Did you just return from a farewell dinner feeling sick in the stomach? While stomach pain in itself can be rather bothersome, when accompanied with loose motions, it can leave you feeling drained out and miserable. If you are suffering from loose motions, feel relieved that you can treat yourself with a number of natural remedies right at home! Let us take you through a comprehensive list of home remedies for loose motion.
Loose motion is the frequent passage of stool that is loose or watery. Watery bowel movement once in a while is quite common and nothing to worry about. It may be due to an infection in the intestine or some bad food that you would have consumed. It is in a way, flushing out the toxins from the body. Usually, the colon absorbs the excess water in faecal material and leaves solid wastes to be excreted. Loose motion occurs when more fluids pass through the intestine without getting absorbed. The electrolytes get disturbed, and more fluids pass through the colon causing loose motion.
Loose motion is worrisome when you pass stools more than three times in a day. Since the body is excreting more fluids, it can cause a water imbalance in the body called dehydration (1). Dehydration can be life threatening if not treated in time.
Loose motion has various causes. They are:
When some food upsets the digestive system. Viruses, bacteria, and parasites cause loose stools. noroviruses, rotaviruses, sapoviruses, astroviruses, and certain adenoviruses, Salmonella species, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella species, Entamoebahistolytica, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, can all cause loose motions.
Excessive sugar intake can increase the water content in the stool causing loose motions. The small intestine has only a limited capacity to digest certain kinds of sugar and intake of large quantities of these sugars can cause loose motions.
Various people suffer from lactose intolerance as they have low levels of intestinal lactase. Intake of a large quantity of milk or dairy products can cause loose motions (2).
Overeating can also be a major cause for loose motions (3). Too much food, which is unabsorbed by the body, is excreted in the form of a loose motion.
When a person is suffering from stress and anxiety, it puts a deal of pressure on the body and hormones. This in turn affects digestion and causes loose emotion (4).
Loose motion is many a time one of the side effects of chemotherapy or radiation (5). While one cannot stop the treatment, a few small changes in eating patterns and diet can help control loose motions.
Sometimes there is a need to impair the breakdown of dietary fats, starches, and proteins due to the decreased production or release of pancreatic digestive juices. This causes malabsorption and loose motion. Cystic fibrosis and pancreatitis are also reasons for malabsorption.
Loose motions can be accompanied by stomach cramps, stomach ache, bloating and loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, or fever. If there is fever, it indicates an infection. If left untreated, it can lead to various complications, which can be fatal.
Sometimes loose motion cures on its own. After passing loose stool 2-3 times, it stops on its own. If the loose motion does not stop after three times and it carries on, then there are various home remedies that can help. These home remedies are natural cures with ingredients that are usually found within the home. They are quite safe and help stop loose stools easily if the cause is not very serious.
If the frequency of loose motion is more, then it becomes imperative to stop it immediately to prevent dehydration that can be life threatening. It is important to change the diet pattern if you are suffering from loose motions.
Avoid all kinds of spicy, too salty, too sugary, and oily food that can aggravate it. Intake of water should be increased to prevent dehydration. Coconut water, buttermilk, or lemon juice is also useful.
Here are some of the home remedies that you can try:
The WHO has recommended ORS or Oral rehydration solution, which helps to stop mild cases of loose motion and helps in combating dehydration (6). ORS is easy to make. Combine 1 liter of water, ¾ teaspoon salt, 1cup orange juice, and 1 teaspoon baking powder. If you do not have orange juice, you can always add a teaspoon of sugar to the solution. Sipping the solution throughout the day helps to hydrate the body and stops loose motions. Consumption of ORS is one of the best home remedies for loose motion in kids.
PREV POST PAGE 1 2NEXT