Diarrhea During Breastfeeding: Safe Treatments & Moms Should Know

Diarrhea in a mother during breastfeeding is not just an annoying nuisance. Not only useful substances are transferred to the child through mother’s milk. What is the cause of diarrhea, how to treat it and can you continue breastfeeding your baby? Let’s know, what to do if you have Diarrhea during breastfeeding

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Causes of Diarrhea (Diarrhea during breastfeeding)

Diarrhea is frequent loose stools.

Possible causes of diarrhea:

Poisoning. You can get poisoned not only by poor-quality, spoiled food, medicines, but also by simply overeating something too spicy or fatty. This leads to nausea, vomiting, and sometimes a rise in temperature;
Intestinal infection. Pathogenic bacteria that enter the intestines from unwashed hands or fruits and berries multiply and begin to release toxins. Of all the causes of diarrhea, failure to observe hygiene rules is the most dangerous for a baby;
Irritable bowel syndrome is a consequence of emotional stress, shocks, stress. Young mothers have all of this in abundance. In order not to confuse such a disorder with poisoning or infection, it is important to remember: with irritable bowel syndrome there is no nausea, vomiting, fever, blood in the stool. Diarrhea occurs only during the day, at night the intestines calm down, but in the morning everything starts again;
Allergy. If you know what you are reacting to, remove that product from your diet.

All of the above reasons sometimes occur by accident; no one is immune from this.

But diarrhea in a nursing mother can turn into a serious problem: the body after childbirth is still weakened, more susceptible to infections and stress, and the nursing mother is limited in the choice of medications. The result is dehydration, exhaustion, lactation disorders and other unpleasant consequences.

Observe the rules of hygiene and control what you eat: whether the products are expired, whether there are any allergens, etc. Be careful, be sure to consult a doctor if:

Diarrhea lasts for three days or more, you feel dizzy, break out in a cold sweat, and feel weak – this is chronic diarrhea, which threatens dehydration, which is life-threatening;
Bloody diarrhea is a sign of internal bleeding.

Can I breastfeed with diarrhea?

With careful hygiene, diarrhea in the mother does not harm the child. Moreover, in case of intestinal infections, the mother’s immune cells are transferred to the baby along with milk. The exception is severe poisoning with drugs or heavy toxins. In other cases, it is not the mother’s diarrhea that is dangerous for the baby, but the medications prescribed to treat diarrhea. If your doctor has prescribed you medications that prevent you from breastfeeding, be sure to express milk to maintain lactation.

Treatment of Diarrhea during breastfeeding

A doctor should determine the cause of diarrhea and draw up a treatment plan. How to treat diarrhea during breastfeeding in a mother depends on the cause of the disorder.

Medicines

With irritable bowel syndrome, approved sedatives will help, and safe No-shpa or Drotaverine will help with abdominal pain. If the disorder is caused by an allergy, it is important to find the allergen product and eliminate it from the diet. Drinking plenty of fluids and sorbents (Enterosgel, activated carbon, Polysorb, Sorbex, etc.) will help relieve the symptoms.

Sorbents are also prescribed for poisoning or intestinal infections. In cases where antibiotics are needed, a doctor’s consultation is necessary, since many of them (“Tetracycline”, “Doxycycline”, “Levomycetin”, etc.) are strictly contraindicated for nursing mothers. Even if the instructions for the drug allow its use during breastfeeding, only a doctor will prescribe a treatment regimen, duration of the course and monitor the treatment results.

The main danger of diarrhea is dehydration. If a healthy person needs 1.5 liters of liquid per day, then with diarrhea, especially a nursing mother, more than 2 liters are needed. The drug “Regidron” will help retain water in the body, normalize the acid-base balance. It is sold in pharmacies in the form of powder for making a solution.

Diet

When you have diarrhea, it is important not to make the situation worse, so you need a strict diet. You can’t not eat at all – you need strength to recover and so that lactation does not stop.

Even if you have no appetite, eat small portions of broths, vegetable or light chicken, porridge. Meat, fish, vegetables – steamed, boiled or baked. With tea – pretzels or lean rusks. No spicy, fried foods, fresh vegetables and fruits. Wait with fermented milk products until complete recovery.

Folk remedies

There are several time-tested folk methods to stop diarrhea. What can a nursing mother take for diarrhea, in addition to medications:

Rice broth. Perfectly envelops and soothes irritated intestines. Boil two teaspoons of rice for 30-40 minutes in 0.5 liters of water, cool and strain. Take 4 tablespoons every 2-3 hours;
Bird cherry. Berries are poured with boiling water, infused, and drunk half a glass three times a day;
pomegranate. Pour a glass of boiling water over the peels, let it brew and drink it immediately;
oak bark. Pour one and a half glasses of hot water over a teaspoon of oak bark (sold in pharmacies) and boil for ten minutes. Drink the decoction three times a day, one tablespoon at a time.

Let’s sum it up

Diarrhea is always an unexpected problem. If it happens, try to remember what you could have been poisoned by, where you could have picked up an infection, what you could have been allergic to. Consult your doctor, especially when the situation is serious and medication is needed. If you can continue breastfeeding, do so. If not, express milk. Take care of yourself and your baby!