How many times a day does the normal 2 year old poop?

December 12, 2007 3:32 PM

How many times a day does the normal 2 year old poop?

My kid will be two years old in January and on average he has a bowel movement 3 - 4 times a day. 2 of which are generally very large. Is this normal? I don't really have another point of reference.

posted by trbrts to health & fitness (23 answers total)

My two year old averages 2. But 3 is not uncommon.

You might also be dealing with some two-year molars coming in, which also tends to increase the number of poops that may be produced. The big thing is that he is having them; I'd be far more worried about the reverse.
posted by never used baby shoes at 3:35 PM on December 12, 2007

It seems pretty normal to me.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 3:37 PM on December 12, 2007

I don't see anything alarming about this; presumably he's eating well enough to support this number of poops, and that sure beats a picky eater.

Of more concern is the quality of it; does it look normal, or is it rock-hard like rabbit pellets (or a delightful explosion of mush)? You may want to make diet changes if you see anything concerning in the quality, but I wouldn't stress on the number.

Oh, and as nubs says, be more worried about a complete poop stoppage (although I've seen poop-free days on occasion.)
posted by davejay at 3:42 PM on December 12, 2007

normal
posted by caddis at 3:51 PM on December 12, 2007

I have 2 kids, a 5 year old and a 3 year old. Your kid sounds normal to me. My 3 year old will often go 2-4 times a day. My 5 year old, however, usually 1 time every 2 days. Human beings have a wide amount of variation within the "normal" range.
posted by bove at 3:55 PM on December 12, 2007

My kid does that, but not all the time. That's a busy day for her. I've had this conversation once a month for the past two years.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 3:56 PM on December 12, 2007

This is normal...you need to get concerned when any human (child-kind or adult) doesn't poop!
posted by Asherah at 3:58 PM on December 12, 2007

You might also be dealing with some two-year molars coming in, which also tends to increase the number of poops that may be produced.

Not to derail, but...why? What's the connection? Poop fascinates me.
posted by infinitywaltz at 4:27 PM on December 12, 2007

Not to derail, but...why? What's the connection? Poop fascinates me.

I am not a trained poopologist, but my understanding is that it is a result of the excess saliva, diaherra is not uncommon.
posted by never used baby shoes at 4:38 PM on December 12, 2007

"delightful explosion of mush" wow...what a disconnect with that phrase..

but...sounds normal as I remember from my two at that age..... as said... it's about quality, not quantity...
posted by HuronBob at 4:39 PM on December 12, 2007

My kids have varied. My older son settled into a very regular once-a-day routine as a baby and rarely deviates--during toilet training, I could even expect it at a certain time of day and plan outings around that. Second little guy? Anywhere from 1-3/day, settling into 1-2 per day now that he's 3. Texture, consistency, color vary between them really widely, too. We have to watch the older one for a tendency to constipation and the younger one for a tendency to that delightful mush mentioned above. I've just managed to get used to what's normal for each of my kids and I look for variation from that rather than comparing them. Your little guy sounds completely within the normal range to me, too.
posted by not that girl at 5:38 PM on December 12, 2007

My GI says anywhere from 3 or 4 times a day to once every 3 days is normal for anyone.

Infinitywaltz: it's because a teething child/baby puts their hands in their mouth for comfort and picks up all sorts of intestinal bugs.
posted by acoutu at 5:45 PM on December 12, 2007

Sounds normal, and like you're giving him a good, fiber-rich diet. Excellent.
posted by Dreama at 5:56 PM on December 12, 2007

My daughter launches two atomic blasts a day and one or two smaller ones as well. 3 or 4 poops a day is totally a-ok.
posted by mathowie at 6:36 PM on December 12, 2007

Of more concern is the quality of it; does it look normal, or is it rock-hard like rabbit pellets (or a delightful explosion of mush)?

Would you, or anyone else, like to elaborate on this? Something of a derail but what would the "rabbit" type imply about diet?
posted by AmbroseChapel at 8:22 PM on December 12, 2007

My 19 month old varies from 1 to 6, if that helps.
posted by Kickstart70 at 9:23 PM on December 12, 2007

My GI says anywhere from 3 or 4 times a day to once every 3 days is normal for anyone.

Heh. That's what I always tell people when they ask me in my medical practice. And I totally made it up. This seems to be the range among normal kids in the Pacific Northwest.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 9:51 PM on December 12, 2007

Dear Ambrose
Rabbit type pellets imply lack of water in the littler ones. Or too many bananas... or other consitpating factors. But in our poo experience... it's lack of water that makes "she who must be fed" do poo like that.
posted by taff at 10:16 PM on December 12, 2007

Ambrose, check out the Bristol Stool Scale. Basically rabbit pellets or lumpity-looking large stools are associated with slow transit through the bowel and constipation (which can be related to diet or not).
posted by oats at 10:31 PM on December 12, 2007

Our (almost) 2 year old averages about 2-3. Sometimes as many as 4 and as few as 0. The day following a 0 day is often beyond words.
posted by probablysteve at 4:33 AM on December 13, 2007

Thanks for the feedback everyone.
posted by trbrts at 8:23 AM on December 13, 2007

Our 2.5 year unloads 2 whoppers a day, and maybe a few tidbits off and on.

What I'd like to know is why he lays out the whoppers during the day when I'm with him alone, but in the evening when his mother is home, not a dump to be seen.

If I were a rapper, my name would be PoopDaddy.
posted by ducktape at 10:16 AM on December 13, 2007

The day following a 0 day is often beyond words.

Beyond "delightful mush" too.
posted by never used baby shoes at 11:02 AM on December 13, 2007