Diarrhea Home Remedies

What is Diarrhea

Diarrhea also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having three or more loose or liquid bowel movements per day. It is a common cause of death in developing countries and the second most common cause of infant deaths worldwide.

Diarrhea is uncomfortable and unpleasant, but generally no big deal in otherwise healthy adults. However, if diarrhea becomes a chronic condition, the situation changes. Or if it affects the very young, the elderly, or the chronically ill, it can be dangerous. And if you're not careful to drink enough fluids, you could find yourself complicating what should have been a simple enough situation. In this article, you will find the diarrhea home remedies you can follow to keep yourself healthy while you are battling diarrhea. You will also find out what to do in more extreme cases of diarrhea. But first, we will start with some more general information.

Causes and Risk Factors of Diarrhea

A hundred or more different diseases can be associated with diarrhea. Fortunately, most of the severe causes are rare and the most common form is the one that affects most of us for a few days each year. It is due to a simple infection, usually caused by a virus.

Bacterial infections can cause more serious cases of diarrhea as a result of eating contaminated food or drinks (food poisoning). Common bacteria are campylobacter, salmonellae, and shigella organisms; less common are Escherichia coli (E coli), yersinial, listerial, and cryptosporidial bacteria. These can cause fairly severe diarrhea with vomiting, abdominal cramping and fever.

The more serious causes include ulcerative colitis (when blood is usually present in the stools), regional ileitis (Crohn's disease), some forms of intestinal cancer (when pain and weight loss might also be present), and some disorders of the intestine that lead to poor digestion of food.

"Nervous diarrhea," in its more severe form a component of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), is very common and often shows up briefly when we face the stress of a term paper or a job interview. However, some people suffer nervous stress fairly constantly and may have continuous diarrhea because of it.

Symptoms of Diarrhea

The common illness, which may last several days, often called "intestinal flu," is often due to one of a number of viruses that infect the bowel, making it weep fluid. The excess of fluid in the bowel leads to liquid stools. The inflammation may also be associated with cramping abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting.

Other common infectious diarrheas may be caused by bacteria. These bacteria irritate the bowel and make it pour out fluid. The inflammation may also be associated with cramping abdominal pain. "Travelers' diarrhea" is due to particular bacteria common in certain areas of the world.