The most important thing to do when you have diarrhea is to replace the fluids you’re losing. Most cases of acute diarrhea resolve on their own within two to three days, but dehydration can set in fast, especially if you’re also vomiting. Beyond fluids, a few straightforward steps with diet, over-the-counter options, and hygiene will help you recover faster and keep the people around you healthy.
Start Replacing Fluids Right Away
Every loose stool pulls water and essential minerals out of your body. Plain water helps, but it doesn’t replace the sodium and potassium you’re losing. The most effective rehydration drink is an oral rehydration solution, which you can buy premixed at most pharmacies or make at home. The World Health Organization formula calls for about 6 teaspoons of sugar and half a teaspoon of salt dissolved in a liter of clean water. Store-bought versions like Pedialyte or Drip Drop follow a similar balance of glucose and electrolytes.
If you don’t have rehydration packets on hand, broth-based soups and diluted fruit juices (not full-strength, which can worsen diarrhea) are reasonable stand-ins. Sports drinks contain more sugar than ideal, but they’re better than nothing. Aim to drink small, frequent sips rather than gulping large amounts, which can trigger nausea.
You can gauge your hydration by paying attention to a few signals. Dry or sticky-feeling mouth, dark yellow urine, dizziness when standing, and feeling unusually thirsty all point to mild or moderate dehydration. If your lips or mouth feel parched and cracked, or your skin stays “tented” (pinched skin on the back of your hand stays raised instead of snapping back), you’re moving into more serious territory and should get medical help.
What to Eat (and What to Skip)
You don’t need to starve yourself or stick rigidly to the old “BRAT diet” of bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. Most experts no longer recommend a highly restricted diet during acute diarrhea. Eating helps your gut heal. The key is choosing bland, easy-to-digest foods and avoiding the specific categories that make things worse.
Foods and drinks to avoid until you’re feeling better:
- High-fat foods like fried items, pizza, and fast food
- Caffeine from coffee, tea, and some soft drinks
- Alcohol
- High-sugar foods and drinks, especially those with fructose or high-fructose corn syrup (fruit juices, candy, packaged desserts)
- Sugar alcohols found in sugar-free gum and candies (sorbitol, xylitol, mannitol)
- Dairy products containing lactose, since your gut’s ability to process lactose can be impaired for a month or more after a bout of diarrhea
Good choices include plain rice, boiled potatoes, crackers, chicken breast, eggs, oatmeal, and bananas. These are gentle on your stomach and provide calories your body needs for recovery. As your stools firm up, gradually reintroduce your normal diet.
Over-the-Counter Medications
Loperamide (the active ingredient in Imodium) slows the movement of your intestines, giving your body more time to absorb water from stool. You take one dose after the first loose bowel movement, then another after each subsequent one, up to the maximum listed on the package. Don’t exceed that daily limit, and don’t take it longer than two days without checking with a doctor.
Bismuth subsalicylate (the active ingredient in Pepto-Bismol) works differently. It reduces inflammation in the gut lining and has mild antimicrobial effects. It can turn your tongue and stool black, which is harmless but can be startling if you don’t expect it.
There are situations where you should skip these medications entirely. If you notice blood or mucus in your stool, have black tarry stools, a fever above 102°F (39°C), or severe abdominal pain, anti-diarrheal drugs can mask something more serious or even make it worse. People with inflammatory bowel conditions like ulcerative colitis should also avoid loperamide unless directed by their doctor. And loperamide should never be given to children under 2 because of the risk of serious breathing and heart problems.
Probiotics Can Shorten Recovery
Certain probiotic strains have solid evidence for reducing how long diarrhea lasts. A Cochrane review found that Saccharomyces boulardii, a beneficial yeast, cut the risk of diarrhea lasting four or more days by roughly 59%. Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, a bacterial strain, showed similar benefits, reducing the overall duration of diarrhea by about 31 hours on average and proving especially effective against rotavirus in children.
You can find both strains in supplement form at most pharmacies. Look for the specific strain name on the label, since not all probiotics are interchangeable. Starting them early in the course of illness appears to give the best results. Yogurt with live cultures provides some probiotic benefit, but the strain types and quantities are less consistent than a targeted supplement.
Keeping It From Spreading
Most acute diarrhea is caused by viruses like norovirus or rotavirus, and these spread incredibly easily. A tiny amount of virus on a doorknob or countertop is enough to infect someone else. Thorough hand washing with soap and water (not just hand sanitizer, which is less effective against norovirus) is the single best defense. Everyone in the household should wash their hands before eating and after using the bathroom.
If you’re the one who’s sick, stay out of the kitchen and away from food prep areas. Clean any surfaces that might be contaminated, particularly in bathrooms, using a bleach-based household cleaner. Wear disposable gloves during cleanup. Wash contaminated clothing or linens separately in hot water.
Special Considerations for Children
Children dehydrate faster than adults, and their warning signs look a little different. In babies, watch for few or no tears when crying, a dry mouth, fewer wet diapers than usual, and unusual drowsiness or fussiness. For toddlers and older kids, sunken-looking eyes, listlessness, and going more than a few hours without urinating are red flags.
The rehydration approach for young children requires patience. Start with one or two teaspoons of oral rehydration solution every one to two minutes. That tiny amount adds up to over a cup per hour and is far more likely to stay down than larger gulps. Keep breastfeeding or formula feeding alongside the rehydration fluids. If your child’s diarrhea doesn’t improve within 24 hours, or if they develop a fever above 102°F or bloody stools, they need medical attention promptly.
Signs That Need Medical Attention
Most diarrhea clears up within a couple of days. But certain symptoms signal something beyond a routine stomach bug. For adults, seek care if diarrhea persists beyond two days without any improvement, if you develop a fever above 102°F (39°C), or if you see blood or black coloring in your stool. Severe or worsening abdominal pain, signs of significant dehydration (dizziness, confusion, very dark urine, inability to keep fluids down), and diarrhea that started during or right after a course of antibiotics are also reasons to get evaluated rather than wait it out.