I have a question about the diagnostic criteria for CF stools. All literature refers to the "frequent, bulky and oily stooling". Let me give a little history. I have a 14 month old dd. She is very healthy, developmentally on track etc. However, she is very petite. Started out in the 10% for weight at birth (actually she was IUGR during pregnancy so they induced two weeks early), gained to the 25% but has since dropped to the 8th percentile. She eats pretty well, drinks all her milk and takes 2-3 solid meals/day. So, what i don't know is why she won't gain significant weight. My ped thinks it is just our genetic make-up, I am small and my husband is too relatively speaking. But, about her stools. She averages 2 per day, sometimes three. Never "runny", always formed and "normal" looking. The odd thing is they almost always occur within 20 minutes of her eating. I don't remember that with my son. What constitutes "bulky" and "frequent"? How do I know if they are "oily"?....I mean I don't touch it and probably wouldn't know what to feel for anyway! Sorry for the graphic questions...! Any ideas would be appreciated. Oh, she has no chest issues whatsoever.
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Basic question about stools
- Thread starter anonymous
- Start date
I have a question about the diagnostic criteria for CF stools. All literature refers to the "frequent, bulky and oily stooling". Let me give a little history. I have a 14 month old dd. She is very healthy, developmentally on track etc. However, she is very petite. Started out in the 10% for weight at birth (actually she was IUGR during pregnancy so they induced two weeks early), gained to the 25% but has since dropped to the 8th percentile. She eats pretty well, drinks all her milk and takes 2-3 solid meals/day. So, what i don't know is why she won't gain significant weight. My ped thinks it is just our genetic make-up, I am small and my husband is too relatively speaking. But, about her stools. She averages 2 per day, sometimes three. Never "runny", always formed and "normal" looking. The odd thing is they almost always occur within 20 minutes of her eating. I don't remember that with my son. What constitutes "bulky" and "frequent"? How do I know if they are "oily"?....I mean I don't touch it and probably wouldn't know what to feel for anyway! Sorry for the graphic questions...! Any ideas would be appreciated. Oh, she has no chest issues whatsoever.
I have a question about the diagnostic criteria for CF stools. All literature refers to the "frequent, bulky and oily stooling". Let me give a little history. I have a 14 month old dd. She is very healthy, developmentally on track etc. However, she is very petite. Started out in the 10% for weight at birth (actually she was IUGR during pregnancy so they induced two weeks early), gained to the 25% but has since dropped to the 8th percentile. She eats pretty well, drinks all her milk and takes 2-3 solid meals/day. So, what i don't know is why she won't gain significant weight. My ped thinks it is just our genetic make-up, I am small and my husband is too relatively speaking. But, about her stools. She averages 2 per day, sometimes three. Never "runny", always formed and "normal" looking. The odd thing is they almost always occur within 20 minutes of her eating. I don't remember that with my son. What constitutes "bulky" and "frequent"? How do I know if they are "oily"?....I mean I don't touch it and probably wouldn't know what to feel for anyway! Sorry for the graphic questions...! Any ideas would be appreciated. Oh, she has no chest issues whatsoever.
I'll try to be brief but this is a hot topic with me because I
pleaded with my doc for months about my daughter's stools and why
they were like they were.<br>
<br>
Graphic descriptions so be warned: soft, not really formed, and
orange-colored grease stains gravitating towards the edges of
the diaper. Imagine if you had drained a pot of chili onto a
white paper towel, what the paper towel would like like. Once
she started potty training for BM's in the potty, there was actual
grease spots floating in the toilet water. Again like you
were looking at a pot of greasy chili, imagine the grease blobs
floating on top. This was hard to distinguish at first
because again her stools weren't really formed.<br>
Also she was HUNGRY all the time and did BM frequently maybe 4 + a
day, and often right after eating. And she started in the 90+
percentile and ended up in the 25 percentile. She also always
had a distended belly and skinny arms and legs, like a third world
malnourished kid. Which she was, poor kid.<br>
She is three years old now and just was diagnosed a month ago.
Can you tell I'm ticked off (to put it mildly) at my doc.<br>
<br>
Trust your instincts and make your doc follow through.<br>
<br>
Dana, mom to KT (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)<br>
<br>
Hope this helps.<br>
pleaded with my doc for months about my daughter's stools and why
they were like they were.<br>
<br>
Graphic descriptions so be warned: soft, not really formed, and
orange-colored grease stains gravitating towards the edges of
the diaper. Imagine if you had drained a pot of chili onto a
white paper towel, what the paper towel would like like. Once
she started potty training for BM's in the potty, there was actual
grease spots floating in the toilet water. Again like you
were looking at a pot of greasy chili, imagine the grease blobs
floating on top. This was hard to distinguish at first
because again her stools weren't really formed.<br>
Also she was HUNGRY all the time and did BM frequently maybe 4 + a
day, and often right after eating. And she started in the 90+
percentile and ended up in the 25 percentile. She also always
had a distended belly and skinny arms and legs, like a third world
malnourished kid. Which she was, poor kid.<br>
She is three years old now and just was diagnosed a month ago.
Can you tell I'm ticked off (to put it mildly) at my doc.<br>
<br>
Trust your instincts and make your doc follow through.<br>
<br>
Dana, mom to KT (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)<br>
<br>
Hope this helps.<br>
I'll try to be brief but this is a hot topic with me because I
pleaded with my doc for months about my daughter's stools and why
they were like they were.<br>
<br>
Graphic descriptions so be warned: soft, not really formed, and
orange-colored grease stains gravitating towards the edges of
the diaper. Imagine if you had drained a pot of chili onto a
white paper towel, what the paper towel would like like. Once
she started potty training for BM's in the potty, there was actual
grease spots floating in the toilet water. Again like you
were looking at a pot of greasy chili, imagine the grease blobs
floating on top. This was hard to distinguish at first
because again her stools weren't really formed.<br>
Also she was HUNGRY all the time and did BM frequently maybe 4 + a
day, and often right after eating. And she started in the 90+
percentile and ended up in the 25 percentile. She also always
had a distended belly and skinny arms and legs, like a third world
malnourished kid. Which she was, poor kid.<br>
She is three years old now and just was diagnosed a month ago.
Can you tell I'm ticked off (to put it mildly) at my doc.<br>
<br>
Trust your instincts and make your doc follow through.<br>
<br>
Dana, mom to KT (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)<br>
<br>
Hope this helps.<br>
pleaded with my doc for months about my daughter's stools and why
they were like they were.<br>
<br>
Graphic descriptions so be warned: soft, not really formed, and
orange-colored grease stains gravitating towards the edges of
the diaper. Imagine if you had drained a pot of chili onto a
white paper towel, what the paper towel would like like. Once
she started potty training for BM's in the potty, there was actual
grease spots floating in the toilet water. Again like you
were looking at a pot of greasy chili, imagine the grease blobs
floating on top. This was hard to distinguish at first
because again her stools weren't really formed.<br>
Also she was HUNGRY all the time and did BM frequently maybe 4 + a
day, and often right after eating. And she started in the 90+
percentile and ended up in the 25 percentile. She also always
had a distended belly and skinny arms and legs, like a third world
malnourished kid. Which she was, poor kid.<br>
She is three years old now and just was diagnosed a month ago.
Can you tell I'm ticked off (to put it mildly) at my doc.<br>
<br>
Trust your instincts and make your doc follow through.<br>
<br>
Dana, mom to KT (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)<br>
<br>
Hope this helps.<br>
I'll try to be brief but this is a hot topic with me because I
pleaded with my doc for months about my daughter's stools and why
they were like they were.<br>
<br>
Graphic descriptions so be warned: soft, not really formed, and
orange-colored grease stains gravitating towards the edges of
the diaper. Imagine if you had drained a pot of chili onto a
white paper towel, what the paper towel would like like. Once
she started potty training for BM's in the potty, there was actual
grease spots floating in the toilet water. Again like you
were looking at a pot of greasy chili, imagine the grease blobs
floating on top. This was hard to distinguish at first
because again her stools weren't really formed.<br>
Also she was HUNGRY all the time and did BM frequently maybe 4 + a
day, and often right after eating. And she started in the 90+
percentile and ended up in the 25 percentile. She also always
had a distended belly and skinny arms and legs, like a third world
malnourished kid. Which she was, poor kid.<br>
She is three years old now and just was diagnosed a month ago.
Can you tell I'm ticked off (to put it mildly) at my doc.<br>
<br>
Trust your instincts and make your doc follow through.<br>
<br>
Dana, mom to KT (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)<br>
<br>
Hope this helps.<br>
pleaded with my doc for months about my daughter's stools and why
they were like they were.<br>
<br>
Graphic descriptions so be warned: soft, not really formed, and
orange-colored grease stains gravitating towards the edges of
the diaper. Imagine if you had drained a pot of chili onto a
white paper towel, what the paper towel would like like. Once
she started potty training for BM's in the potty, there was actual
grease spots floating in the toilet water. Again like you
were looking at a pot of greasy chili, imagine the grease blobs
floating on top. This was hard to distinguish at first
because again her stools weren't really formed.<br>
Also she was HUNGRY all the time and did BM frequently maybe 4 + a
day, and often right after eating. And she started in the 90+
percentile and ended up in the 25 percentile. She also always
had a distended belly and skinny arms and legs, like a third world
malnourished kid. Which she was, poor kid.<br>
She is three years old now and just was diagnosed a month ago.
Can you tell I'm ticked off (to put it mildly) at my doc.<br>
<br>
Trust your instincts and make your doc follow through.<br>
<br>
Dana, mom to KT (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)<br>
<br>
Hope this helps.<br>
If the BM is going through so quickly, it's because the nutrient value of the food is not being absorbed. The food doesn't have a chance to be broken down. Most CFers can eat like horses and never gain a pound (and we HATE when people say "I wish I could eat like you and stay so skinny!)
An oily stool is one that has yellowish or sometimes orangish stain in a diaper, or what that floats in the toilet. Stools can be formed but still loose. A bulky stool is one that has some solidness to it and may look formed, but is actually very mushy. Color is also important. It is pale like clay? Is it dark brown? Does it smell like marigolds or sulfur?
If she's not gaining weight and is losing nutrients and valuable calories through malabsorption, she needs to be fed more often. Is she pancreatic insuffiient? Is her tummy distended?
You say that she averages 2 per day, but you also say it occurs 20 minutes after eating, so I'm confused as to how many BMs she has in a day.
There's a lot more to look at than just the stools. It's going to take awhile to learn what will and will not work for her nutrition.
Best of luck.
An oily stool is one that has yellowish or sometimes orangish stain in a diaper, or what that floats in the toilet. Stools can be formed but still loose. A bulky stool is one that has some solidness to it and may look formed, but is actually very mushy. Color is also important. It is pale like clay? Is it dark brown? Does it smell like marigolds or sulfur?
If she's not gaining weight and is losing nutrients and valuable calories through malabsorption, she needs to be fed more often. Is she pancreatic insuffiient? Is her tummy distended?
You say that she averages 2 per day, but you also say it occurs 20 minutes after eating, so I'm confused as to how many BMs she has in a day.
There's a lot more to look at than just the stools. It's going to take awhile to learn what will and will not work for her nutrition.
Best of luck.
If the BM is going through so quickly, it's because the nutrient value of the food is not being absorbed. The food doesn't have a chance to be broken down. Most CFers can eat like horses and never gain a pound (and we HATE when people say "I wish I could eat like you and stay so skinny!)
An oily stool is one that has yellowish or sometimes orangish stain in a diaper, or what that floats in the toilet. Stools can be formed but still loose. A bulky stool is one that has some solidness to it and may look formed, but is actually very mushy. Color is also important. It is pale like clay? Is it dark brown? Does it smell like marigolds or sulfur?
If she's not gaining weight and is losing nutrients and valuable calories through malabsorption, she needs to be fed more often. Is she pancreatic insuffiient? Is her tummy distended?
You say that she averages 2 per day, but you also say it occurs 20 minutes after eating, so I'm confused as to how many BMs she has in a day.
There's a lot more to look at than just the stools. It's going to take awhile to learn what will and will not work for her nutrition.
Best of luck.
An oily stool is one that has yellowish or sometimes orangish stain in a diaper, or what that floats in the toilet. Stools can be formed but still loose. A bulky stool is one that has some solidness to it and may look formed, but is actually very mushy. Color is also important. It is pale like clay? Is it dark brown? Does it smell like marigolds or sulfur?
If she's not gaining weight and is losing nutrients and valuable calories through malabsorption, she needs to be fed more often. Is she pancreatic insuffiient? Is her tummy distended?
You say that she averages 2 per day, but you also say it occurs 20 minutes after eating, so I'm confused as to how many BMs she has in a day.
There's a lot more to look at than just the stools. It's going to take awhile to learn what will and will not work for her nutrition.
Best of luck.
If the BM is going through so quickly, it's because the nutrient value of the food is not being absorbed. The food doesn't have a chance to be broken down. Most CFers can eat like horses and never gain a pound (and we HATE when people say "I wish I could eat like you and stay so skinny!)
An oily stool is one that has yellowish or sometimes orangish stain in a diaper, or what that floats in the toilet. Stools can be formed but still loose. A bulky stool is one that has some solidness to it and may look formed, but is actually very mushy. Color is also important. It is pale like clay? Is it dark brown? Does it smell like marigolds or sulfur?
If she's not gaining weight and is losing nutrients and valuable calories through malabsorption, she needs to be fed more often. Is she pancreatic insuffiient? Is her tummy distended?
You say that she averages 2 per day, but you also say it occurs 20 minutes after eating, so I'm confused as to how many BMs she has in a day.
There's a lot more to look at than just the stools. It's going to take awhile to learn what will and will not work for her nutrition.
Best of luck.
An oily stool is one that has yellowish or sometimes orangish stain in a diaper, or what that floats in the toilet. Stools can be formed but still loose. A bulky stool is one that has some solidness to it and may look formed, but is actually very mushy. Color is also important. It is pale like clay? Is it dark brown? Does it smell like marigolds or sulfur?
If she's not gaining weight and is losing nutrients and valuable calories through malabsorption, she needs to be fed more often. Is she pancreatic insuffiient? Is her tummy distended?
You say that she averages 2 per day, but you also say it occurs 20 minutes after eating, so I'm confused as to how many BMs she has in a day.
There's a lot more to look at than just the stools. It's going to take awhile to learn what will and will not work for her nutrition.
Best of luck.
babyjaden2004
New member
Jadens was very gassy too. Hers were like the other said orange and her stool kinda floated. She was bathing once and had pooped in the tub and it was like taking cooking oil and pouring it in water. She had had the blood test done and birth and it was postive and we took her for sweats tests but our ped said she could have CF cause she was growing and took me to another doc and finally got a sweat test at 8 months and got the postive that it was CF. The stools were a big sign for us cause she had no other issues.
babyjaden2004
New member
Jadens was very gassy too. Hers were like the other said orange and her stool kinda floated. She was bathing once and had pooped in the tub and it was like taking cooking oil and pouring it in water. She had had the blood test done and birth and it was postive and we took her for sweats tests but our ped said she could have CF cause she was growing and took me to another doc and finally got a sweat test at 8 months and got the postive that it was CF. The stools were a big sign for us cause she had no other issues.
babyjaden2004
New member
Jadens was very gassy too. Hers were like the other said orange and her stool kinda floated. She was bathing once and had pooped in the tub and it was like taking cooking oil and pouring it in water. She had had the blood test done and birth and it was postive and we took her for sweats tests but our ped said she could have CF cause she was growing and took me to another doc and finally got a sweat test at 8 months and got the postive that it was CF. The stools were a big sign for us cause she had no other issues.
Thanks to those of you who have replied. I am sorry I wasn't more clear on a couple of issues. First she doesn't stool after EVERY meal, but when she does have a bowel movement, it is almost always 20-30 minutes after she has eaten. I don't know if she is pancreatic insufficient because she has never been tested for anything. She doesn't have a ravenous appetiete (sp?), actually I usually have to fight wiht her to eat full meals as it is. As for the color of her stools (sorry for the info!!), they seem like "normal" poop to me. Not dark brown, but not the pale color of clay (which would be grey or light tan right?). THey usually are a dark yellow. I haven't seen any of the oil spots that you described (by the way, excellent description of the chili!). It is soft though. Did any of you put diaper stools in the toilet to see if they floated? To let you in on why I am even worried about CF, is because we had to have testing done on my son (5 yr old with asthma and allergies and sinus infections, no tummy problems). He had a negative sweat test and was negative for 97 mutations. But I have read a lot about the rare mutations, so I worry alot. I don't want to be nuerotic and my husband thinks I am paranoid, but I just want to make sure my kids are o.k!!
Thanks to those of you who have replied. I am sorry I wasn't more clear on a couple of issues. First she doesn't stool after EVERY meal, but when she does have a bowel movement, it is almost always 20-30 minutes after she has eaten. I don't know if she is pancreatic insufficient because she has never been tested for anything. She doesn't have a ravenous appetiete (sp?), actually I usually have to fight wiht her to eat full meals as it is. As for the color of her stools (sorry for the info!!), they seem like "normal" poop to me. Not dark brown, but not the pale color of clay (which would be grey or light tan right?). THey usually are a dark yellow. I haven't seen any of the oil spots that you described (by the way, excellent description of the chili!). It is soft though. Did any of you put diaper stools in the toilet to see if they floated? To let you in on why I am even worried about CF, is because we had to have testing done on my son (5 yr old with asthma and allergies and sinus infections, no tummy problems). He had a negative sweat test and was negative for 97 mutations. But I have read a lot about the rare mutations, so I worry alot. I don't want to be nuerotic and my husband thinks I am paranoid, but I just want to make sure my kids are o.k!!
Thanks to those of you who have replied. I am sorry I wasn't more clear on a couple of issues. First she doesn't stool after EVERY meal, but when she does have a bowel movement, it is almost always 20-30 minutes after she has eaten. I don't know if she is pancreatic insufficient because she has never been tested for anything. She doesn't have a ravenous appetiete (sp?), actually I usually have to fight wiht her to eat full meals as it is. As for the color of her stools (sorry for the info!!), they seem like "normal" poop to me. Not dark brown, but not the pale color of clay (which would be grey or light tan right?). THey usually are a dark yellow. I haven't seen any of the oil spots that you described (by the way, excellent description of the chili!). It is soft though. Did any of you put diaper stools in the toilet to see if they floated? To let you in on why I am even worried about CF, is because we had to have testing done on my son (5 yr old with asthma and allergies and sinus infections, no tummy problems). He had a negative sweat test and was negative for 97 mutations. But I have read a lot about the rare mutations, so I worry alot. I don't want to be nuerotic and my husband thinks I am paranoid, but I just want to make sure my kids are o.k!!
I'm sure you've heard the joke "Just because I'm paranoid
doesn't mean that they're not watching"<br>
<br>
and my dad and I have fined-tuned this into "Just because you
are a 'neurotic mom' doesn't mean that your kid might not really be
sick"<br>
<br>
so I say follow your heart and pursue it until you are satisfied
doesn't mean that they're not watching"<br>
<br>
and my dad and I have fined-tuned this into "Just because you
are a 'neurotic mom' doesn't mean that your kid might not really be
sick"<br>
<br>
so I say follow your heart and pursue it until you are satisfied
I'm sure you've heard the joke "Just because I'm paranoid
doesn't mean that they're not watching"<br>
<br>
and my dad and I have fined-tuned this into "Just because you
are a 'neurotic mom' doesn't mean that your kid might not really be
sick"<br>
<br>
so I say follow your heart and pursue it until you are satisfied
doesn't mean that they're not watching"<br>
<br>
and my dad and I have fined-tuned this into "Just because you
are a 'neurotic mom' doesn't mean that your kid might not really be
sick"<br>
<br>
so I say follow your heart and pursue it until you are satisfied