URINATION

Your baby may urinate as often as every one to three hours, or as infrequently as four to six times a day. If she's ill or feverish, or when weather is extremely hot, her usual output of urine may drop half and still be normal.

Urination should never be painful. If you notice any signs of distress while your infant is urinating, notify your pediatrician, as this could be a sign of infection or some other problem in the urinary tract.

In a healthy baby, urine is light to dark yellow in color (the darker the color, the more concentrated the urine; the urine will be more concentrated when your child is not drinking a lot of liquid). Sometimes you'll see a pink stain on the diaper which may be mistaken for blood. But in fact, this stain is usually a sign of highly concentrated urine, which has pinkish color. As long as the baby is wetting at least four diapers a day, there probably is no cause for concern, but if the pinkish staining persists, consult your pediatrician.

The presence of actual blood in the urine or a bloody spot on the diaper is never normal, and your pediatrician should be notified. It may be due to nothing more serious than a small sore caused by diaper rash, but it could also be a sign of a large problem. If this bleeding is accompanied by other symptoms, such as abdominal pain or bleeding in other areas, seek medical attention for your baby immediately.