What Can Help With Diarrhea

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If you have a case of diarrhea then you might be inclined to stop eating, thinking that this will solve the problem. However, it is important that you still eat because you need to keep up your energy levels and replenish the nutrients you have lost.

But what should you be eating? What are foods that help with diarrhea?

There is no doubt that some foods are better than others. Some will further irritate your stomach and exasperate the problem, while others will digest easily and provide much-needed nutrients Which is what we will be going over here today.

What is diarrhea?

Things to consider..

When picking foods to eat during a case of diarrhea you want to consider things like

• Vitamins for immunity
• Mineral deficiencies

How Is Diarrhea Treated

In most cases, you can treat mild and uncomplicated diarrhea at home. By using an over-the-counter product like bismuth subsalicylate youll usually feel better very quickly.

However, over-the-counter medications arent always the solution. If your diarrhea is caused by an infection or parasite, youll need to see a healthcare provider for treatment. A general rule is not to use over-the-counter medications for diarrhea if you also have a fever or blood in your stool. In those cases, call your healthcare provider.

When diarrhea lasts for a long period of time , your healthcare provider will base your treatment on the cause. This could involve a few different treatment options, including:

How should I take over-the-counter medications for diarrhea?

Its important to always follow the instructions on the packaging when you take an over-the-counter medication for diarrhea. The rules for managing diarrhea in an adult are different than in children. Always call your childs healthcare provider before giving your child any type of medication for diarrhea.

A tip for managing diarrhea in an adult with over-the-counter medication includes:

• Taking two tablespoons of Kaopectate® or two tablespoons of Pepto-Bismol® after each loose stool. Do not take more than eight doses in 24 hours.

Preventing The Spread Of Infection

If a virus caused your childs diarrhea, do the following to prevent the spread to others:

• Make sure your child washes hands with soap and water after using the toilet and before eating.
• Wash your hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer after touching your child and their eating utensils, dirty laundry or diapers .
• Keep your childs utensils, toys and dirty clothes away from others. Wash them in hot soapy water.
• Clean the toilet and hard surfaces often with disinfectant or an antimicrobial wipe. Let dry 15 seconds.

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Immediate Action Required: Call 999 Or Go To A& e If You Or Your Child:

• vomit blood or have vomit that looks like ground coffee
• have green or yellow-green vomit
• might have swallowed something poisonous
• have a stiff neck and pain when looking at bright lights
• have a sudden, severe headache or stomach ache

Severe pain:

• always there and so bad it’s hard to think or talk
• you cannot sleep
• it’s very hard to move, get out of bed, go to the bathroom, wash or dress

Moderate pain:

• makes it hard to concentrate or sleep
• you can manage to get up, wash or dress

Mild pain:

What Do I Do If My Baby Or Young Child Has Diarrhea

If your child has severe diarrhea, call your healthcare provider. Young children are at a higher risk of dehydration than adults. You also cant treat a childs diarrhea the same way you would an adult case. Over-the-counter medications can be dangerous in young children and all treatments of diarrhea in children should be guided by their healthcare provider. Its important to keep your child hydrated. Your provider will help you determine the best way to do this, but options often include:

• Breast milk.
• Electrolyte drinks for older children this is not recommended for babies.

The best option to keep your child hydrated might change as the child ages. Always check with your provider before giving your child a new liquid or treatment of any kind.

If you have any questions or concerns about your childs diarrhea, dont hesitate to call your provider.

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Children Younger Than 1 Year Of Age

• Breast milk or formula mixed the normal way . Do not stop breastfeeding.
• No water except when used to make formula
• Do not give fruit juices or liquids that are high in sugar, such as Hawaiian Punch®, Hi-C®, Kool-Aid®, sodas or syrups. Do not give teas or broths. These liquids do not have the right mix of electrolytes and can make diarrhea worse.
• If your child eats solid foods, give more starchy foods like cereal and crackers. Avoid red-colored foods that might look like blood in diarrhea or in vomit.
• Try to go back to a normal diet after one day.

Dietary Recommendations For Diarrhea:

• Drink 8-10 cups of fluid per day, like water, broth, half-strength juice, weak tea, or electrolyte replacement drinks.
• Eat small frequent meals slowly during the day.
• Try sources of soluble fibre to help firm up stool.
• Limit fried or fatty foods since these can worsen diarrhea.
• Some high fibre foods may contribute to diarrhea.
• Foods with lots of sugar may worsen diarrhea, such as regular pop, candy, large quantities of juice, and chocolate milk.
• Some people may become temporarily lactose intolerant when experiencing diarrhea .
• Consult your physician to determine if an anti-diarrheal medication is suitable for you.

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Food And Beverage Recommendations For Diarrhea Symptoms

• Frequently Asked Questions

The best diet to follow when you have diarrhea is one that goes easy on your digestive system and helps bind stools. Knowing what to eat when you have diarrhea cannot only help prevent your condition from getting worse, but ensure that you get the nutrition you need to support your recovering body.

The diarrhea diet has a lot in common with the well-known BRAT diet, which is used for a variety of digestive concerns. BRAT stands for bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast, and youll find these items and others amongst the recommendations.

This article lists the specific foods you should reach for if you have diarrhea and how they can help you. It also offers cooking and other tips, and reviews some side effects you may experience.

Verywell / Zorica Lakonic

What To Do About Nutrition When You Have Diarrhea

Do stick with bland foods. One tried-and-true diet for diarrhea is the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. Low in fiber, bland, and starchy, these foods can help replace lost nutrients and firm up your stools. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases , you can also try boiled potatoes, crackers, or cooked carrots.

Do eat small meals. Too much food will stimulate your gastrointestinal tract to move even more, says Ganjhu, and possibly worsen the diarrhea. Eating five or six small meals, rather than three large ones, can give your intestines a chance to digest the food more easily.

Dont eat fried food. Prepare foods like beef, pork, chicken, fish, or turkey by baking or broiling, not frying, which can worsen diarrhea. Cooked eggs are okay, too, according to MedlinePlus.

Do eat when hunger strikes. Listen to your body and dont force yourself to eat, which can worsen symptoms. Trust your body to tell you when and how much it can tolerate, notes Ganjhu.

Dont eat fruits and vegetables that cause gas. Eating gassy food when you have diarrhea can increase intestinal gas and should be avoided. This includes fruits and vegetables like beans, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and leafy greens and sweet foods like cookies or cakes, per the Mayo Clinic.

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How Do Otc Antidiarrheal Medicines Work

Loperamide slows down how fast things move through your intestines . This allows more fluid to be absorbed into your body. This helps you have less diarrhea and more formed stools.

Bismuth subsalicylate balances the way fluid moves through your intestines. It reduces inflammation. It keeps bacteria and viruses that cause diarrhea from growing in the stomach and intestines.

Home Remedies And Natural Remedies

Chronic diarrhea may develop after taking a prescription medication such as an antibiotic. Talk to your doctor about alternative drugs. If one isnt available, incorporate probiotics into your diet to restore stool bulk. These are available in yogurt and capsule form.

Fiber supplements are associated with relieving constipation. But certain fiber supplements can also relieve chronic diarrhea because of its water-holding effect. Taking psyllium on a daily basis can produce bulkier stools and lessen or eliminate diarrhea caused by IBS or medication.

Chronic diarrhea caused by an underlying medical condition isnt always preventable. But you can prevent chronic diarrhea due to infection by taking steps to keep your food and water supply clean. For example:

• Drink from a clean water source or filter your water.
• Thoroughly clean meat before cooking.
• Cook meat thoroughly.
• Wash your hands after handling food.
• Clean kitchen surfaces to prevent contamination.
• Wash fruits and vegetables before consuming them.
• Wash your hands after using the bathroom, changing a diaper, or attending to a sick person.

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Key Points About Diarrhea

• Diarrhea is loose, watery stool. Your child may also have to go to the bathroom more often.

• It may be caused by many things, including bacterial infection or viral infection.

• Dehydration is the major concern with diarrhea.

• In most cases, treatment involves replacing lost fluids.

• The rotavirus vaccine can prevent diarrhea caused by that virus.

• Proper handwashing can help prevent diarrhea.

• When you travel, make sure anything your child eats and drinks is safe.

Treating The Underlying Cause

If you’ve been diagnosed with a specific condition that’s causing your diarrhoea, treating this may help improve your symptoms.

For example:

• irritable bowel syndrome can be treated with changes to your diet and medications read more about managing IBS
• inflammatory bowel disease can be treated with medications that help reduce inflammation in the bowel
• coeliac disease can be treated by excluding foods containing gluten from your diet read more about treating coeliac disease
• bile acid malabsorption can be treated with medication that helps stop bile building up in the digestive system

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How Can I Treat My Childs Acute Diarrhea

Over-the-counter medicines to treat acute diarrhea in adults can be dangerous for infants, toddlers, and young children. Talk to a doctor before giving your child an over-the-counter medicine. If your childs diarrhea lasts more than 24 hours, see a doctor right away.

You can give your child his or her usual age-appropriate diet. You can give your infant breast milk or formula as usual.

Its Best To Treat It Early

Our survey of sufferers of frequent acute diarrhea in 14 countries around the world, found that 84% of us feel weak and tired when suffering from acute diarrhea.

This is no surprise when you consider the resulting loss of important fluids and salts from our body.21

So why leave it untreated when you can relieve diarrhea along with its uncomfortable symptoms and dehydrating effects?

IMODIUM contains an active ingredient called Loperamide, which works in harmony with your body to help restore the digestive system to its natural pace and rhythm, which in turn works to renew the absorption of fluids in your system.

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How Do I Know If Im Lactose Intolerant

Our bodies react to milk in ways that are easily measured. Two common tests for adults are:

• Breath test. This will show if you have high levels of hydrogen when you exhale. If you do, you might be lactose intolerant. Thatâs because hydrogen is given off when lactose is broken down in the colon. The hydrogen gets taken by the blood up to your lungs, and then you exhale it.
• Blood test. This can show how your body reacts after you drink something with a lot of lactose. However, this test is usually not done.

Doctors can also take a stool sample from babies and young children.

Can I Manage Diarrhea Without Taking Any Medication

When you have an acute case of diarrhea, you can often take care of it without needing any medication. Several things you can do to care for diarrhea include:

• Drinking plenty of water and other electrolyte balanced fluids and caffeine-free sodas). Make sure to hydrate throughout day. Your body loses water each time you have diarrhea. By drinking plenty of extra fluids, you are protecting your body from dehydration.
• Changing your diet. Instead of picking greasy, fatty or fried foods, go for the BRAT diet:
• B: Bananas.
• A: Applesauce.
• T: Toast .

Sometimes, diarrhea can also make you lactose intolerant. This is usually temporary and it means that you need to avoid items with lactose until your diarrhea is gone.

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Protecting Yourself From Gastroenteritis

The viruses that cause gastroenteritis come from contact with an infected person’s stool. You may get it if a person with the virus didn’t wash their hands after using the bathroom and then touched the escalator at the mall — the same escalator you touched before eating lunch. Stomach flu viruses are tough, too. Some can live on surfaces such as counters for months.

It’s important to take steps to protect yourself and your family. Here’s some advice.

• Wash your hands. According to experts, this is still the best way to stop a stomach virus. One review of studies found that good hand-washing technique cut the rate of diarrhea by 40%. Make sure to use soap and water and do it thoroughly — wash your hands for as long as it takes to recite the alphabet. Always wash your hands after using the bathroom, before eating, and after changing a diaper.
• Use hand sanitizer. If you’re not near a sink to wash your hands, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Be aware that hand sanitizer may not be as effective as hand washing at preventing the stomach flu.
• Wipe down surfaces. If a family member has the stomach flu, wash off high-traffic areas — such as the bathroom, door knobs, phones, and TV remotes — with a diluted bleach solution. If it’s possible, keep healthy people out of the bathroom the sick person is using.
• Make sure your kids get their vaccines.Vaccines for rotavirus can protect children from some types of stomach flu. Kids usually get the vaccines before they are age 2.

How Can Diarrhea Be Prevented

Prevention of diarrhea depends on the underlying cause. If medications are causing a person to experience diarrhea, an alternative form or type of medication should be explored, especially when diarrhea is chronic. Some people who are malnourished or on bowel rest, may experience diarrhea for the first few days when starting to eat again because the bowel walls ability to function decreases when it is not used and resumes normal function slowly. Consult your physician to determine the underlying cause and treatment for your diarrhea, especially if there is any associated pain, blood, or distension.

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How Do I Safely Take Otc Antidiarrheal Medicines

Before you take an OTC antidiarrheal medicine, read the directions on the drug facts label. This will tell you how much medicine to take and how often to take it. If you have any questions, call your family doctor or pharmacist. Keep a record of which OTC medicines you are using and when you take them. If you need to go to the doctor, take this list with you.

Follow these tips to make sure you are taking the right amount of medicine:

• Take only the amount recommended on the medicines label. Dont assume that more medicine will work better or quicker. Taking more than the recommended amount can be dangerous.
• If you take prescription medicine, ask your doctor if its okay to take OTC antidiarrheal medicine.
• Dont use more than one OTC antidiarrheal medicine at a time unless your doctor says its okay. They may have similar active ingredients. These could add up to be too much medicine.

What Types Of Otc Medicines Treat Diarrhea

You can buy over-the-counter medicines without a prescription from your doctor. Some OTC medicines can help you feel better if you have diarrhea. These are called antidiarrheal medicines. Antidiarrheal medicines include:

• Loperamide .
• Bismuth subsalicylate .

Bismuth subsalicylate can also be used for an upset stomach.

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