Why Is My Baby's Poop Green?
Green baby poop can be disconcerting, but it’s usually not a cause for concern. Find out more about what green baby poop means and when to call a doctor.
Noticing green poop in your baby's diaper can leave you wondering about their health and well-being. But thankfully, the occasional greenish stool is normal for a newborn, says Linda Folden Palmer, D.C., author of Baby Poop: What Your Pediatrician May Not Tell You. If your baby is eating enough—and if the green stool doesn't appear at every diaper change—you probably don't need to visit the pediatrician. Keep reading to learn more about the causes of green baby poop.
Why Is My Baby's Poop Green?
Your newborn baby's first poop will be greenish-black and tarry in consistency, according to Dr. Palmer. Called meconium, it consists of everything your baby ingested in the womb, including amniotic fluid, bile, and yup, their own skin cells. Over the next few days, the stool begins to take on an army green color, then it turns mustard yellow (if breastfeeding) or tan-brown (if formula feeding).
Stomach bile gives poop its signature brownish color. When stool (poop) is rushed through the digestive tract too quickly, the bile doesn't get digested, leading to a greenish hue, says Dr. Palmer. Here are some other possible causes of green baby poop.
Foremilk-hindmilk imbalance
Breast milk changes over the course of a nursing session. The breasts first produce low-fat and high-sugar "foremilk," which gradually transforms into high-fat, high-calorie "hindmilk" as the breast empties.
If your baby tends to have short nursing sessions or you have an oversupply of breast milk, they may be getting more foremilk than hindmilk. This might also happen if the baby switches breasts too quickly or frequently. Too much foremilk may lead to gassiness and green, frothy stools.
