The color of an infant's stool can sometimes indicate a baby's health. A white stool is not normal and may be a cause for concern.

You might have observed pale white stool, or there might be white specs in the stool and even white mucus in the stool. Discovering white stools in your baby’s diaper is alarming and unexpected. A child with a white stool needs to be examined by a pediatrician.

Breastfed infants typically pass one to ten seedy, yellowish-colored stools every one to eight days.

What Can White Stools Indicate?

• Oral medications may sometimes cause white stools. Antibiotics for treating ear infections and other illnesses in your baby may be other culprits. Antacids used to treat reflux in your baby may also lead to white spots in the feces.

Red in a baby's stool may be due to constipation, as an overly firm bowel movement can make tiny fissures in your baby’s rectum, leading to red streaks in the stool. Breastfeed your baby often so that your baby does not become constipated. Breast milk acts as a natural laxative.

• When there is a lack of iron, it may cause white stool anemia.
• White poop in babies sometimes indicates a lack of bile. A cyst, tumor, or inflammation in the bile ducts may inhibit bile flow, hence the chalky white stool. Some congenital disorders of the bile duct also may be the cause of white in the stool. A narrowing or stricture of the duct may be present, limiting the fluid from reaching the small intestines.
• Other medical reasons that may cause white stool are the scarring of bile ducts, liver infections, and autoimmune destruction of the bile ducts and gallstones.

Other Symptoms That May Accompany White Poop

Jaundice, dark urine, and itching skin are additional symptoms that may be related to white stools in babies. Remember that your own dietary intake while breastfeeding is not the cause of a white-colored stool.

Should You Breastfeed?

Breast milk is the best food for a baby, and breast milk will help heal whatever the problem may be unless the issue is something like true lactose intolerance or Galactosemia, but this is very rare. There are very few instances that require a mother to stop breastfeeding.

Breast milk, in normal circumstances, will provide immune and gut protection.

Learn more about the benefit of breastfeeding here.

Conclusion

While these are potential answers to why this occurs, there are other possibilities, ranging from the very serious to the very minor.

Consult your pediatrician and, if possible, take a diaper sample of stool with you for your doctor to see. Do not ignore white poop. Get the opinion of your doctor immediately.