The most important thing you can do during a stomach bug is stay hydrated, eat as soon as you can tolerate food, and wait it out. Most viral gastroenteritis runs its course in 3 to 8 days. There’s no cure that kills the virus, but several strategies can meaningfully reduce how long you feel miserable and help you avoid the main danger: dehydration.
Hydration Is the Top Priority
Vomiting and diarrhea drain your body of water and electrolytes fast. Replacing both is the single most effective thing you can do. Plain water alone isn’t ideal because it lacks the sodium and glucose your gut needs to actually absorb the fluid. The best absorption happens when sodium and glucose arrive in a 1:1 ratio, which is why oral rehydration solutions (like Pedialyte or store-brand equivalents) work better than water, juice, or sports drinks.
If you can’t get to a store, you can approximate an oral rehydration solution at home: about half a teaspoon of salt and six teaspoons of sugar dissolved in a liter of clean water. Sip small amounts frequently rather than gulping large volumes, especially if you’re still vomiting. Taking a few tablespoons every five minutes is easier to keep down than drinking a full glass at once.
Avoid anything with caffeine. It speeds up contractions in your digestive tract, which can worsen diarrhea and push you further into dehydration. Sugary sodas and fruit juices are also poor choices. Excess sugar that doesn’t absorb well in an already irritated gut draws more water into your bowels, making diarrhea worse.
Eat Sooner Than You Think
The old advice to stick to the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) or to avoid solid food until symptoms fully stop is outdated. The CDC now recommends returning to a normal, unrestricted diet as quickly as you can tolerate it. Prolonged fasting or overly restrictive diets can actually slow recovery by depriving your gut of the nutrients it needs to repair itself. In some cases, extended “gut rest” has been linked to worsening malnutrition after gastroenteritis.
Good early choices include complex carbohydrates (bread, rice, potatoes), lean meats, yogurt, fruits, and vegetables. You don’t need to force yourself, but when you feel ready to nibble, go ahead. Start with small portions and build from there.
Two categories of food are worth avoiding until you’re feeling better. Dairy products (other than yogurt) can be hard to digest because your inflamed gut temporarily produces less of the enzyme that breaks down lactose. High-fat foods also slow digestion in ways that can increase nausea and discomfort.
Over-the-Counter Medications
For adults, loperamide (Imodium) can slow diarrhea, and bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol) can help with nausea and loose stools. Neither one fights the virus itself, but both can make the experience more bearable, especially if you need to function during the day or sleep through the night.
There are important exceptions. Skip these medications entirely if you have a fever above 102°F or notice blood in your stool. Those are signs of a more serious infection that your body needs to flush out, not slow down. Children should not take over-the-counter anti-diarrheal medications unless a doctor specifically recommends it, because the drugs can interfere with the body’s ability to clear the virus.
Probiotics Can Shorten Recovery
One specific probiotic strain, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (often labeled LGG on packaging), has strong evidence behind it for reducing diarrhea duration. A meta-analysis of seven trials covering nearly 900 children found it shortened diarrhea by about one day on average. The key is dose and timing: you need at least 10 billion colony-forming units (CFU) per day, started as early as possible, and continued for 5 to 7 days. Check the label, because many commercial probiotics contain far fewer CFUs or different strains.
While most of the research has been done in children, the same strain is widely available in adult formulations. It won’t perform miracles, but shaving a day off a miserable illness is worth the cost of a supplement.
What to Watch For
Mild to moderate dehydration can be managed at home with fluids. But severe dehydration requires medical treatment. In adults, warning signs include urinating very little, feeling confused or unusually drowsy, rapid heartbeat, and an inability to keep any fluids down. In infants and young children, look for no wet diapers for three or more hours, a dry mouth, crying without tears, or unusual irritability.
Other reasons to seek medical care: diarrhea lasting more than 24 hours with no improvement, a fever of 102°F or higher, or bloody or black stool. These can signal a bacterial infection or another condition that needs different treatment.
How Long a Stomach Bug Lasts
Most stomach bugs are caused by norovirus or rotavirus. Symptoms typically begin about two days after exposure. Vomiting often peaks in the first day or two, while watery diarrhea can persist for 3 to 8 days. You’re contagious from the moment symptoms start and for at least a few days after they resolve, so hygiene during this window matters.
Preventing Spread at Home
Norovirus is extraordinarily contagious. It takes only a tiny number of viral particles to infect someone, and the virus is tough enough to survive on surfaces for days. One critical fact: alcohol-based hand sanitizers do not work against norovirus. The virus has a thick protein shell that alcohol can’t penetrate. Washing your hands with soap and water is the only reliable method, because the physical friction removes viral particles from your skin.
If someone in your household is sick, clean contaminated surfaces with a bleach-based cleaner, wash soiled clothing and bedding on the hottest setting, and keep towels and utensils separate. The sick person should avoid preparing food for others until at least two days after symptoms stop.
Extra Considerations for Children
Children are more vulnerable to dehydration simply because they’re smaller. Oral rehydration solutions like Pedialyte are the first-line approach. Breastfed infants should continue breastfeeding, as breast milk provides both fluids and nutrients. For older children, the same advice applies as for adults: return to a normal diet as soon as possible rather than restricting to bland foods.
The World Health Organization recommends zinc supplementation for children with acute diarrhea: 20 mg per day for 10 to 14 days, or 10 mg per day for infants under six months. Zinc helps the gut lining recover and has been shown to reduce the severity and duration of diarrheal episodes. This recommendation is especially relevant in settings where zinc deficiency is common, but it’s a low-risk supplement worth discussing with your child’s pediatrician.