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What should I do if there is blood in my baby's stool?

If there is a lot of blood in your baby's stool, or blood passed on its own without stool, go to the emergency room now, or call 911 or your local emergency number. The AAP files that sign under Go to ER Now; smaller amounts are not covered by the sentence we quote, so this page does not draw a line for them.

Call 911 (or your local emergency number) now if your baby:

  • Lots of blood in stool, or blood passed alone without any stool
Blood in the stool: the sign and who says so
SignActionSource
Lots of blood in stool, or blood passed alone without any stoolGo to ER NowAAP

What the sources say

Lots of blood in stool or blood passed alone without any stool

Listed by the AAP under Go to ER Now.

AAP / HealthyChildren.orgSymptom Checker: Stools - Blood InPage date: undatedChecked on October 23, 2026

At 3 AM

Keep the diaper. Fold it closed, put it in a bag, and take it with you, or photograph the inside with the lights on. Red on a dark-red night screen is invisible; look under a normal light before you decide what you are seeing.

Say what you see, not what you think it is: how much, what colour, whether it is mixed through the stool or sitting on top, and whether there was any stool at all.

Have these ready: the baby's age in weeks, when you saw it, how many diapers today and how many had blood, how the baby is feeding, any vomiting, any fever, and whether they seem as alert as usual.

This page quotes one sentence from one AAP page. That page has more to say about smaller amounts and about what else can be in a diaper; read it, and when in doubt, get help now.

Log every diaper with a note. A pattern over a day is what the clinicians want: how many, which ones, and what changed.

Where the sources differ

Only the AAP page in our list gives a line for blood in the stool, and it files the sign under Go to ER Now, so this page uses the emergency heading. The NHS urgent page does not list it in the sentences we have checked, so this page rests on the AAP alone.

You know your baby best. If you think something is seriously wrong, get help now.

This page is general information, not medical advice. If you're worried, call your pediatrician.

Baby Tracker for Dads logs every diaper with a note and a photo, and keeps this line on its free When to call a doctor page.

Written by The Baby Tracker for Dads teamChecked on October 23, 2026Medical review: pending. Every number on this page is quoted from the AAP, CDC or NHS; the links are above.