The best foods for diarrhea are bland, low-fiber options that help firm up your stool: white rice, bananas, plain toast, boiled potatoes, and baked chicken without the skin. These foods are easy to digest and won’t irritate your gut further. But what you avoid matters just as much as what you eat, and getting back to a normal diet sooner than you might expect is actually the right move.
The BRAT Diet and Beyond
The classic recommendation is the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. Each of these works for a specific reason. Bananas contain starch that absorbs water in your colon, helping to firm up loose stool. White rice is gentler on your stomach than brown rice because it has less fiber. Unsweetened applesauce provides soluble fiber, which dissolves in water and forms a gel-like material that slows digestion. Plain white toast is easier to digest than whole grain.
You don’t have to limit yourself to just those four foods, though. Oatmeal, dry cereal, peeled boiled or baked potatoes, and skinless baked chicken are all safe additions that give you more nutrition without upsetting your stomach. The common thread is that these foods are low in fat, low in insoluble fiber, and free of strong spices.
You Don’t Need to Restrict Your Diet for Long
Most experts no longer recommend sticking to a highly restricted diet like BRAT for more than a day or so. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases advises that once you feel like eating again, you can return to your normal diet. Children with acute diarrhea should continue eating their usual age-appropriate foods, and infants should stay on breast milk or formula.
This might feel counterintuitive, but a Cochrane review of multiple trials found no evidence that eating solid food early (within 12 hours of rehydrating) increases complications or prolongs diarrhea compared to waiting longer. The length of recovery was essentially the same whether people resumed eating early or late. So if you’re hungry, eat. There’s no benefit to starving yourself through a bout of diarrhea.
Hydration Matters More Than Food
Replacing lost fluids and electrolytes is the single most important thing you can do. Water alone isn’t enough because diarrhea drains sodium, potassium, and other minerals your body needs. Broth is one of the best options since it contains both water and salt. Sports drinks and oral rehydration solutions also work well because they combine water, glucose, and electrolytes in a ratio your body absorbs efficiently.
Sip throughout the day rather than drinking large amounts at once. If you’re urinating less than usual, your urine is dark, or you feel dizzy and confused, you’re getting dehydrated. In children, watch for a dry mouth, no tears when crying, sunken eyes, or no wet diapers for three hours. These signs mean fluid replacement isn’t keeping up and you need medical help.
Foods and Drinks That Make Diarrhea Worse
Some foods actively pull water into your intestines, which is the opposite of what you want. The biggest culprits are certain sugars your body has trouble absorbing.
- Fructose: Found naturally in peaches, pears, cherries, and apples, and added to sodas and juice drinks. Ingesting more than 40 to 80 grams per day causes diarrhea in many people, and that threshold drops when your gut is already irritated.
- Artificial sweeteners: Sorbitol, mannitol, and xylitol (common in sugar-free gum, candy, and some medications) are poorly absorbed and draw water into your bowel.
- Lactose: The sugar in dairy products. Milk, soft cheese, and ice cream can worsen diarrhea, especially if you already have some degree of lactose intolerance, which is common during gut infections.
- Fatty or greasy foods: These speed up gut contractions and are harder to digest when your intestinal lining is inflamed.
- Caffeine and alcohol: Both stimulate your intestines and promote fluid loss.
Fructose, artificial sweeteners, and lactose all belong to a group of poorly digested sugars called FODMAPs. During a bout of diarrhea, your gut is temporarily less efficient at absorbing these sugars, so even amounts you’d normally tolerate can cause problems.
Probiotic Foods May Shorten Recovery
Probiotics, whether from food or supplements, can reduce how long diarrhea lasts. A Cochrane review of multiple trials found that probiotics shortened the average duration of diarrhea by about 30 hours and reduced the risk of diarrhea still persisting at day three by roughly a third. Two strains had the strongest evidence behind them: Lactobacillus GG (found in some yogurts and supplements) was particularly effective against rotavirus diarrhea in children, and Saccharomyces boulardii (a beneficial yeast available as a supplement) also reduced stool frequency significantly by day three.
If you’re going to try probiotic foods, plain yogurt with live active cultures is the most accessible option. Just make sure it’s low in added sugar and that you can tolerate the lactose. Fermented foods like kefir, miso, and sauerkraut also contain beneficial bacteria, though the specific strains and amounts vary.
A Practical Eating Plan
For the first several hours, focus on fluids: broth, diluted sports drinks, water, and oral rehydration solutions. Once your appetite returns, start with the easy standbys: white rice, a banana, plain toast, or a peeled boiled potato. You don’t need to eat large meals. Small, frequent portions are easier on your gut.
Within 12 to 24 hours, you can begin adding lean proteins like skinless chicken and other mild foods you normally enjoy. Gradually reintroduce vegetables and whole grains over the next day or two, paying attention to how your stomach responds. Hold off on dairy, high-fructose fruits, fried foods, and anything sweetened with sugar alcohols until your stools have been normal for a full day.
If diarrhea persists beyond 24 to 48 hours despite eating well and staying hydrated, or if you notice signs of dehydration like dark urine, dizziness, or confusion, that’s a signal your body needs more than dietary management alone.