From the very first days of existence, the intestines of an infant are colonized by natural microflora obtained from mother's milk or artificial nutrition. Excessive growth of the pathogenic environment, as well as a modification of the quantitative and qualitative composition of the natural microflora in the intestines of the newborn lead to what is commonly called dysbiosis.
Signs of dysbiosis in newborns
When a baby is just born, his intestines are still completely sterile. In the process of expulsion through the natural birth canal, the child acquires the first bacteria from the mother. Children who are breastfed, already on the 5-7th day, receive bifidobacteria from milk, which in the future should become the basis of normal intestinal microflora. Likewise, by the end of the first month of life, the baby receives lactobacilli. The number of these two species should normally be about 90-95% of the natural environment of the intestine of the baby. These are optimal conditions for a healthy child. The lack of at least one of these essential bacteria is a direct path to an imbalance of microflora, which, in turn, can cause the development of dysbiosis.
The following signs can signal the presence of a disease:
- frequent and profuse regurgitation after feeding, vomiting is possible;
- slight weight gain, lack of appetite;
- flatulence, abdominal pain;
- bad breath;
- streaks of blood in the stool, frothy green loose stools, or, on the contrary, regular constipation;
- the appearance of thrush;
- dry skin, which also begins to peel off;
- the child's general condition is markedly worsening: unstable behavior, frequent crying, restless sleep, poor appetite, partial refusal to breastfeed or eat.
Symptoms of this kind should alert the baby's mother and become a reason for contacting a pediatrician. However, it should be remembered that for a child of the first year of life, such signs are a normal phenomenon that can arise due to the insufficient maturity of the newborn's digestive system. In any case, before making the final diagnosis of the presence of dysbiosis, you should pass the necessary tests.
Causes of dysbiosis in newborns
The causes of this disease can be:
- taking antibiotics by the mother both during pregnancy and during breastfeeding, or antibiotic treatment for the baby himself;
- untimely, late first attachment of the child to the breast;
- infection with pathogenic bacteria from the mother during childbirth during the passage through the birth canal;
- overfeeding, chaotic complementary feeding off the clock;
- non-observance by the mother of recommendations for balanced proper nutrition during breastfeeding;
- wrong start of complementary feeding, frequent change of artificial infant formula.
Even having diagnosed symptoms similar to dysbiosis in a baby, you should not start treatment on your own without first receiving a doctor's recommendation. Only after being examined by a pediatrician, passing clinical tests and confirming the diagnosis, the child will be prescribed appropriate treatment using probiotics to normalize the intestinal microflora. In addition, a prerequisite for treatment will be compliance with the diet for both mother and baby. Long-term breastfeeding and adherence to the basics of a balanced diet will serve as the prevention of dysbiosis.
