The Great Meconium!

We recently had a question from a viewer concerning baby's first poo - the dreaded meconium. This nasty tar-looking bowel movement has often caused some confusion to first time parents.

According to The National Institute of Health, the Meconium is "a thick, sticky, greenish-black substance". It is composed of amniotic fluid, mucus, lanugo (the fine hair that covers baby's body), bile, and cells that have been shed from the skin and the intestinal tract.

"During pregnancy, the baby floats in the amniotic fluid that fills the mother's uterus. This fluid protects the baby while he or she grows and develops. The baby swallows the amniotic fluid, which contains all the other constituents mentioned above. All of the contents other than the amniotic fluid itself are filtered out and remain behind in the intestine while the amniotic fluid is absorbed and re-released into the uterine space when the fetus urinates. This cycle maintains the amniotic fluid in a clear, healthy state during the nine months of pregnancy. This process of recycling the amniotic fluid occurs about every 3 hours."

Below is a picture of my own daughter's meconium poo. (Edited version :D) Being 10 1/2 months old, I'm sure she won't care if I post this.