drink it without any fussiness. 

3. I like to eat Apples and Bananas

Mashed apples and bananas are the very right thing for your baby now. Being starchy and mushy fruits, these two fruits proves to be very effective in loose motions. The potassium content in bananas helps to bring their digestion back to normal, helping to ease the problem. 

As adults, we also prefer to eat bananas when having motion-related problems. 

So offer the kids, purees or apples and bananas, or if they can chew it give them to eat those. 

4. Stay on a liquid diet for some time

When kids have loose motions, they will hardly feel to eat anything solid and you should not force them to eat as at that time their appetite is on the low side. 

For one or two days, you should keep them on a liquid diet. Barley water, thinned sago, pureed lentils (dal ka paani), lemon water, etc are the options. 

It will help their digestion to get rest and will be back to normal themselves. 

5. Coconut water will be the best cure

Coconut water is enriched with nutrients and health-giving properties. During summers or in hot weather, we prefer to give coconut water to the babies in order to stay hydrated and away from stomach troubles. 

It will also balance the levels of sodium in your blood, thus reducing the body heat which creates so many health problems. However, a healthy individual too should drink a glass of tender coconut water daily (excepting the winters and cold climates). 

So in this way, we saw some of the very useful home remedies for loose motions.  However, there are many more home remedies too like cumin seeds, pomegranate juice, etc which aids to correct your bowel movement. 

As said above, always check for the symptoms. If you see any kind of infection or patches or the condition is still the same for more than 48 hours then it’s always better to go for a doctor’s visit. Take care and live well! 

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