The most important thing to do when you have diarrhea is replace the fluid and electrolytes your body is losing. Most cases resolve on their own within two to three days, but dehydration is the real danger, especially if you’re having frequent watery stools. Beyond fluids, a few smart choices around food, hygiene, and over-the-counter options can help you feel better faster and keep from spreading whatever caused it.
Start Replacing Fluids Immediately
Every loose stool pulls water, sodium, and potassium out of your body. Plain water alone won’t cut it because it doesn’t replace those lost electrolytes. Your best option is an oral rehydration solution, which you can buy at any pharmacy or make at home using the World Health Organization’s recipe: about 4 cups of water, half a teaspoon of salt, and 2 tablespoons of sugar. The sugar isn’t just for taste. It helps your intestines absorb sodium and water more efficiently.
If you don’t want to mix your own, store-bought electrolyte drinks work. You can also dilute 100% fruit juice (three-quarters cup of apple or grape juice in about 3 cups of water with half a teaspoon of salt) or use broth-based alternatives like chicken bouillon dissolved in water with a small amount of sugar. The key is sipping steadily throughout the day rather than gulping large amounts at once, which can trigger more cramping.
What to Eat (and What to Skip)
You’ve probably heard of the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. It’s a reasonable starting point for the first day or two, but there’s no clinical evidence that restricting yourself to only those four foods helps more than eating a broader range of gentle options. Brothy soups, oatmeal, boiled potatoes, crackers, and plain dry cereal are all easy on your digestive system and worth adding to the rotation. Once your stools start firming up, bring in more nutritious foods like cooked carrots, sweet potatoes without skin, skinless chicken or turkey, fish, eggs, and avocado.
What you avoid matters just as much as what you eat. Steer clear of:
- Sugary foods and drinks like candy, soda, cakes, and desserts. Excess sugar draws extra water into the colon, making diarrhea worse.
- Dairy products including milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, and ice cream.
- Fried and fatty foods like French fries, doughnuts, and chips. Fat lingers in the stomach and can increase nausea.
- Caffeine and alcohol, which both speed up gut motility and worsen dehydration.
- High-fiber roughage such as leafy greens, popcorn, nuts, seeds, beans, and fruit or vegetable skins.
- Spicy or acidic foods like hot sauce, citrus fruits, tomato sauce, and vinegar-based dressings.
Over-the-Counter Medications
Loperamide (the active ingredient in Imodium) slows down your intestines and reduces the frequency of loose stools. The standard adult dose is two tablets or capsules after the first loose bowel movement, then one after each subsequent one, up to a maximum of four tablets in 24 hours for the over-the-counter version. It works well for plain, uncomplicated diarrhea, like a stomach bug or something you ate.
Do not take loperamide if you have bloody or black stools, a high fever, or severe abdominal pain. These signs suggest a bacterial infection or inflammatory condition where slowing your gut down could actually make things worse. Bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol) is another option that can reduce stool frequency and ease nausea, though it will temporarily turn your tongue and stool black, which is harmless.
Probiotics Can Shorten the Duration
Two probiotic strains have the strongest clinical backing for diarrhea: Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (often labeled LGG) and Saccharomyces boulardii. Both have been shown to reduce the duration of acute infectious diarrhea by roughly one day. That might not sound dramatic, but when you’re miserable, cutting a day off matters.
If your diarrhea is caused by antibiotics, these same strains are particularly useful. In clinical trials, Saccharomyces boulardii cut the rate of antibiotic-associated diarrhea roughly in half in both adults and children. LGG showed similar results, reducing the risk by as much as 71% in children when given alongside antibiotics. Look for products containing at least 10 billion colony-forming units per day, and start taking them as soon as symptoms begin or, if you’re on antibiotics, at the same time you start your prescription.
Prevent Spreading It to Others
Many causes of diarrhea are contagious, particularly viral gastroenteritis and bacterial infections. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water after every bathroom visit, before preparing food, and before eating. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are less effective against some of the toughest diarrheal pathogens, so soap and water is the better choice here.
Clean frequently touched surfaces in your home, especially bathroom doorknobs, faucet handles, toilet seats, and countertops, using hot water with soap or a bleach-containing household cleaner. If you’re cleaning up any bodily fluids, wear disposable gloves and wash your hands after removing them. Don’t prepare food for others while you’re symptomatic.
Babies and Young Children Need Different Care
Infants and young children dehydrate much faster than adults, and they cannot safely take the same over-the-counter medications. Don’t give a baby an electrolyte drink like Pedialyte unless your pediatrician specifically tells you to. Instead, continue breastfeeding or formula feeding as usual, and offer feedings more frequently to keep up with fluid losses. If your baby is eating solids, starchy foods like plain cereal are the easiest for them to digest.
Watch closely for signs of dehydration in infants: fewer than six wet diapers in 24 hours, unusual sleepiness or irritability, few or no tears when crying, and a sunken soft spot on the top of their head. Call your pediatrician immediately if you notice any of these, if your baby has a fever or is vomiting alongside diarrhea, or if your baby is 3 months old or younger.
Warning Signs That Need Medical Attention
Most diarrhea clears up on its own, but certain symptoms mean you should get evaluated. For adults, those red flags include diarrhea lasting more than two days without any improvement, a fever above 102°F (39°C), bloody or black stools, severe abdominal or rectal pain, and signs of dehydration like excessive thirst, very dark urine, dizziness, or producing little to no urine. Severe diarrhea, defined as more than 10 bowel movements a day or fluid losses that clearly outpace what you’re drinking, also warrants prompt medical attention.
For children, the timeline is tighter. Contact a doctor if a child’s diarrhea doesn’t improve within 24 hours, if they show no wet diaper for three or more hours, or if they have a fever over 102°F. A sunken appearance around the eyes, cheeks, or abdomen, or skin that stays “tented” when you gently pinch it, signals significant dehydration that needs professional care.