Table of Contents
How Diarrhoea is Triggered?
Around 1.5 to 5 billion people suffer from diarrhoea every year. Mostly younger children suffer diarrhea due to Dehydration, malnutrition and die from it.
What is Diarrhoea?
Diarrhea is also known as diarrhoea is a condition when you have a loose, watery stool or frequently you need to have a bowel movement. Diarrhoea affects everyone at any point in time. Suffering from it is very unpleasant and it goes without any treatment after a few days.
Diarrhea can last for 3 days to few weeks and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. It is mainly caused due to gastroenteritis infection on the intestine caused by bacteria, viruses, and parasites. You acquire this infection from contaminated food and water or by coming in contact with infected people’s
Diarrhoea lasts for not more than 2 days commonly known as acute diarrhoea and if it lasts for weeks then it is termed chronic diarrhoea which is caused due to some underlying medical conditions or chronic diseases.
Causes
Diarrhea is mainly caused due to the infection caused by bacteria (salmonella), virus(rotavirus), parasites (Giardia) in the stomach and intestine commonly known as gastroenteritis.
This is how diarrhoea is triggered. Acute diarrhea is caused by this infection whereas chronic diarrhoea is caused mainly due to chronic inflammatory diseases like coeliac disease, Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn’s disease, hyperthyroidism, etc.
Diarrhoea is also caused due to drinking excessive alcohol or coffee. Often remaining stress can also cause diarrhea. Those people who travel too often also suffer from diarrhoea which is termed as travellers diarrhoea.
Read More: Vomiting Causes
Diarrhoea Symptoms
There are many symptoms of this disease and you can experience any of the symptoms depending upon the cause of the disease like
- Nausea
- Dehydration
- Abdominal cramps
- Blood in stool
- Loose or watery stool
- Frequently needs to defecate
Dehydration is the most severe symptom of diarrhoea mostly in the case of infants and if you don’t treat it you may receive harmful effects. Some symptoms of diarrhea include dry mouth, fatigue, decreased urination, irritation, and headache.
Read More: Stomach Gas Symptoms
Treatment
Usually, diarrhoea resolves on its own in few days. Diarrhea is often treated by balancing the fluids and electrolytes lost due to frequent defecation. You can replace the lost water and electrolytes by taking oral rehydration solutions available in the medical stores.
If you are suffering from chronic diar
then you need to visit a doctor and your doctor may prescribe you some antidiarrho and antibiotics drugs depending upon the severity of dehydration, underlying diseases, the severity of diarrhea. Intravenous fluids are also administered depending upon the severity.
Read More: Fever Treatment
Complications
The main complications of diarrhoea are Dehydration and malabsorption. Diarrhea also indicates the presence of other chronic diseases.
Precaution
During diarrhea you may feel uncomfortable and unpleasant acute diarrhoea is caused due to infections and can be passed from person to person can be prevented by
- Proper handwashing and hygiene measures to be followed
- Eat properly cooked food
- Avoid oily and spicy food
- Keep yourself hydrated
- Avoid using tap water for cooking or washing
- Wash your hands after using the toilet
- Keep your toilets clean
Read More: Heartburn Precaution