Diarrhea – Causes and cure

Posted by sanjay on Monday 06 Apr 2009

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Diarrhea is a disorder of the stomach that calls for a very frequent bowel movement for release of partially-formed stool along with water. Generally, in the common man’s language, it is referred to as loose motions or stomach disorder. Diarrhea may strike anybody, irrespective of age or gender, though children are more prone to it and its attack can be from mild to severe.

Under such conditions, the human intestine is unable to properly absorb the volume of water present in body system. Under normal circumstances, intestines soak up water that is continuously released by liver, stomach and pancreas along with the water contained in food that we consume. The inability of the intestine to soak water prompts the system to throw it out along with stool, which barely gets time to get fully formed.

Our body holds a large volume of water. When struck by diarrhea, a large amount of it is driven out of the body. As a consequence, water content of the body is reduced and it causes dryness. It is therefore very important to keep supplying the system with fluids in the form of juices, cold soups or a mixture of water and lemon with a bit of salt or sugar. It is not unusual for diarrhea to be accompanied with pain in the stomach, low or mild fever, vomiting and nausea, plus dryness of the mouth because of dehydration.

Eating beyond one’s capacity, indigestion of food, food poisoning or eating contaminated food are the chief reasons for diarrhea. At times, bacterial infection can be the cause of this stomach disorder. Though not a serious ailment, it should get a timely treatment to prevent it from adversely affecting other organs.

If one is able to ensure sufficient feeding of fluids, diarrhea may well be treated at home by the application of one or the other of the following home remedies.

A very quick and safe way of fixing the problem is to have a ripe banana with curds. Just slice the banana into a bowlful of curds, add a bit of sugar if needed and give the patient small feeds two or three times a day.

It is recommended to drink barley water, arrowroot water or coconut water and butter milk. Ginger is also good for relieving stomach pain. Ginger juice with a dash of lemon dissolved in water may be fed in small, frequent doses. A little salt or a bit of sugar dissolved in the mixture goes well to compensate for the salts lost by the body.