green poop??

[blessedbythree]

I know I've seen mentioned that green poop can be caused by a foremilk imbalance. What exactly is this and how would you correct it? Do you need to correct it?

Thanks

[Amy_G_]

Breastmilk that baby gets when they first latch on, is foremilk. It's got the bulk of the liquid and the nutrition. However, it is low in fat. Hindmilk is the milk that lets down later in a feeding --although technically there isn't a specific point, the milk just gets creamier and creamier as baby nurses. Hindmilk is higher in fat and calories.

Baby needs to get both kinds of milk in order to grow at their own rate. If mom switches back and forth from one breast to the other after X minutes, baby will often get full on the lower calorie foremilk and never stay at one breast long enough to get the hindmilk, which will keep baby full for longer.

Ideally, mom will nurse on one side for one feeding and baby will get the proper % of both kinds of milk. Occassionally, mom will have so much milk, that baby has to stay on one breast for 2 feedings in a row in order to get thru all the foremilk and get the hindmilk.

does that help?

[Nipple_nectar]

I personally would be concerned if it was a trend because as Amy stated, baby can have insufficient weight gain from too little hindmilk.

You can use breast compression (http://www.kellymom.com/newman/15breast_compression.html) to help baby empty the breast.

[blessedbythree]

Thank you ladies for your advice and information. I will watch DD over the next few days to see if they continue and use your advice to remedy the situation.

[Stephanie]

I agree, watch it for a few days. Sometimes there is just poop funk.

[Nipple_nectar]

Green poop merely tells me that I didn't get DD to nurse long enough, the day before. Once I see it, I try to make each session longer that day: either by using a nursing necklace or just laying with baby for a nap and it always goes away.

[blessedbythree]

Today we have a mixture of green and yellow so I think we are starting to get back to where we need to be. Thanks for all the help! Before I became a mom I never knew how obsessed I could become over someone else's poop.

[kohlby]

I found that all green poop isn't the same.
Frothy green poop was a foremilk/hindmilk imbalance. Mucously green poop was a dairy/soy allergy. (However, keep in mind it happened every single day with the allergy baby. Also, there was projectile vomiting).

[whitnessforhim]

Thanks for all the help! Before I became a mom I never knew how obsessed I could become over someone else's poop.


Yeah and thats only the beginning :hugegrin: