Diarrhea has a variety of causes, including viral infections, chronic bowel disease and food poisoning. There are a number of home remedies, available from grocery and health food stores, that can treat diarrhea. Most cases of acute diarrhea are uncomfortable but go away in a few days. If there is blood in the stool or the diarrhea is severe and lasts for more than several days, medical attention is necessary.
BRAT Diet
The University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital recommends feeding a BRAT diet to patients with diarrhea. BRAT stands for bananas, rice, applesauce and toast. The BRAT diet is popular amongst doctors, moms and natural health practitioners alike. Low in fiber and easily digested, these four foods have the ability to slow down the intestines and bind stool, stopping bouts of diarrhea. Although the BRAT diet is suggested for children, it works well for adults too. Depending on the cause of the diarrhea, eating these gentle foods is a good place to start for treatment. Other foods that are also low in fiber and helpful for stopping diarrhea are pasta, soda crackers and cooked cereal, though not whole-grain cereal.
Herbal Teas
Certain herbs are helpful in controlling diarrhea and soothing the intestinal tract, according to David Conway in his book “The Magic of Herbs." Ginger, licorice and peppermint all provide soothing relief for the stomach and intestinal lining. They slow the motility, or activity, of the digestive tract, and soothe the mucus lining of the esophagus and stomach. Patients should use either the loose herbs with a tea ball, or buy tea bags in a health food store and steep in boiling water for 15 minutes to make an herbal tea. Honey can be used to sweeten the tea. Herbs are not a replacement for medical treatment in the case of unremitting diarrhea, but do offer temporary relief of common symptoms.
Yogurt
Eating yogurt and other foods containing probiotics and live, active cultures provides helpful relief from diarrhea, based on a report from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Colonies of healthy, live organisms are stripped from the colon during bouts of diarrhea. Replacing the natural colonies by eating foods that contain probiotics helps restore bowel health. Along with yogurt, probiotics are present in foods like kefir, sauerkraut, fermented soy products such as miso and tempeh, and other fermented foods.
