Diarrhea

Diarrhea usually refers to 2 or more watery or loose stools being passed by your infant. Breastfed babies, more often than not, pass more than 6 stools per day. Up until 2 months of age, they may pass a stool after each feeding. But, if stools suddenly increase in number and looseness more than usual, suspect diarrhea.

The stages of dehydration can change very rapidly, particularly for infants who are 3 months or younger. Therefore, if your baby is within this age group, and has experienced 2 or 3 diarrhea-filled diapers, or is experiencing diarrhea for more than a day, you should seek medical attention immediately.

Use the guides below to assess the severity of diarrhea, in order to provide your infant with the right care for each situation faced. Delay or negligence in providing your infant with immediate treatment could potentially be fatal.

Diarrhea Scale

Mild: 2-5 watery stools per day

Moderate: 6-9 watery stools per day

Severe: 10 or more watery stools per day

How to Know if your Infant is Suffering from Dehydration

Dehydration refers to an extreme loss of body fluids. This can happen through vomiting and/or diarrhea. If you notice a loss of more than 3% of your infant’s body weight, he/she could be experiencing dehydration. However, mild diarrhea or vomiting, and a small decrease in fluid intake will not lead to dehydration. The severity of the level of dehydration is measured according to the child’s clinical status, regardless of the number of stools passed in a day.

Signs of dehydration:
– no urine output in 6 hours
– dry eyes, no tears or sunken eyeballs
– tired and irritable

More common signs of dehydration in infants/children:
-thirst
-poor skin turgor
An infant with severe dehydration becomes too weak to stand. They can also appear dizzy when attempting to stand.

A way to check for possible dehydration, one may perform the capillary/blood refill test on a child.