No one likes having diarrhea. It is painful, messy, annoying, and all together unpleasant. Unfortunately, there are many things that can cause this unpleasant condition. According to the Mayo Clinic, the most common causes of diarrhea are bacteria, viruses, disease, allergies, intolerance to certain foods, sugars, artificial sweeteners, stress, surgery, and the different forms of colitis. It can also be caused by little things such as too little fiber or too many watery foods.
Most cases of diarrhea are not dangerous, but if the diarrhea lasts longer than three days, you should consider consulting a doctor. Most often diarrhea is not life threatening and is easily taken care of. It might be tempting to run out and buy expensive medications at the first sign of this annoying condition but most of these medications are harsh and sometimes completely unnecessary. Fortunately, there are home remedies for diarrhea you may have on hand and can use without leaving your house. Most of us have these simple home remedies for diarrhea on hand, or at least have easy access to them.
Hydration
Although it might not seem like it, if you have diarrhea, continue drinking water or sports drinks to stay hydrated. Diarrhea causes you to dehydrate rapidly, a situation which can rapidly turn into something much worse. Properly hydrating while you are suffering from diarrhea is essential to your recovery. There are plenty of ways to keep hydrated. You can use:
- Adult hydration formulas from your local pharmacy
- Sports drinks
- Water
- Lemon water
- Hydration candies
- Beet Juice
- Coconut water
- Buttermilk
There are many ways to remain hydrated. One of those is to not dehydrate further. Drinks like coffee, tea, and alcohol can all further your dehydration. You need to avoid anything that will make you worse. Drinking the right things can help you remain hydrated even with periodic diarrhea. Dehydration can be very serious and diarrhea drains the water and other vital nutrients from your body. This is why it is essential that you remain hydrated while you are experiencing this unpleasant condition.
The BRAT Diet
The BRAT Diet is an excellent way to calm your stomach and bowels. It is one of the best home remedies for diarrhea when you have to eat something but are worried about making things worse. This diet is designed for people who have problems with bowel irritation and other bowel related problems. When you are suffering from diarrhea, the worst thing that you can do is make it worse. You can help yourself by eating a bland nonirritating diet. BRAT stands for:
- Bananas
- Rice, plain
- Applesauce
- Toast, dry
You will notice that this is the same diet you eat when you are suffering from the flu. Each ingredient is perfect for calming the stomach and stopping diarrhea. This diet is helpful when you are trying to rehydrate because it does not contain any foods that will further the dehydration, upset your intestines, or make your feel worse.
When you are on the BRAT diet, you can eat other foods too as long as they are bland, nonseasoned, and do not contain any of the following:
- Beans
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Chickpeas
- Corn
- Ice cream
- Leafy vegetables
- Peas
- Prunes
Each of these things, although healthy, are extremely difficult to digest when you are suffering from diarrhea. Some of the foods that you can eat other than the BRAT diet are:
- Oatmeal
- Boiled or baked, skinless potatoes
- Baked chicken with the skin removed
- Chicken soup, unsalted not flavored
Eating foods that are bland and unlikely to upset your stomach is an essential part of using home remedies for diarrhea. Although eating may sound like the best idea, you do need to make sure that you are eating to keep both your strength and your immune system functioning properly. Eating these foods, can help you recover faster and easier.
Chamomile Tea
You have probably already heard camomile tea is excellent for a lot of maladies. It turns out that it is also one of the best home remedies for diarrhea. Camomile has soothing and calming properties. These properties help to slow digestion and it is not a tea the dehydrates you. If you do not like the taste of camomile by itself, you can also try it with honey. Another tea that helps with the symptoms of diarrhea is peppermint tea. If you have the raw herbs around, you can use peppermint combined with camomile. Caraway tea can also help with the symptoms of diarrhea.
If you are a tea drinker, it can be hard to stay away from black or even green tea. Drinking chamomile tea, caraway tea, peppermint tea, or a blend of these three teas can help you to make sure that your stomach stays calm and healthy. If you do not have chamomile or any of these other herbs available, you can brew yourself orange peel tea by peeling an orange, cutting it into very fine strips, and allowing it to steep in boiling water for a bit. This flavored with honey is one of the easy home remedies for diarrhea.
You will want to avoid any teas that contain caffeine or high concentrations of acid. Acids can cause your stomach and bowels to become even more irritated making your diarrhea worse.
Rest
It is amazing what a little bit of rest can do for your stomach and cramps. When you have diarrhea, your body is telling you something. Sometimes it might only be saying to slow down and take it easy. Rest helps your body rejuvenate and heal itself. One consequence of having diarrhea is weakness. Rest can help you get over this consequence without putting the rest of your health in jeopardy.
When you do not get enough rest, your immune system weakens. As your immune system gets weaker, your body gets weaker, and the diarrhea gets worse. When that happens, you may experience some of the more problematic consequences of having diarrhea.
This of the simplest, easiest, and cheapest home remedies for diarrhea you can use. Laying down or taking it easy for a few hours can do wonders to restore your body and stomach.
Probiotics
Probiotics are sometimes confusing. With all the modern banter about what exactly makes a probiotic, it can be difficult to understand what exactly constitutes what a probiotic is. Essentially Probiotic are healthy bacteria. It doesn’t sound great when you think about eating what is essentially bacteria, but the truth is that we need this bacteria to make sure that our digestive system is functioning properly.
When you have diarrhea, some of the natural beneficial bacteria is not present. We do a lot of things every day that kills the bacteria that is supposed to be in our stomachs and intestines to keep us healthy and digesting properly.
When we lose this bacteria, we get diarrhea. This is the primary reason you get diarrhea when you are on heavy antibiotics. The antibiotics kill the bacteria that causes an infection and the good bacteria in your stomach. In order to replace that bacteria, or at least help it grow back faster, you need things like probiotics.
The most common place you see probiotics are in active cultured yogurt. If you look at the label and it says active culture on it, then chances are it is a type of probiotic. Probiotics are also found in fermented and other cultured foodstuffs. As far as home remedies for diarrhea go, natural probiotics like the ones found in yogurt are an excellent way to help your stomach and bowels recover safely and quickly.
Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint is a natural anti-inflammatory. This means that when you ingest small amounts of it, it can help the swelling in your stomach and intestines that diarrhea can cause. Peppermint essential oil can also decrease the spasms that cause cramping and other irritating symptoms of diarrhea.
It is recommended that you use one to two drops of peppermint essential oil followed by a glass of water to help relieve the symptoms of diarrhea and abdominal distress. As one of the home remedies for diarrhea, peppermint essential oil is an effective way to help your symptoms go away quickly. Peppermint oil also has a variety of other uses.
Conclusion on Home Remedies for Diarrhea Relief
These home remedies for diarrhea are safe and effective. You also can combine them some of them in order to help you relieve the diarrhea faster. It is very important to remember that some types of diarrhea are simple and easy to explain. If you eat spicy food, are on antibiotics, or have a diagnosed condition, there is a good chance that the diarrhea will resolve itself quickly. If you do not know the cause or you suspect that it might be something other than a simple case of diarrhea, you need to seek medical treatment.
A simple case of diarrhea can be food poisoning, irritable bowel syndrome, or something much worse. If your diarrhea lasts more than three days, see a doctor. Even if you know where your diarrhea is coming from, if it persists for too long, you can compromise your overall health.
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