If you have problems with the intestines, then you have probably wondered more than once which foods and how they affect its functioning. The fact that its work and condition depend on what we eat is an indisputable fact. There are products that enhance peristalsis, having a laxative effect. Others, on the contrary, strengthen and slow down emptying. Knowing the properties of both, you can adjust your diet. What do you know about bananas? Do these exotic fruits, beloved by many, strengthen or weaken the stool?
We choose slowly
It's really not that simple. The impact will depend on what kind of fruit is on your table. A normal, high-quality banana of optimal ripeness will not have any effect on the intestines. You will enjoy it; your intestines will easily cope with the incoming mass. Have you ever bought greenish fruits? Hard, light yellow, with virtually no taste or aroma? In this form they can cause constipation. However, if you don't eat them in bunches, nothing bad will happen. Just leave the purchased fruits on the window, they will soon arrive and become perfect.
Another thing is overripe fruits, soft, with black dots. These just have a laxative effect. Therefore, those with weak stomachs should not get carried away with them. Give to other family members or make jam. We are not talking about the case when the skin of the fruit is cracked and darkened pulp peeks out. In this case, it may already be infected with various bacteria that contribute to the development of diarrhea. But for now we are talking about the properties of the fruit itself. As you can see, it is not so easy to definitively answer whether bananas strengthen or weaken stool.
Beneficial features
These are one of the most nutritious and healthy fruits that nature offers us. They contain a huge amount of carbohydrates, and therefore it is not recommended for those who are on a diet to get carried away with yellow “boomerangs” or eat them after a heavy lunch. A few bananas can be a complete meal for an adult.
Among the vitamins, one can note the presence of ascorbic acid and vitamin E, B3, B5, B6 and beta-carotene. It is an excellent source of potassium and magnesium, as well as phosphorus. In addition, they contain an important element, choline. All this is confirmed by official research. But we can still argue about whether bananas strengthen or weaken the stool.
Nutritionist opinion
For the most part, they adhere to the golden mean. If you don't eat whole bunches of fruit, you most likely won't notice any effect on intestinal motility. To do this, you need to choose beautiful fruits, without damage or rot, and also do not eat them green. Why does this dilemma still arise: do bananas strengthen or weaken the stool? Apparently, it's all in the composition. They contain a lot of starch. If you are already addicted to carbohydrate foods, then such a dessert will only increase constipation. But at the same time, it is also a fruit rich in fiber, which enhances peristalsis. This is probably why it affects different people differently.
No one needs to give up bananas, and it doesn’t matter what extreme is inherent in your intestines. You just don’t need to eat kilograms of them.
Individual reaction
Do not forget that the body of each of us is a complex mechanism that works exclusively according to its own rules. Therefore, only you can decide whether you want to eat bananas. Whether these overseas, but already so native, fruits weaken or strengthen an adult’s stool, no one can answer you better than your own intestines.
Let's not forget about the correct combination of products with each other. If you are prone to frequent diarrhea and your favorite fruits cause a similar effect, then try eating them in small quantities. In addition, semolina porridge, chokeberry jelly, viscous porridge, and applesauce will ease the condition.
What if, on the contrary, the intestinal sphincter reacts so much to carbohydrate fruits that it is then impossible to go to the toilet for several days? Then eat them together with natural fermented milk products, whole grain cereals, nuts, fruits and berries. In this case, you don't have to guess whether a banana strengthens or weakens an adult's stool. This is simply a tasty and healthy fruit that should be in every person’s diet.
During pregnancy
Most women during this difficult period try to bring their nutrition closer to ideal. Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits, meat and fish, grains and dairy products. And then girlfriends and grandmothers, mothers and aunts begin to intervene with their advice. This is impossible, it will cause allergies and cause heartburn. And now, the expectant mother no longer knows whether she can eat anything other than boiled meat and buckwheat. Bananas also cause a lot of controversy. Do these fruits strengthen or weaken the stool of pregnant women? Here it is worth turning to the experience of your entire past life. If you love them, have always eaten them and have not had any problems, then you can continue in the same spirit.
This is not just a fruit, but a real “bomb” that charges the body with proteins and carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals. It certainly won’t hurt anyone, especially a pregnant woman. Expectant mothers are often worried about constipation, but we have already said above that a reasonable combination of fruits with fresh kefir will neutralize this danger.
Useful tips
There are several preventive measures to prevent the appearance of mucus in the stool and other problems with the baby’s stool:
- timely treatment of diseases, especially congenital ones;
- If mucus appears in the stool, consult a doctor immediately;
- observing the rules of personal hygiene and teaching the child to hygiene from an early age;
Hygiene is the key to health and excellent disease prevention - periodic laboratory tests for the presence of parasites;
- compliance with the baby's diet. Make sure his diet contains enough fiber. Otherwise, constipation may occur;
- Complementary foods should be introduced correctly, that is, in a timely manner and gradually. If you ignore these rules, you may get intestinal irritation;
- Formulas for artificial feeding must be selected carefully. Therefore, if you are in doubt about this, it is better to seek help from a specialist;
- When breastfeeding, a nursing mother must monitor her diet, while refusing junk food.
Special attention should be paid to the child's nutrition
Following these simple recommendations will help ensure the normal functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, which will avoid many health problems in the future. After all, everyone knows that a predisposition to a particular disease can be established in the body from the first years of life . Pain in the left hypochondrium when coughing, read our article.
Lactation period
With the arrival of the baby, the panic only intensifies. You can’t do this and that, the child has colic, gas, the mother is ready not to eat anything at all, just to stop his suffering. In fact, bananas will not harm you during lactation, especially if you regularly ate them during pregnancy. Does a banana strengthen or weaken a baby's stool? Normally, absolutely nothing should happen to him. However, the following scheme is recommended for expectant mothers.
The first week after birth - light broth, natural kefir, chicken breast, rice or buckwheat. Is the child sleeping normally, is everything okay? We are slowly starting to introduce new foods into our diet. Only one at a time. For example, a third of a banana. Take a break of 2-3 days and eat half the fruit. The baby's body gets used to new foods in 3-4 times, at intervals of 2 days. If there is no reaction, then everything is fine with you. Without this test, it is almost impossible to answer whether bananas strengthen or weaken the stool during breastfeeding. You can eat them 1-2 pieces a day. Don't forget about the high calorie content.
Grains in stool
Normal stool in a formula-fed baby looks like a thick porridge, and the color is close to brown. The transition from natural nutrition to mixed, and then to artificial food for the intestines is not so easy. The introduction of complementary foods to a 4-month-old baby also changes feces. The body digests new food reluctantly, therefore, at first it simply passes everything swallowed through the intestines, absorbing almost nothing from it. You can find in the stool what you gave your baby to eat 2 days ago.
If nutritional mixtures contain a lot of iron, then its oxidation in the intestines causes stool to turn black.
The black color of stool can be caused by foods contained in complementary foods, which contain a lot of iron. These include:
- beet,
- berries and dark fruits (currants, blackberries, cherries, prunes, apples, pomegranates),
- offal (liver, heart, kidneys).
The chair can be partially changed. If you have just recently started introducing complementary foods, then various inclusions in the stool are completely normal.
Grains of sand and grains are pieces of undigested food. This chair with numerous black fibers resembles a carpet. Seeds and pieces of fruit skin, as well as undigested meat fibers, appear as streaks in dark-colored stool. Gradually, the child’s body will learn to digest such food. Sometimes mothers notice black threads in the stool that resemble worms. These are traces of a recently eaten banana. Unlike these stripes, intestinal worms are not black in color. They are always white or yellowish.
Taking some medications is also accompanied by darkening of the stool. These are activated carbon, dietary supplements and vitamin complexes containing iron. At 2 years old, the feces are already quite hard and brown in color. Children aged 5 years are more likely to experience constipation. Mothers give their children laxatives or activated charcoal. The effect is liquid, dark-colored stool. There is no need to be afraid. This is due to the presence of that same iron in the medications taken.
Benefits for mother and baby
It’s very good if you love sunny fruits, and the baby calmly tolerated their introduction into the diet. Regular lack of sleep, lack of time - all this greatly depletes the strength of a young mother. And such a snack is always ready to eat, just extend your hand. Unlike an apple, it will not cause flatulence. Let's list once again what the body receives:
- Bananas replenish the body's reserves of phosphorus, potassium and calcium, iron and zinc.
- Vitamin C helps fight infections.
- A huge amount of fiber and pectin removes toxins and waste.
- Regular consumption of banana improves lactation.
- By gently enveloping the mucous membrane, banana improves the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract.
- This is an excellent antioxidant that will prevent the development of postpartum depression.
- A great snack that will satisfy your hunger and restore your strength.
Causes of black threads in stool
Every mother can easily determine the reason for the appearance of black threads in her child’s stool. To do this, it is enough to remember what the child ate the day before and whether he took medications.
Foods that cause black strings in stool:
- bananas;
- persimmon;
- kiwi;
- pineapples;
- apples;
- blueberries, black currants, strawberries;
- grapes (more precisely, their seeds);
- beet;
- poppy.
If there are animals in the house, especially cats or dogs, you need to carefully monitor and clean up after them. The child may shed a large amount of hair.
This is dangerous because serious digestive problems may occur. In this case, black threads in the feces are not enough. This applies to all objects that can enter a child’s body.
In addition to black threads, there may be dots, grains, and pieces of undigested food. For example, carrots are not digested by the child’s body for a very long time. Therefore, one should not characterize such a phenomenon as a separate disease.
Medicines that cause black threads
Medicines for children are mainly eliminated from the body naturally, along with feces. This process may be accompanied by some changes in the stool.
Black threads may appear after treatment:
- sorbents;
- drugs to increase hemoglobin;
- vitamins with a large number of microelements.
Treatment with sorbents can cause the stool to be completely black. This is a common occurrence as all toxins and waste are removed from the body. In this case, you should not stop taking sorbents.
If the child was prescribed bacteria to populate the intestinal microflora, then black threads may be present in the stool. Because the balance of bacteria is being established.
When using drugs with iron, such changes are also observed. Children often experience anemia. The decrease in hemoglobin is restored with the help of iron in the form of tablets or syrup.
Therefore, black threads in the stool after using it are normal. Adults also often experience this.
Healthy mother - happy child
Do not forget that the baby’s body will react in the same way as your own intestines. Therefore, if you have always had a hard time tolerating bananas and know for sure that they will be more problems than they are worth, then immediately abandon this idea. Despite the useful composition, it is better to find a worthy alternative than to experience discomfort.
Bananas have a lot of sugar. If it causes fermentation in the mother’s stomach, then the baby will also have gas. If it provokes constipation, then the baby will react similarly. Actually, you already know everything, so decide whether it’s worth risking a restful sleep.
Non-dangerous causes of mucus in stool
- In children under 1 year. With a cold expressed by a runny nose, a one-year-old baby swallows the substance that appears, since he is not able to empty the sinuses himself. As a result, the stool contains excess mucus.
- In children under three months of age, mucus in the baby's stool is natural. While the baby’s body is not accustomed to its existence, there is a period of adaptation; due to the lack of necessary enzymes, the digestive system is unstable. If the baby is cheerful, active, eats and sleeps well, but there is an admixture of a transparent or yellowish mass, there is no reason for concern.
- After three months, children's diet changes and feeding begins. Loss of appetite, diarrhea and feces with mucus indicate that the baby’s stomach does not yet accept this product. This phenomenon goes away over time and does not require treatment.
- In the postoperative period, if a large part of the small intestine has been removed. In childhood, for this reason, mucous diarrhea is observed for a fairly long period.
- After taking colic medicine or herbal teas.
First complementary foods
When a mother decides that her baby is not getting enough breast milk, bananas come to mind again. Of course, delicate consistency, pleasant taste, excellent composition. Just what the doctor ordered. Does banana weaken or strengthen stool in children? Here it must be said that such experiments are not recommended for up to three months. The child is not yet able to produce the enzymes necessary to process the fruit, so the reaction may be unpredictable.
When the baby is one month old, the doctor will prescribe the first blood test. If an elevated sugar level has been detected, then bananas should not be given to the child, and they should be removed from the mother’s diet. If you experience frequent stomach upsets, then it is better to forget about overseas fruits for now, because you will not offer unripe ones to your baby.
Who shouldn't eat fruit?
When planning to give a banana, mothers should know how much of it their child can eat. Limiting the quantity is recommended when:
- colic, constipation, diarrhea and other digestive problems;
- high blood sugar (diabetes prevention);
- spasms and problems with muscle relaxation, so as not to provoke muscle hypertonicity;
- It is not recommended to eat the fruit before the main feeding; it can kill your appetite.
Some diseases exclude the sweet exotic fruit from the baby’s menu completely. The fruit should not be consumed:
- for serious problems with the cardiovascular system (congenital defects, disturbances in the functioning of the heart valves);
- if elevated calcium levels and brittle bone syndrome are detected;
- malfunction of the thyroid gland;
- for neurological diseases (epilepsy, spontaneous seizures and fainting);
- when prohibited by a pediatrician or other children's specialists based on medical indications.
If you have colic or any digestive problems, banana should be temporarily excluded from your diet.
Timing and dosage
If you haven’t seen any reaction in your baby before and you ate bananas during pregnancy and lactation, then starting from the sixth month of life you can gradually give them to your baby. The scheme is the same, first a piece, then we wait 2 days. Then half and wait again. After about 3-4 times, you will understand by the condition whether bananas are strengthening or weakening the baby’s stool. Let us emphasize your child, because everything here is individual. After this, the amazing fruit can be mixed with cottage cheese and porridge. It will become a sweet and healthy filler.
