Baby Vomiting Yellow Mucus – Possible Reasons

What if a baby is vomiting yellow mucus?

We go through reasons to consider.

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Mom’s Question:
What could be the possible cause for my 6 months old baby to be vomiting more than once within a few hours, clear to yellow mucus?

I am worried that she is sick.

Andrea Jackson

Why A Baby May Vomit Clear or Yellow Mucus

Vomiting mucus in babies (and toddlers) can occur due to various reasons, ranging from mild to potentially serious conditions. It is, of course, essential to understand the possible causes and seek appropriate medical advice when necessary. You don’t mention any signs of your daughter being ill, so most likely this is nothing serious. In any case, here are some reasons why a baby may vomit mucus:

A Cold

In my experience, the most common reason why a baby vomits mucus is because of a cold, or respiratory infection. When the baby has a stopped up nose and a lot of mucus from a cold, they tend to swallow it. And then, especially if the mucus is thick, many babies throw it up. It can happen while coughing and other times too. It is also possible that mucus accumulate in the throat, leading to vomiting in babies.

Babies tend to throw up much more easily than adults. Some babies also vomit more easily than others. Does your baby spit up a lot in general? If she does, then it probably doesn’t take too much mucus for her to start throwing it up.

The presence of a cough, runny nose, or congestion may indicate a respiratory infection.

A Stomach Flu

Another possibility would be that a baby has a stomach flu; gastroenteritis using the medical term. It is often caused by a viral or bacterial infection. A stomach flu, is a common cause of vomiting in children In such case, after emptying her stomach content, she could be vomiting mucus. Along with vomiting, symptoms may include diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain, and general discomfort.

Since you mention no sign ´s of illnes, a stomach flu is unlikely.

Food Allergy or Intolerance

In some cases, a baby or toddler may vomit mucus due to an allergic reaction or intolerance to certain foods. At your baby’s age, it is common to start introducing solid foods, so if you have done, this could be a trigger for her vomiting.

But in such case they would mainly throw up after eating and not only clear or yellow mucus. There should also be other symptoms such as rash, hives, or even difficulty breathing. Common allergenic foods include cow’s milk, eggs, wheat, soy, and peanuts. You can read more about cow’s milk allergy as well as lactose intolerance in babies and toddler here.

Teething

Finally, she could be teething and thereby swallowing more salivia than usual – and then spit up clear to yellow mucus/salivia.

But you don’t mention any particular signs of illness, so my bet is a cold.

I hope this helps,

Paula

More Vomiting Babies

• Baby Vomits Then Passes Out
• Baby Throws Up After Bottle
• Baby With Chronic Cough And Throwing Up

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Paula Dennholt

Paula Dennholt founded Easy Baby Life in 2006 and has been a passionate parenting and pregnancy writer since then. Her parenting approach and writing are based on studies in cognitive-behavioral models and therapy for children and her experience as a mother and stepmother. Life as a parent has convinced her of how crucial it is to put relationships before rules. She strongly believes in positive parenting and a science-based approach.

Paula cooperates with a team of pediatricians who assist in reviewing and writing articles.