Baby not pooping for 3 days or more: when it is normal and when to worry

What is normal, by age and feed

As a guide, from the NHS and NICE:

• Breastfed, first six weeks: at least two soft, yellow, seedy poos a day once feeding is established
• Breastfed, after about six weeks: fewer poos is common, and several days without one can be normal if the poo is soft
• Formula-fed: poos are usually firmer and less frequent, and constipation is more common, especially when starting or changing formula
• Starting solids: poo often changes in colour, smell and firmness, and constipation is more likely
• Straining, grunting or going red in the face while pooing is normal in babies, as long as the poo comes out soft
• Passing wind but no poo is common and on its own is not a sign of a blockage

Signs it is constipation

• Fewer than three poos in a week (this does not apply to an exclusively breastfed baby over six weeks)
• Hard, dry, lumpy or pellet-like poo that is difficult to pass
• A firm tummy, poor feeding, unusual crying or grumpiness
• Unusually smelly wind and poo
• A little bright red blood on the outside of a hard poo, from a small tear

What helps at home

For a young breastfed baby, the first question is whether feeding is going well: count wet nappies, and ask a midwife, nurse or doctor to watch a feed if you are not sure. Then try these:

• Lie your baby on their back and gently move their legs as if riding a bicycle
• A gentle, clockwise tummy massage when your baby is calm
• For formula-fed babies, make each feed exactly as the tin says, and offer some cooled boiled water between feeds
• For babies on solids, offer more water and fruit such as pawpaw, pear or soaked prunes, and fewer binding foods
• Do not give herbal mixtures, enemas, soap or a thermometer or stick into the bottom, and do not give a laxative to a baby unless a doctor advises it

Go to a hospital now

Take your baby to a hospital or emergency department straight away if they:

• Are vomiting green or yellow-green fluid, or vomiting everything
• Have a swollen, tight tummy and are vomiting
• Are a newborn who has not passed the first black poo (meconium) within 48 hours of birth
• Are floppy, very sleepy, not feeding, or have fewer wet nappies than usual
• Have blood mixed through the poo, or poo that looks like redcurrant jelly
• Have a fever, especially under three months old

See a paediatrician soon

Book a paediatrician within a day or two if constipation started in the first few weeks of life, if your baby passes thin ribbon-like poos, is not gaining weight, or if home measures have not helped after a few days. NICE treats constipation that starts from birth or the first weeks of life as a sign to look for an underlying cause, so it should not be put down to teething or the formula without a check.

Common questions