Most often the cause of the problem in diarrhea is dehydration or loss of water.
Suitable drinks to prevent a child from losing too much liquid during diarrhea are
- Breast milk.
- Gruels (mixtures of cooked cereals and water).
- Rice water.
- Fresh fruit juices.
- Oral rehydration salts solution (ORS).
- Loose stools continue for a long time.
- Is feverish.
- Is extremely thirsty.
- Will not eat or drink normally.
- Vomits frequently.
- Passes several watery stools in one or two hours.
- Passes blood in the stools (a sign of dysentery).
- If the diarrhea persists for more than two weeks.
High degree of medicines are not required in diarrhea.
- Medicines are unnecessary in diarrhea as they get passed out in the stools. Hence, it is more important to replenish the body’s food and water loss than treat the cause which eventually heals itself.
- Antibiotics are only required when there is blood in the stool, not otherwise.
Food has to be given to diarrhea patients.
- Food is essential to stop diarrhea. It maintains the health of the body. Stopping food will weaken the body and only make the diarrhea worse.
- Even if appetite is less, the person must be fed.
- Even after the diarrhea stops, a person is not fully fit. He must gain the weight lost due to the infection. This can only be done by meeting his excess craving for food. He must be given that extra meal for at least a week after the infection has subsided.
A special drink for diarrhea can be made by using a packet of Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS). It can also be used in the home to prevent and treat dehydration.
To make the drink
- Dissolve the contents of the packet in the amount of water indicated on the packet.
- Stir well and give it to the child to drink in a cup or feed him/her with a spoon.