Diarrhea during breastfeeding is common in women. The causes of this unpleasant symptom can cause serious complications for a nursing mother. Only a doctor should carry out and prescribe treatment. Using medications without a specialist’s prescription will lead to undesirable consequences, especially for a child.
Why does a nursing mother have diarrhea?
The appearance of diarrhea in a woman during breastfeeding occurs due to poor nutrition. Otherwise, intoxication of the body occurs due to medication. Therefore, the mother experiences loose stools, and the clinical picture varies. In addition to generally accepted factors, dangerous diseases can occur in a woman’s body.
Viral infection and symptoms
Viral diseases have 3 courses of infection:
- adenoviral;
- rotavirus;
- enterovirus.
Infection occurs by airborne droplets or in everyday life through dishes. Any viral infection is resistant to the external environment. Pathogens die only when the temperature rises (boiling). In addition to diarrhea, the mother experiences a feeling of general malaise while breastfeeding. Immediately or after some time, pain occurs in the abdominal area.
In individual cases, body temperature rises to 39 °C. Diarrhea in a nursing mother has a foamy appearance. To a greater extent, there are mucus impurities with pieces of undigested food. Feces have an unpleasant odor.
Any infectious infection begins with a clinical picture, like a cold or flu. The patient feels weak, muscle pain occurs, and the body temperature rises.
The occurrence of diarrhea in a nursing mother is in most cases associated with the activity of rotavirus infection.
Poisoning or intestinal disorder
A young mother is sensitive to the products she consumes. Therefore, poor quality or stale food causes diarrhea. In addition, the following signs of poisoning are identified:
- attacks of vomiting and nausea;
- weakness, lethargy and weakening pulse;
- temperature rise to 37.5-38 °C.
In most cases, diarrhea in a nursing mother occurs due to intestinal disorders. There is no need to stop breastfeeding. However, it is worth paying attention to the accompanying symptoms. Loose stools occur without nausea, vomiting or fever. The urge to defecate occurs during the day, and at night the muscles are in a relaxed state, and loose stools do not bother you.
Bacterial infections
Diseases of this nature are difficult for a nursing mother. The causes of bacterial infection are associated with the consumption of foods that contain pathogens. If loose stools and an increase in body temperature are detected, medical attention is required. Pathogenic infections include:
- salmonellosis;
- shigellosis;
- cholera;
- Escherichiosis.
Some bacterial diseases are difficult to diagnose based on general symptoms. To determine the disease, the doctor uses laboratory tests.
Other causes of diarrhea during lactation
When using certain medications (antibiotics), the intestinal microflora is disrupted. This leads to the appearance of loose stools. In this case, no signs of pain are detected. The color of stool varies from dark brown to light shade. The consistency of the stool is thin or watery. Diarrhea of this nature occurs during lactation in mothers and occurs as a result of treatment for another pathology.
Dangers of Diarrhea While Breastfeeding
If a nursing mother experiences loose stools, this becomes a factor in the woman’s hospitalization. Some diseases threaten the health of the mother and infant. When a woman has diarrhea, her body becomes dehydrated. At the same time, trace elements leave with water. Their presence in the body helps in the functioning of the heart muscle and other organs.
Violation of water balance during lactation leads to a decrease in the amount of milk. This process lasts a short time or covers a long period until the body gets rid of pathogens. If a woman is treated with antibiotics while breastfeeding, the baby is transferred to formula. If a young mother does not take measures to preserve milk, the lactation period ends.
Due to some causes, diarrhea during breastfeeding is fatal. This occurs due to severe dehydration. In this case, the body is affected by toxins. The danger of diarrhea occurs during acute internal illness. In most cases, diarrhea is not considered a serious problem that a doctor cannot treat.
Should you breastfeed your baby?
It is possible to breastfeed a child with diarrhea in certain situations. Loose stools in a mother can occur due to an allergic reaction of the body to foods. If no additional symptoms are detected, it is recommended to remove this food from the diet. The unpleasant condition will go away on its own. However, you should continue to breastfeed your baby.
In case of intestinal disorder, the doctor prescribes medications that do not affect lactation. Breastfeeding will be safe for the baby. If diarrhea occurs during breastfeeding and an intestinal or other infection is detected, then feeding the child with milk is interrupted for some time. In this case, antibacterial drugs are prescribed, which are contraindicated for healthy children.
However, most doctors do not recommend stopping breastfeeding your baby for bacterial and viral infections. Along with milk, the baby receives antibodies that produce protective pathogens and proteins against the disease. This is recommended if you are using non-serious medications that do not affect the baby’s immunity.
If the mother does not follow the rules of personal hygiene, the child becomes infected with an intestinal infection. Such diseases in children are difficult. Therefore, you need to be careful about hygiene.
Treatment of diarrhea
The prescription of therapy during breastfeeding depends on the cause of the unpleasant symptom. The use of antibiotics occurs in serious cases. For other factors, intestinal antiseptics are prescribed. If a mother experiences diarrhea after childbirth while breastfeeding, it is necessary to maintain water balance in the body before providing medical assistance.
First aid for a nursing mother with diarrhea
To begin with, a nursing mother will need to regulate her diet at home. It is recommended to exclude unhealthy foods that contain large amounts of fat from your diet. After childbirth, a woman’s body becomes susceptible to baked, spicy and salty foods.
When consuming store-bought drinks, you will need to refrain from drinking carbonated water. It is recommended to include liquid foods, broths and cereals in your daily diet. Some products are steamed before use.
To prevent dehydration during diarrhea in a young mother, it is recommended to take up to 3 liters of water per day. Infectious diseases exclude fermented milk products from the diet. If diarrhea occurs without additional symptoms, then it is recommended to drink or yogurt to restore the microflora of the digestive organ.
Situations arose when the mother experienced severe dehydration due to diarrhea. At home you can use Regidron. The medicine helps restore the acid-base balance. When used, the product prevents the removal of electrolytes from the body. The medicine is available in powder form. A positive effect is observed after using 1 sachet, which is diluted in 1 liter of water. You will need to drink the product throughout the day.
In case of food poisoning, a nursing mother can drink activated charcoal. Tablets are taken in the ratio of 1 pill per 10 kg of total body weight. Sometimes diarrhea occurs due to psycho-emotional experiences and stress. Therefore, it is recommended to drink pharmaceutical or herbal teas after childbirth, which calm the nervous system.
Medicines
After a medical examination in the hospital, intestinal antiseptics are prescribed. Nifuroxazide is good for diarrhea in a nursing mother. Before use, in addition to the doctor's prescription, you must read the instructions. Tablets are taken in 2 pieces, spread over 3 doses per day. The use of the medicine is permitted during breastfeeding.
For intestinal disorders, it is recommended to take prebiotics or eubiotics. Medicines are aimed at restoring the microflora of the digestive organ. To eliminate and remove toxins, Smecta, activated carbon and other sorbing drugs are used.
The use of Doxycycline and Levomycitin by pregnant women and mothers after childbirth is strictly prohibited. The use of such antibiotics is required only after a diagnosis has been made by a doctor.
The use of Loperamide for loose stools after childbirth is not recommended without a doctor's prescription. The medicine helps reduce the release of watery stool. Due to improper intake during breastfeeding, it leads to increased intoxication of the body.
Preventive actions
A nursing mother needs to take preventive measures in advance against the occurrence of stomach disorders, rather than treating diarrhea and worrying about the baby. If infectious intestinal diseases have been previously noticed, doctors advise adhering to special rules. Preventive measures include:
- proper storage of products;
- eating only fresh food;
- maintaining personal hygiene;
- washing fruits and vegetables, even if you are not sure of their cleanliness;
- avoiding large crowds of people during outbreaks of infectious diseases.
Digestive disorders and diarrhea during lactation are not only allergic reactions to foods, but are also a manifestation of a serious pathology. A young mother needs to know that with a bacterial disease, the infection is transmitted to the baby through milk. Therefore, any additional sign is considered a signal to visit a doctor to diagnose your body. If preventive measures are followed, the occurrence of diarrhea will be significantly reduced.
Young mothers often face the problem of loose stools due to various factors. Therefore, in order to get rid of an unpleasant symptom, they begin to self-medicate. For any manifestation of diarrhea, you should consult a qualified doctor. This will reduce the risk of spreading the disease to the child. In some cases, it prevents undesirable consequences for the mother’s body.
The information on our website is provided by qualified doctors and is for informational purposes only. Don't self-medicate! Be sure to consult a specialist!
Gastroenterologist, professor, doctor of medical sciences. Prescribes diagnostics and carries out treatment. Expert of the group for the study of inflammatory diseases. Author of more than 300 scientific papers.
A child in a family is a joy for everyone. With the arrival of a baby, a woman has new worries, concerns, and responsibilities. With the birth of a baby, a woman is obliged to monitor her health and review her eating habits. If the mother of a newborn has chosen breastfeeding, it is worth carefully considering the diet.
It happens that after eating a spoiled product, a woman experiences (diarrhea). Often young mothers get lost in such situations. Diarrhea makes it difficult to decide whether to continue feeding the baby with breast milk or immediately stop breastfeeding for the duration of treatment? Will it harm the baby's health if you don't stop breastfeeding if you feel upset? How to treat the disorder so as not to harm the child?
There are a number of known factors that provoke the occurrence of diarrhea in nursing mothers. After pregnancy and childbirth, the female body weakens, the immune system weakens, and as a result of changes in the young mother’s regime, constant fatigue and exacerbation of chronic diseases appear. This becomes a common cause of indigestion.
Doctors identify 6 causes of diarrhea:
- Irritable bowel syndrome. In this case, there is no vomiting or hyperthermia; diarrhea bothers the woman during the daytime. In a state of sleep, the intestines relax, and the symptoms of the disease disappear. After awakening, the pathology resumes.
- Toxic infection occurs when the rules of hygiene and sanitation are violated by a nursing mother. By eating spoiled food or using bad products, a woman leads to intestinal infection. appears due to the ingestion of salmonella, shigella, and cocci. The disease manifests itself with diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, fever occurs, and the woman experiences weakness.
- Food allergies. Leads to stomach upset in a nursing mother. This occurs due to damage to the intestinal mucosa by allergens.
- Stress can cause indigestion. When a person is nervous, there is an increased release of adrenaline, which affects the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract (gastrointestinal tract).
- Medications. Taking a number of medications can lead to persistent dysbiosis, and diarrhea begins.
- Eating disorder. If the regime is violated, there is a disruption in the woman’s eating regimen - this leads to an exacerbation of chronic gastrointestinal diseases, a malfunction in the intestines occurs, causing diarrhea.
Symptoms of diarrhea
When a person has loose stools once a day, there is no need to sound the alarm; this is not a sign of diarrhea. But a frequent urge to defecate, accompanied by an unreasonable rise in temperature, the appearance of the urge to vomit, and frequent nausea are alarming signs for a nursing mother. Symptoms of diarrhea include: rumbling in the abdominal cavity, headache, constant fatigue, drowsiness. It is necessary to pay attention to these symptoms so as not to miss the onset of the disease.
The most serious symptoms of diarrhea
Every woman during lactation must know the dangerous symptoms that require immediate medical attention. These include:
- black chair;
- the appearance of green streaks and mucus in the feces;
- loss of consciousness;
- diarrhea more than 5 times a day, stomach pain;
- the duration of diarrhea does not stop for a long time;
- body temperature rises above normal.
Important! If you see these symptoms, consult a doctor IMMEDIATELY!
The danger of diarrhea for infants during lactation
If you carefully observe hygiene, you should not worry too much and be afraid that the infection will get to your child. The infection enters the baby's body through the mouth. If a woman's diarrhea is not associated with poisoning or illness, diarrhea poses more danger to the mother than to the child.
The danger of diarrhea for a nursing mother
Due to frequent bowel movements, dehydration occurs in a woman’s body; most beneficial microorganisms, vitamins, and salts are washed out of the body. The woman weakens and becomes lethargic. If treatment is refused, diarrhea leads to serious complications. You cannot take pills without a doctor's prescription.
If the child's mother has a fever, feeding the child is stopped, the baby is bottle-fed while the mother's course of therapy continues.
Treatment of diarrhea in women during lactation
Treatment of diarrhea during breastfeeding in a mother depends on the cause of the disease.
A common cause of diarrhea is stress. Stress in nursing mothers can occur as a result of a difficult birth (postpartum depression), especially if the child is the first. Stress appears after childbirth due to the mother’s nervous tension due to chronic fatigue, and the cause is a constant feeling of fear for the baby’s health. In this case, treatment should be aimed at restoring the woman’s nervous system.
Modern pharmacists offer an abundance of drugs designed for women during breastfeeding. The choice is made directly by the doctor, since self-medication can harm the health of the mother and baby.
Another difficulty is the infection getting inside the woman’s body. If this occurs, antibacterial therapy must be prescribed. The doctor selects the appropriate antibiotic, then a decision is made about the need to breastfeed the baby. Only a doctor can correctly decide whether it is worth transferring the baby to artificial feeding or continuing breastfeeding.
To eliminate the consequences of diarrhea, a woman is prescribed activated carbon, Atoxil or Sorbex. The drugs are harmless to mother and child.
Regidron is prescribed to replenish fluid in the body during lactation. This drug restores salt balance. To remove toxins from the body, Smecta powder is prescribed. The medicine combines toxins and bacteria in the patient’s body, removing them from the body along with feces. For diarrhea it is possible to take sorbents (Polysorb, Enterosgel, Filtrum).
In case of diarrhea, in order to prevent bacteria and infections from entering the baby’s body from the mother, the child’s mother must remember to clean her hands, dishes, and clothes. It is recommended to wash your breasts with laundry soap every time before feeding your baby.
Diarrhea due to poor diet
When a baby is born, a woman should reconsider her own diet and eat right. With a large number of dishes with spices and the consumption of fatty foods can cause intestinal upset in a nursing mother. If you neglect the rules, diarrhea will periodically bother the woman, which will lead to undesirable consequences.
In case of diarrhea due to heavy fatty foods, it is necessary to adjust the daily diet; a diet is prescribed throughout the lactation period.
Diet for a nursing mother with diarrhea
A woman who has an infant should exclude foods that stimulate intestinal function (milk and dairy products), and reduce the intake of fruits and vegetables rich in fiber. Limit the consumption of spicy foods and pickles. Eliminate soda and alcohol!
During diarrhea during breastfeeding, cereal porridges, boiled meat, low-fat steamed fish are allowed, and the use of dried bread and crackers helps to quickly stop diarrhea.
If diarrhea occurs, regardless of the cause, remember to stay hydrated. To avoid it, you need to drink 3 liters of water a day.
Diagnostic methods for diarrhea
To correctly determine the cause of diarrhea in a nursing mother, you must first consult a doctor, conduct a full examination and take blood, urine, and stool tests. To determine the cause of the disease, an ultrasound examination is prescribed. After undergoing examinations, the doctor decides on treatment and gives recommendations for eliminating the disease.
Traditional medicine as a help for diarrhea
Recipes of ancestors, proven over the years - they can be used as auxiliary therapy, but you should not replace pharmaceuticals with folk recipes.
To relieve intestinal inflammation during diarrhea, you should drink an oak decoction. You need to take 1 tbsp. spoon of bark, pour boiling water (300 ml), boil for 10 minutes. Strain. Drink the decoction 3 times a day, a tablespoon.
Use gives good results. It envelops the intestines, protecting against irritants. To prepare the decoction, rinse 2 tablespoons of rice, add 0.5 liters of boiling water, and cook for 40 minutes over low heat. Then remove the broth from the heat, cool, and filter. Take 1⁄4 cup during the day every 2-3 hours.
An infusion of pomegranate peels helps to destroy pathogenic microorganisms. The dried peels are crushed, poured with boiling water (1 tsp peels per 250 ml of boiling water), leave for half an hour, drink before meals.
Infection in the gastrointestinal tract will be killed with the help of bird cherry berries, which are good for diarrhea. 1 tablespoon of berries is poured into a glass of boiling water and left for 30 minutes. Take 100 g of the product three times a day.
Prevention of diarrhea during lactation
A nursing mother should know the rules for preventing diarrhea. These rules are simple but effective.
Remember:
- When purchasing products, do not forget to check the expiration date of the product;
- wash fruits and vegetables before eating;
- you should avoid stressful situations;
- Meat, fish and egg dishes must be thoroughly cooked.
By following these rules, every woman can avoid health problems and protect herself from diarrhea.
Almost always, you can put an equal sign between the diarrhea of a nursing mother and the diarrhea of a breastfed child. The equation goes something like this: mom's diarrhea*unknown = baby's diarrhea. All that remains is to solve the equation - to identify the unknowns that provoked indigestion and treat diarrhea with improvised means. One of these widely known remedies is chloramphenicol. Is it possible to use it while breastfeeding, what to do if a nursing mother has diarrhea and is it safe to give breastfeeding to a child?
What is diarrhea?
Diarrhea, officially diarrhea, is a condition in which loose stools occur more than 2-3 times a day or loose, pasty stools with a daily volume of bowel movements of more than 250 ml per day. Often, diarrhea and vomiting are the body’s protective reaction to toxins that enter the gastrointestinal tract.
Diarrhea is accompanied by an urgent urge to defecate, and sometimes by anal sphincter incontinence. Frequent accompaniments of diarrhea are flatulence (excessive formation of gases), cramping abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting.
Causes of diarrhea
To understand whether it is possible to breastfeed a child and how to treat diarrhea at home, you need to understand the reasons that caused it. You cannot self-medicate, and if sudden diarrhea occurs while breastfeeding, it is advisable to stop breastfeeding until the reasons are clarified, in the following cases:
- with severe abdominal pain;
- if you suspect severe food poisoning;
- if your body temperature rises above 38 °C;
- if, some time after the onset of diarrhea and vomiting, muscle weakness, heaviness in raising the eyelids, difficulty breathing and swallowing occur;
- loose stools with mucus, copious watery or bloody, lasting more than two days;
- if several family members have severe diarrhea at once;
- if there are signs of dehydration - sunken eyes, dry mucous membranes, dark urine or no urination at all;
- a rash appears on the body or joints become swollen and swollen.
Diarrhea, nausea and vomiting with fever and abdominal pain usually indicate food poisoning or infection. In the case of a bacterial infection, the common pathogens of which are salmonella, shigella and other pathogens, feces are very liquid, watery and foamy, acquire a green tint and a foul odor, contain mucus, blood and even pus. These bacteria live in water, food, and feces of a healthy carrier of the infection, and can also be carried by flies.
You can get rid of them by cooking food and observing personal hygiene rules. If the symptoms of an intestinal infection are accompanied by a pinkish rash, especially on the stomach, then this may be typhoid fever, and medical help should be sought immediately.
The main reasons for the development of an umbilical hernia in women after childbirth
Less commonly, signs similar to an infectious intestinal disease appear in diseases such as renal colic, cholecystitis, appendicitis, pancreatitis, etc.
Therefore, with the symptoms listed above, it is dangerous to make a diagnosis on your own due to their similarity with various causes.
Self-diagnosis is justified only in cases where you are 100% sure that today's diarrhea is a consequence of mild poisoning from yesterday's not entirely fresh food or incompatibility of products, and not an attack of appendicitis.
Other reasons that cause diarrhea in a nursing mother and for which you may not seek medical help are difficulties in the digestive system in digesting any product and incompatibility of products. Such diarrhea appears after eating an “inconvenient” product and goes away quickly. Most often, such a product is milk - an adult has a reduced ability to digest lactose - milk sugar, and when consumed by a nursing mother in a volume of more than 250-300 ml, and especially in combination with hard-to-digest raw vegetables, fruits, and fats, fermentation processes are triggered in the intestines .
The result is diarrhea, increased gas formation and painful symptoms in the abdomen. Also, the human digestive system is not able to absorb a carbohydrate such as sorbitol. It is added to foods as a sugar substitute. Vomiting due to food intolerance and incompatibility usually does not occur. In these cases, it is possible and necessary to feed the baby breast milk, but his body will most likely react in the same way as a nursing mother.
Another common reason for diarrhea while breastfeeding is irritable bowel syndrome. Such a diagnosis can only be made by a doctor, having excluded all other causes of intestinal disorder. Since no examination reveals disturbances in the structure and functioning of the organs of the digestive system, the most likely causes of this condition are stress, overwork, heredity, imbalance of the intestinal microflora, and the body’s individual reaction to a certain type of food.
With this syndrome, periodic pain appears in the abdomen, which completely disappears after defecation. Stool with irritable bowel syndrome is alternating between either diarrhea and, conversely, constipation. In this case, breastfeeding can be continued without harm to the baby, but it is also necessary to search for and eliminate the causes of the syndrome.
What is the danger of diarrhea for a nursing mother and baby?
First of all, the danger of prolonged or severe diarrhea lies in dehydration and exhaustion of the body, which cannot but affect a breastfed baby. Milk production gradually decreases due to insufficient fluid volume.
Moreover, in the case of infectious diarrhea, severe dehydration with loss of fluid through diarrhea and vomiting occurs quite quickly, literally on the second day.
When dehydrated, the functioning of all internal organs is disrupted, and the cardiovascular system suffers. Plus, there is general intoxication of the body with poisons that are released by pathogenic microbes during their life. Toxins penetrate into breast milk, and a breastfed baby experiences the same painful state of a poisoned body as his mother.
Tincture of water pepper is a very effective drug after childbirth.
General intoxication is also present when diarrhea is caused by severe poisoning from spoiled food. Symptoms of intoxication are headache, aching pain in muscles and joints, aching bones, elevated body temperature, arrhythmia. In addition, the food that a nursing mother eats during an upset stomach is quickly evacuated from the intestines without having time to be digested.
As a result, the blood does not receive the necessary nutrients, vitamins and minerals. Accordingly, in addition to the exhaustion of the nursing mother, the composition of the milk is also depleted, losing the nutritional value necessary for the child. And if you notice during diarrhea that the child is behaving somehow unusually, he is vomiting and diarrhea, then it is better to wait with breastfeeding until the intoxication is removed.
Levomycetin in the treatment of diarrhea in a nursing mother
Levomycetin in Russia is classified as one of the most important and vital medicines. Previously, chloramphenicol was widely prescribed for respiratory diseases, proudly bearing the collective name “angina,” and for diarrhea, and any other diseases that resembled bacterial infections. It is not surprising that many people keep chloramphenicol in their home medicine cabinet and, in the old fashioned way, consider it a “cure for everything.”
To some extent, this is true for bacterial infections, but currently treatment with chloramphenicol is prescribed only in extremely exceptional cases when other antibiotics are powerless. This is due to the high toxicity of chloramphenicol and serious side effects. In Europe, this drug is available only by prescription.
The most dangerous complication after its uncontrolled use “internally” is irreversible aplastic anemia - a severe disorder of the hematopoiesis process in the bone marrow. Such anemia is treated with a donor bone marrow transplant, and in the absence of it, palliative therapy is carried out, aimed at maintaining a more or less acceptable quality of life against the background of the ongoing disease.
When breastfeeding, taking chloramphenicol is strictly contraindicated, since the drug overcomes the hemato-milk barrier of the mammary glands and penetrates into breast milk. Even if you stop breastfeeding, taking chloramphenicol for diarrhea makes sense only if there is an acute intestinal infection. For example, when the cause of diarrhea is salmonellosis, typhoid fever, dysentery, and the like. And if a nursing mother has simple indigestion due to eating incompatible foods, then such unjustified intake of chloramphenicol will bring nothing but harm.
Can women take painkillers and which ones when breastfeeding?
How and how to treat diarrhea for a nursing mother?
If the presence of an intestinal infection is confirmed, then antibacterial therapy compatible with breastfeeding should be selected by a doctor. In case of severe disease and severe food poisoning, breastfeeding will have to be temporarily abandoned.
The use of drugs that stop intestinal motility in these cases, for example, loperamide, is dangerous due to the inability to remove toxins, pathogenic bacteria and their metabolic products from the body. If the diarrhea is not bacterial in nature, then the use of medications is most often not required in treatment.
Hello! Please tell me what to do if I have diarrhea. Maybe she was poisoned or ate something of poor quality. What to do now: should I stop breastfeeding or can I get treatment and feed the baby?
Anna, the baby is 2 months old.
Of course, during the entire period of breastfeeding, a nursing mother may experience diarrhea more than once, but when there is a baby in her arms, this turns into a real problem.
A lot of doubts, worries, and worries related to the child’s well-being can lead to wrong decisions and sometimes to the cessation of breastfeeding. This cannot be allowed to happen.
Let's first understand the main causes of diarrhea.
Organic causes of diarrhea in nursing women
- Intestinal infections;
If hygiene rules are not observed sufficiently, nursing mothers, whose bodies are weakened after childbirth, can easily “catch” an infection. Remember, did you wash the apples that you brought from the market yesterday morning?
Fever, vomiting and diarrhea in a nursing mother are the main symptoms of poisoning of the body with toxic substances produced by pathogenic bacteria in the process of life. This condition requires urgent detoxification measures. To avoid infecting your baby, wash your hands with soap and water as often as possible.
- Allergic reaction;
In this case, diarrhea can be combined with various rashes on the skin. To treat this type of disorder, you just need to exclude suspicious foods from your diet.
- Poisoning.
Are you worried about diarrhea and high fever? This means the cause is food poisoning. Having eaten a stale dish, a mother can populate her body with a huge number of pathogenic bacteria that cause dysbacteriosis and, as a result, diarrhea.
Diarrhea in a nursing mother: is it possible to breastfeed?
Diarrhea in a nursing mother does not harm her baby at all. The infection is transmitted through contaminated food and hands, but not through milk, and food poisoning itself affects only the mother’s intestines, but does not in any way affect the organs responsible for milk production.
Know! In addition, during intestinal infections, immune cells produced by your body enter the baby’s body with milk. Therefore, it is possible and necessary to continue to feed your baby with breast milk.
The only reason to stop breastfeeding is taking medications that are incompatible with breastfeeding. But, keeping in mind that we do not live in the Stone Age, you can always choose a treatment regimen that is compatible with breastfeeding.
To treat diarrhea, you can use folk remedies that have a good effect on the mother’s body and are safe for the child’s body.
During diarrhea, you need to take care of yourself.
Diarrhea is dangerous because it can lead to dehydration. The body, along with water, loses a huge amount of vitamins and microelements necessary for the normal functioning of the body.
Do you feel weak, apathetic, irritable and at the same time notice a decrease in body volume? Most likely, fluid loss has already reached 10%. This means that the body urgently needs to provide maximum hydration!
Note! If your stool turns black, call an ambulance immediately, as this is the main symptom of intestinal bleeding.
What can a nursing mother do at home for diarrhea?
- Eliminate all harmful foods from your diet (such as fatty, baked, spicy and highly salted foods); Learn about what you can eat while breastfeeding from the course Safe Eating for a Breastfeeding Mother >>>
- Don't drink carbonated water;
- Eat broths and steamed dishes, fish (find out if a nursing mother can fish?>>>), crackers, as well as any types of cereals. Despite the fact that you usually don’t want to eat during this period, you still need to do it. At least a little bit;
- Drink more fluids. If an ordinary person needs to drink about 1.5-2 liters of water, then a nursing mother needs about 3 liters during diarrhea;
- To quickly restore intestinal microflora, drink kefir and yogurt. For the same purpose, you can use medications with live lactic acid bacteria (Linex, Bifiform);
- In case of severe dehydration, the use of Regidron is permitted. It is able to restore the acid-base balance in the body in the shortest possible time and prevent the removal of electrolytes. This drug is available in powder form. Dilute a sachet of the product into 1 liter. warm water and drink it little by little throughout the day;
- To remove toxins, you can drink activated carbon at the rate of 1 tablet. per 10 kg of weight. (read the current article about whether activated carbon can be used for a nursing mother?>>>)
There are situations when diarrhea during breastfeeding is caused by stress. In this case, medications and pharmaceutical teas based on medicinal plants that have a sedative effect are suitable for you.
Diarrhea in a nursing mother: what to do to get rid of it quickly?
- A decoction of oak bark is a safe remedy for the body of a nursing mother and her baby, which has a powerful anti-inflammatory effect. Add 1 tbsp to 300 ml of boiling water. l. dry crushed oak bark and leave the product to simmer for 10 minutes. Cool the prepared broth and drink 1 tbsp. l. 3 times a day;
- Pomegranate peels are a proven remedy for diarrhea by many nursing mothers. Antibacterial substances contained in the peel kill pathogenic microflora without causing harm to the body (read about whether a nursing mother can use pomegranate?>>>);
As you can see, the peels are no less useful than pomegranate juice. Grind them and pour boiling water over them, then let them brew (the water should gradually color). Yes, the taste of the product is not the same as that of delicious juice, but for the sake of the result it is worth patience. Drink the infusion in one gulp. After just 10 minutes, your well-being will improve significantly.
- Bird cherry berries are one of the best remedies for the treatment of infectious intestinal diseases, and if taken, you can continue breastfeeding. Pour 1 tbsp. l. berries with a glass of boiling water and let the product brew for half an hour. To quickly eliminate diarrhea, take the prepared medicine 2-3 times a day, half a glass;
- Rice water. The substances contained in this decoction stop diarrhea, envelop the walls of the stomach and protect them from the destructive effects of excess acid contained in gastric juice. (Important article: Can a nursing mother have rice?>>>)
To prepare the product you will need polished, washed rice. Add 2 tsp. rice in 0.5 liters of boiling water and boil the mixture over low heat for 40 minutes. After this, cool the broth and strain through cheesecloth. Drink this remedy ¼ glass every 2-3 hours. Thus, you will eliminate the inflammatory process in the shortest possible time and improve the functioning of the digestive organs.
And the most important thing in treatment (this applies not only to diarrhea, but also to any disease) is not to be too demanding of yourself. Put household chores aside for later and focus on recovering and caring for your child.
Take care of yourself, don't get sick!
After the birth of a baby, a nursing mother has a lot of worries. She needs to watch her diet and take care of the baby. A woman forgets to take care of her health, she only thinks about the little baby. One of the most common problems occurs in nursing mothers. How to treat this ailment and is it possible to breastfeed a child with diarrhea?
Causes of diarrhea in a nursing mother
Often the cause of this disease is an intestinal infection, which occurs as a result of pathogenic bacteria entering the body. After childbirth, a woman should take care of hand hygiene, wash fruits and vegetables so that pathogenic bacteria do not enter the body. If a woman does get sick, the infection process is as follows: the intestinal microflora is disrupted, toxins are released, and diarrhea occurs. For treatment, the doctor will prescribe medications, and the mother can continue to breastfeed the baby. In this case, there is no danger to the child’s health.
Food poisoning is a health problem that occurs due to improper and poor-quality nutrition. A woman during pregnancy and after childbirth must clearly understand that she needs to eat only fresh food. Food poisoning causes nausea, vomiting, and fever. Such symptoms require urgent treatment. The doctor will make prescriptions, adjusting them for the nursing mother, which will not require interruption of breastfeeding (BC).
Another disease that leads to intestinal upset is irritable bowel syndrome. The differences between this disease and poisoning are in the following aspects:
- No vomiting
- The temperature does not rise, and there is no blood in the stool
- Diarrhea does not wake a woman at night. She is sleeping, her muscles are relaxed and her diarrhea is going away. After waking up, all symptoms return again.
If diarrhea during breastfeeding occurs when irritable bowel syndrome appears, then this ailment does not require discontinuation of guards. The doctor will prescribe relaxants and sedatives, thanks to which the symptoms will disappear within a week.
For many people, food allergies cause intestinal upset. If such an illness occurs after childbirth, then the nursing mother should avoid allergenic foods that cause such a reaction in the body.
The danger of diarrhea for a baby during lactation
Usually, diarrhea in the mother is not dangerous for the baby. This condition is harmful to the mother’s health, because her body becomes dehydrated, losing all the necessary microelements and nutrients.
If the condition worsens sharply, the temperature rises, then you should not breastfeed. A woman should consult a specialist to make a correct diagnosis and select adequate treatment.
If diarrhea occurs during breastfeeding, especially immediately after childbirth, when the baby is still very small, then the mother should continue breastfeeding. But if this is not possible, due to a serious infection and there is a risk of infecting the baby, then it is necessary to switch to formula, refusing to breastfeed for the duration of the treatment procedures.
Methods for eliminating diarrhea while breastfeeding
This discomfort can occur after childbirth due to stress. The woman becomes depressed. To avoid an unpleasant condition, you should follow these recommendations:
- Pay attention to separate and proper nutrition. It is worth giving up simple carbohydrates. You can eat fruits, but one hour after eating
- Eliminate fried, spicy and smoked foods from your diet
- Drink two liters of water a day. This will relieve constipation and help restore water balance in the body.
- Maintain personal hygiene, wash your hands often with soap
- There is no need to be nervous over trifles, you should restrain yourself
- If you feel unwell, consult a doctor promptly.
Only the doctor decides whether a woman should stop breastfeeding during treatment or not. You can breastfeed while taking many medications. When diarrhea occurs, it is important to exclude heavy foods and give preference to lactic acid products - kefir, bifidoyogurt.
Treatment of diarrhea with traditional methods
Diarrhea during breastfeeding can be treated using the recommendations of traditional medicine: a decoction of oak bark, dried pomegranate peels, a decoction of bird cherry berries. These decoctions strengthen the stool and help the body get rid of pathogenic bacteria.
Recipe for making oak bark decoction
Brew one tablespoon of dry bark with 200 ml of boiling water and leave in boiling water for 15 minutes. Cool, strain, take 100 ml morning and evening.
Recipe for making a decoction of pomegranate peels
Pour a dry crust measuring three by three centimeters into glasses of boiling water and put on fire. Boil for 10 minutes, cool, bring the volume of the resulting decoction using boiled water to 200 ml. Take 1/3 cup 2-3 times a day.
A decoction of bird cherry berries perfectly restores the intestinal microflora and fights pathogenic bacteria. It contains many biologically active substances that allow not only to fix the stool, but also to restore the body’s strength after such an illness.
Recipe for making bird cherry decoction
Pour two tablespoons of bird cherry berries into a glass of boiling water and place in a water bath. After 20 minutes, remove, cool and strain. Take two tablespoons of decoction 3-4 times a day.
Treatment of diarrhea with medications
A nursing mother can take Polysorb, Filtrum or Enterosgel for diarrhea after poisoning or during an intestinal infection. These sorbents help remove toxins from the body that cause diarrhea in a nursing mother. They do not irritate the intestinal mucosa and have almost no side effects. Therefore, such drugs can be taken not only after childbirth, but also during pregnancy.
Modern sorbents are even more effective than activated carbon, which causes constipation. For example, Polysorb is a selective sorbent that removes toxic substances without affecting important microelements and vitamins. After childbirth, if intoxication of the body occurs due to poor nutrition or poisoning, this medicine is considered the most effective for treating diarrhea.
A nursing mother must get rid of this disease in a timely manner in order to quickly restore her health and continue feeding. In the future, it is necessary to follow the rules of hygiene, monitor the cleanliness of your hands and the quality of the food you eat.