Having a storm in your stomach? - Diarrhoea
Having a storm in your stomach? How to prevent it next time?
Diarrhea or loose watery stool may be associated with other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, bloating, abdominal pain and cramp.
Chronic or long term diarrhea may prompt us to investigate further into one's condition as one may have other underlying disorder, i.e Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
A raging storm in the stomach might not necessarily due to ingestion of uncleaned, undercooked food. It can also be due to other factors such as viruses, bacteria, medications, as well as intolerance to milk, lactose, etc.
Diarrhea, if left untreated, may cause oneself to be dehydrated and can be fatal. Replenishment of fluid is crucial for those who are suffering with diarrhea.
For food poisoning-induced diarrhea, we can pop some activated charcoal tablets to bind with the ingested toxins, preferably within 4 hours of ingestion. The adult dose of activated charcoal tabs can be given up to 500-1000mg thrice or four times daily. For children, their dose are usually half of the adult ones. However, the most accurate dosage will be dependent on the severity of the diarrhea.
Other than that, for adult, one may take loperamide 4mg STAT, followed by 2mg post each loose stool. Hyoscine 10mg three times a day may be taken to relieve the stomach spasm as well.
For those who are frequently facing diarrhea problem, probiotics consumption is recommended. A meta-analysis from Cochrane by Allen S.J. et al found that probiotics reduced the mean duration of diarrhea.
On the other hand, medication-induced diarrhea can be associated with consumption of antibiotics. Taking antibiotics can leave an impact on the gut microbiome. Taking probiotics, with intervals between antibiotics, can helps to reduce the risk of diarrhea.
So, for those who are with weaker stomach, you may consider to start yourself with a good strain of probiotics.
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Reference:
1. Allen S.J., Martinez E.G., Gregorio G.V., et al. Probiotics for treating acute infectious diarrhoea. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2010; (11).
2. Cimperman L., Bayless G., Best K., et al. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study of Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC 55730 for the prevention of antibioticassociated diarrhea in hospitalized adults. J Clin Gastroenterol. 2011 Oct;45(9):785-9.