Diarrhea – Most Important Things to know

Diarrhea – Most Important Things to know
Diarrhea is not a new thing for all of us. As human beings, we will have to deal with diarrhea episodes once in a while. As such, diarrhea can range from a mild, acute condition, to a severe, life-threatening one. According to various health reports, around two billion diarrheal cases are reported across the world every year and around 1.9 million children death cases are reported, especially in developing nations, due to this condition. Here, in this article, let’s review the most important things about this common health condition. This article will not only help you understand the condition in a better way but also will help you deal with the condition in the appropriate manner. So, keep reading…
Diarrhea – What is it?
This part doesn’t need much explanation as we are all aware that diarrhea is a health condition that will be characterized by watery/loose stools. Now, if we dig deep into the causes, we can understand that a majority of cases are caused by microbes like bacteria, viruses, and parasites. As you might be aware already, most often, the symptoms of diarrhea will subside on its own in a day or two, without having to treat it. Such types of diarrhea that last only for a couple of days are called “acute diarrhea”. This is a common health condition that can be faced by people of any age. Alternately, if a case of diarrhea lasts for 4 weeks or more, it will be called “chronic diarrhea”. Most often, a case of chronic diarrhea will indicate an underlying condition.
What causes it?
As mentioned above, acute diarrhea is most commonly caused by an infectious microorganism. The most typical causal organisms are:

• Salmonella
• Norovirus
• Rotavirus
• Giardia

Diarrhea that is being caused by any of these infectious invasions is called “Gastroenteritis”. On the other hand, the most typical causes of chronic diarrhea are:

• Gluten intolerance
• Lactose intolerance
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Chronic bowel infection
• Crohn’s disease
• Ulcerative colitis
• Bowel cancer

If you suspect that you are dealing with any of these conditions, you must see your doctor immediately. In addition to these common causes, a chronic diarrhea episode can also be caused by certain medications like antibiotics and cancer medications.
What are the signs and symptoms of diarrhea?
Yes, of course, the primary symptom of diarrhea will be the frequent passage of stools that are loose and watery. In addition to this, there may be some other signs that might be accompanying, which are:

• An urgency to use toilets
• Pain in the abdomen
• Cramps
• Change in the stool colors
• Presence of mucus, pus, blood, and/or fat in the stools
• Vomiting
• Weakness
• Fatigue
• Loss of bowel movement control
• Nausea
• Fever
• Chills
• Light-headedness
• Dizziness
• Dehydration
• Malabsorption

How will it be diagnosed?
As the signs of diarrhea are obvious, usually, it will be diagnosed with its symptoms. However, if a case of diarrhea lasts longer than 2 or 3 days, and is accompanied by other symptoms, you will require some other diagnostic procedures as well. Those will include:

• Stool culture for infection
• Blood tests
• Fasting tests
• Sigmoidoscopy
• Colonoscopy

What are the treatment options for diarrhea?
As mentioned earlier, mild cases of the condition do not require any treatment as it would resolve by itself in a day or two. But, the chronic or persistent cases of diarrhea shouldn’t be left untreated as it could cause the life of the person. In such situations, the underlying causes will have to be diagnosed and treated. See the treatment options below:
Dehydration:
For any case of diarrhea, rehydration plays an important part. For the most part, fluids can be simply replaced by taking more fluids, orally or intravenously. Oral rehydration salts (ORS), which denote the water that contains salt and sugar contents, are recommended as they will be absorbed by your small intestine to substitute for the loss of water and electrolytes through the stools. Vitalyte ORS is one such good ORS drink that comes loaded with vitamin C. By taking this, you can decrease the severity and length of diarrhea.
Medications:
To help alleviate the symptoms of diarrhea, you can consider taking some over-the-counter anti-diarrheal medicines. As you might have heard, Loperamide is a commonly used drug to help reduce the passage of stools. Another common product will be Bismuth subsalicylate, which can help in reducing the stool output in both children and adults. This can also be used to avoid traveler’s diarrhea.
Antibiotics:
Remember, antibiotics can be used to treat diarrhea only if it’s caused by a bacterium.
Probiotics:
Although probiotics is a relatively new term, it has become popular recently for its role in diarrhea. Some evidence suggests that it could be used to avoid traveler’s diarrhea. There is also evidence that it could help decrease the illness caused by diarrhea in children. Moreover, there is also evidence that probiotics will help decrease antibiotic-associated diarrhea.
The products like Lactobion Forte Capsules will be a great choice when it comes to probiotics for diarrhea. The product is a perfect combination of probiotics and B-vitamins. The composition of Lactobion Forte is as follows:

• Lactic Acid Bacillus
• Vitamin B6
• Vitamin B12
• Biotin
• Niacinamide
• Folic Acid

How does it work? Well, the use of antibiotics will often change the healthy gut flora in your body, thereby, leading to the complications like antibiotic resistance and abnormal growth of diarrhea-causing bacteria. The Lactic Acid Bacillus, in the form of Lactobion Forte Capsules, when introduced into the gastrointestinal gut, it will start promoting the growth of normal microbiota in the body. In addition, it will also interact with the host cellular structures and contribute to energy synthesis. On another side, the vitamins will act as co-enzymes in several metabolic reactions of your body. Thus, this probiotic product is not only helping in reducing the diarrhea symptoms but also helps in the speedy recovery as well. For more details on the product, click here.