Most mothers have been bothered by their baby’s bowel problems. It may be a little strange that mothers can be so worried about the frequency, color, consistency and timing of their baby’s bowel movements. But these concerns are normal for a mother. The most common concern for mothers is persistent diarrhea and flatulence. A newborn baby who is exclusively breastfed should have frequent bowel movements. The color is usually dark yellow and the consistency is somewhat like cottage cheese. The color and stool texture may vary slightly from day to day, and some variation may occur from infant to infant. The older the infant, the more frequent the bowel movements will tend to decrease, which is normal. Some older breastfed infants have bowel movements only once a week. Antibiotics can cause bloating or loose stools in infants, whether the mother or the infant is taking them. Antibiotic treatment is also a trigger for another bloating – a yeast (fungal) infection. Drinking some yogurt or taking lactobacillus while either you or your baby is on antibiotics may help prevent fungal infections. Stools will definitely change when slightly older babies start eating solid foods. Toddlers will go through a period of eating only a few foods. Well-meaning relatives may feed children foods they haven’t eaten or give them an excessive amount of candy. Any of these ways can affect your child’s digestive function. A breastfed infant or toddler with diarrhea due to illness will often have 12 to 16 bowel movements per day with watery, unformed, thin stools or with a pungent odor. It is accompanied by fever or other symptoms of illness. If your baby has no such symptoms, there is no need to worry too much. Research supports the claim that infants can continue to breastfeed when they have diarrhea. Much of the research was conducted in countries with poor sanitation, where diarrhea is a serious and even life-threatening problem for infants and small children. If weaning is done for a few days during diarrhea, the infant can become malnourished or weaned too early, which can lead to more severe diarrhea. It is easy to blame breastfeeding as the cause of diarrhea, but this statement is usually incorrect. Persistent diarrhea and weight loss may be symptoms of other, more serious conditions. Before considering weaning, other illnesses should be ruled out first. What should I do if I wean my child from breast milk and the diarrhea persists? In this case, the child is not only deprived of the opportunity to absorb the best nutrients, but the things that make him most comfortable are also missing – precious time is wasted, during which the diarrhea may also tend to get worse. Persistent diarrhea is a challenge and a concern, but parents can be sure that weaning is not the answer.