Diarrhoea

Diarrhoea is when your stools are watery and loose. You may need to go to the toilet often, like 4 times or more a day, to pass loose stools. Diarrhoea is a common condition that affects many people a few times each year. In most cases, it is not a serious condition and goes away within 2 to 3 days. However, diarrhoea that lasts longer than a week or more may be caused by a serious condition.

Diarrhoea is a common symptom that most people experience once in a while. Common causes of diarrhoea are eating food contaminated by bacteria or drinking water contaminated by bacteria. Other regular causes include:

• Lactose intolerance: some people cannot properly digest milk and milk products.
• Food allergies: some people are allergic to certain foods (e.g. wheat, shellfish) that upset their digestive system.
• Intestinal disease: diseases like Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis can cause frequent diarrhoea.
• Alcohol and other drugs can cause diarrhoea during and after hangovers.
• People who run as an exercise can develop diarrhoea.

Diarrhoea should resolve within 2 or 3 days. However, contact your nearest hospital if:

• You are vomiting alongside diarrhoea.
• Your diarrhoea is accompanied by severe pain in your tummy.
• There is blood in your stool, or your stool appears black.
• You have a fever of 38^oC or more.
• Your diarrhoea will not go away after 3 days or more.
• You have chest pain, or your heart is beating unusually fast.

You can prevent diarrhoea by practising personal hygiene (including regular handwashing with soap) and food hygiene (like washing fruits properly, drinking only water that has been boiled and cooled, and cooking with clean water). In children, you can prevent diarrhoea through a vaccine (rotavirus), giving on breastfeeding to infants and to practice breastfeeding hygiene (including handwashing).

Self-Care Tips:

• Wash your hand regularly: after going to the toilet, before and after cooking, and before and after eating.
• Use only clean water for drinking and cooking.
• Do not cook food if you are sick, and do not eat food that has been cooked by ill people.
• When you travel to another town or country, take extra care when eating out to avoid eating contaminated or unfamiliar food that may cause diarrhoea.

Medical Treatment:

When you have diarrhoea, constant pooping means you are losing bodily fluids quickly. Diarrhoea treatment mainly focuses on replacing lost fluids. And treatment includes:

• Oral rehydration solution (ORS) that helps restore important minerals that are lost due to diarrhoea. You can by sachets at a pharmacy or you can prepare a homemade solution, a mixture of half a teaspoonful of salt, six teaspoonfuls of table sugar and one litre of clean and boiled drinking water. Use up the solution within a day.
• Zinc is also an important supplement that can reduce the duration of diarrhoea.
• Your healthcare provider may recommend antibiotics and antiparasitic medication to eliminate the cause of an infection.

Diarrhoea can affect your daily activities, so you should take steps to prevent it. Keep your home and surroundings clean and cook y0ur food properly to kill bacteria or parasites that may be present. Diarrhoea is a serious problem when it leads to dehydration- continue to drink plenty of water or use ORS to prevent this from happening.