Hi Mama,
It’s completely alright for babies to poop more after they have started solids. Till 6 months of age, babies were used to an only milk diet, and introducing different types of food after 6 months will make their digestive system adjust with the new diet.
Starting solids is a huge milestone for your baby. From an all-milk diet to these different flavors of foods in his stomach will have his digestive some adapting to do.
When your baby starts solids, their bowel movements change, so before you start solids, you need to keep in mind that things will change poop-related from now on.
His poop is going to be brighter, thicker, and way smellier. Your baby will likely poop more often or less than before. When my little one started solids, I had quite a shock one morning while changing his diaper; his poop was yellow and blue in color.
I had till then read all about poop color, what different color meant-whether it’s indigestion or because of the formula milk, but nowhere was there a mention of blue poop. Still, then I remembered that I’d introduced him to blueberries the previous night for dinner.
So, your baby’s poop can also depend on what you feed them. It can be yellow, orange, green, and mustard yellow (you get the picture, right? It can be quite colorful). But the good thing is that you got nothing to worry about; bright-colored poop is quite normal at this stage.
This is because their digestive system is still immature and is still learning to adapt to different food types, colors, and textures.
Feed your baby a delicious bowl of steamed carrots, and you’ll get bright orange poop the next day. After all, what goes in must come out!
For some babies, starting solids can also trigger constipation. This happens when, along with solids, enough formula, breast milk, or water isn’t given to the baby.
Signs of constipation in babies include:
- Infrequent stools are harder to pass, and babies may arch their back and tighten their butts to pass poop.
- Your baby might pass small, hard stool which may look like ‘small pebbles.’
- Your baby might poop way less than before, maybe once in 2-3 days.
How does a baby’s poop change after starting solids?
Smell
Okay, so, I know poop never smelled good, but up until your baby is on a milk diet only, his poop isn’t going to make you run for your life, but once your little one starts taking in his solids, the smell is definitely going to change.
Babies on solids will produce way smellier poops, and as the solid intake is going to increase and different foods are introduced, it’s only going to be (full disclosure) more stinking.
Texture
If your baby was solely on your breast milk till now, you might’ve noticed that his poop used to be loose like runny, liquidish poop (not like diarrhea, just loose). That will change once he is on solids; his poop will be more firm, thicker, and more shaped.
But this isn’t the case with formula-fed babies. If your baby was formula fed before, then this change might not be so obvious.
Color
Before starting solids, your baby might poop in a consistent yellowish-mustard color, but once they start solids, this will change. There’s nothing to worry about the different colors as your baby’s digestive system is still immature and still developing, so adapting to a whole different platter of food textures and type will take some time.
As he grows, his poop color will change and be back to a more normal color, regardless of what he eats the previous day.
Takeaway
You might also see many undigested foods passed down in his diaper, but this won’t be seen until he starts solids instead of puree or semi-solid food.
But again, there’s nothing to worry about; it’s just your baby’s digestive system to learn how to process chopped foods and will soon be back to normal.
So, mama, stop worrying and take a long, deep breath.
Your baby is growing, and all of this is just part of it, but if you think your little one is uncomfortable or if something’s wrong, then call your doctor immediately.
