What causes baby stools to have a sour smell?

A baby's stools that have a sour or frothy smell are a sign of a digestive disorder or an intestinal infection. Finding out information related to newborn baby stools with a sour smell will help parents and doctors to have early treatment and appropriate care for the baby.

Newborn baby stools have a sour smell is a common condition, causing a lot of confusion and worry for parents. According to pediatric experts, the digestive system of young children is still very immature, unable to absorb nutrients completely. Therefore, the condition of infant stools with a mild sour smell is a completely normal expression, which parents can handle at home without being too worried. However, the baby should be taken immediately to the hospital for timely monitoring and treatment if the child's stools have a sour smell and are accompanied by the following symptoms:
Newborns have loose stools, diarrhea, and foamy stools. Your baby has a bowel movement with more stool than usual and more than 3 times a day. Liquid stools, no mold, green young stools. Baby is tired, pale due to severe lack of water.

When the infant's stool has a sour smell, it is necessary to quickly find the exact cause for timely treatment to avoid affecting the baby's health. There are a number of causes that often lead to a child's stool with a sour smell such as:
2.1 Children cannot absorb all nutrients As mentioned above, the digestive system of infants and young children is in the early stages of development. The baby's life is weak, so the baby's body cannot absorb all the nutrients provided.
In the case of excess sugar and nutrients in baby's milk, it will irritate the stomach, or create conditions for microorganisms to grow, which is also one of the causes of sour stools.
One of the other causes of sour-smelling baby stools may be that the baby's body does not have enough enzymes to break down lactose when breastfeeding or drinking formula. In addition, for babies in the weaning period, the amount of starch put into the body is too much or not yet ripe, which also easily causes the digestive tract to be stimulated, making the baby's stools have a sour smell accompanied by effervescence.
2.2 Baby has a bacterial infection or dysbiosis in the digestive tract. Parents should pay special attention to the origin of food to avoid the risk of their baby being infected with rotavirus or some harmful bacteria. These microorganisms not only cause the child's stool to have a sour smell, but also overwhelm and compete with the beneficial bacteria in the intestinal tract, causing an imbalance of microorganisms in the digestive system leading to diarrhea, dehydration, and even dehydration. even endanger life.

As an undesirable side effect, antibiotics are also among the causes of a sour smell in newborn stools. Antibiotics destroy both beneficial and harmful factors at the same time, so after a period of antibiotic use, some beneficial bacteria in the digestive system are weakened, leading to an imbalance of microflora. object. This causes digestive disorders in children as well as making stools have a sour smell.

3.1 Change the diet in accordance with the baby's body needs. For infants using exclusively breast milk: mothers should pay attention to their diets, because everything that the mother eats can be absorbed by the body. can be converted into milk for the baby. Mothers should eat foods such as vegetables, yogurt, bread, limit foods that are too greasy, fast food, stimulants, ... and should choose clean foods with clear origins to Avoid bacterial infections that cause the baby's stools to have a sour smell. For formula-fed babies: sour-smelling stools often occur in the first 2 to 3 days when babies start drinking milk. Parents should monitor their baby's absorption. In case of necessity, you can consider changing to another type of milk that is more suitable for your baby's body.. 3.2 Ensuring hygiene It is very important to ensure the hygiene of the food that the mother eats, or the food that the baby eats. , helps prevent digestive disorders that lead to children's stools with a sour smell.
In addition, parents should also ensure the hygiene of the items and toys that the baby comes into contact with to ensure the hygiene of the baby.

3.3 Children's stool has a sour smell due to bacterial infection, dysbacteriosis For the case of infant feces with a sour smell due to bacterial infection or dysbacteriosis caused by antibiotic use, parents should supplement foods or foods Support such as probiotics, digestive enzymes to help the baby rebalance the intestinal microflora.
Observing a child's stool can help parents and doctors initially detect some gastrointestinal diseases in children. Therefore, when a child shows signs of abnormal stools, especially with a sour smell, it is necessary to visit medical centers for examination, disease detection and early treatment for children. Early detection will give the opportunity for easier treatment as well as avoid dangerous complications later.
As a key area of ​​Vinmec Health system, Pediatrics Department always brings satisfaction to customers and is highly appreciated by industry experts with:
Gathering a team of top doctors and nurses in Pediatrics : consists of leading experts with high professional qualifications (professors, associate professors, doctorates, masters), experienced, worked at major hospitals such as Bach Mai, 108.. Doctors All doctors are well-trained, professional, conscientious, knowledgeable about young psychology. In addition to domestic pediatric specialists, the Department of Pediatrics also has the participation of foreign experts (Japan, Singapore, Australia, USA) who are always pioneers in applying the latest and most effective treatment regimens. . Comprehensive services: In the field of Pediatrics, Vinmec provides a series of continuous medical examination and treatment services from Newborn to Pediatric and Vaccine,... according to international standards to help parents take care of their baby's health from birth to childhood. upon reaching adulthood. Advanced techniques: Vinmec has successfully deployed many specialized techniques to make the treatment of difficult diseases in Pediatrics more effective: neurosurgery - craniofacial surgery, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in cancer treatment. Professional care: In addition to understanding children's psychology, Vinmec also pays special attention to the children's play space, helping them to have fun and get used to the hospital's environment, cooperate in treatment, improve the efficiency of medical treatment. To register for examination and treatment with Pediatricians at Vinmec International General Hospital, please click the "Contact Us" button on the website or register for an online examination.