The presence of blood in the baby's stool can have several causes depending on the age of the baby. One of the most frequent occurs because of the difficulty to evacuate (constipation) that can occur in babies who are still breastfeeding, but usually occurs when new foods are introduced into their diet, in addition to breast milk. Resected stools and the effort to evacuate can cause a small lesion (fissure) in the anal region, causing bleeding in a small amount.
Another less frequent occurrence of blood in the stool results from allergic colitis, in which the child has cramps due to allergy to some of the food ingested. Blood in the stool of newborns is not normal and can mean a more serious problem, as well as the presence of blood in the stool accompanied by abdominal pain and bloating (distension) in babies.
In any situation of blood presence in the baby's stool, regardless of age, the pediatrician should be consulted in order to diagnose the problem and its treatment.
