Bloody diarrhea treatment
Bloody diarrhea treatment
Introduction
Discharge of watery stools is labelled as diarrhea. There are many causes that trigger diarrhea; this are thyroid–related disorders, ulcerative colitis, infections in your gastric tract, etc. Diarrhea involves discharge of loose / watery feces more than 4 times within a day. Diarrhea can be differentiated from regular stools through the following characteristics: your stool tends to be mushy, watery as well as shapeless. Your stool may also get extra soft and may sport a foul / strong odor.
In some cases, a few people may discharge watery / loose feces without the onset of diarrhea. It is considered normal to occasionally discharge loose feces after a spicy meal. In general, a few types of drinks, foods as well as dietary supplements can trigger the onset of diarrhea. Often, watery stools are an outcome of the inability of your small intestine to digest some sugars in an efficient manner.
Some types of sugar–alcohol present in vegetables, man-made flavors and some types of fruits are likely to cause a laxative outcome. Inability to digest such sugars can lead to an added level of water and pressure inside your colon. Foods rich in lactose-type of sugar present in dairy products – can trigger spells of diarrhea. When lactose is not absorbed at your small intestine, it instead gets fermented at your gut. This is the reason behind bloating of your tummy, pain in abdomen and discharge of watery stools.
As high as 34% of the population living in US are estimated to have lactose intolerance or malabsorption of lactose. If you are daily habits including drinking alcohol in larger quantities or frequent intake of coffees, consumption of spicy and greasy food items or eating magnesium – rich foods in sizable levels, you’re more likely to fitness watery feces.
Loose motion
Infections caused by parasites, bacteria or viruses can trigger internal swelling of your intestine and / or tummy. This is the common cause for the incidence of loose motion. Of the aforesaid agents, virus agents the most encountered cause for acute form of loose motion. In the US, viral strand called norovirus is a reason for more than 50% of food-born allergies and discomforts. It is known to affect more than 50 million Americans each year.
Apart from norovirus, gastroenteritis (caused by viruses) as well as rotavirus are 2 most observed virus that are known to cause loose motion. There are a few bacterial strands that can cause watery feces; these include clostridium difficile, salmonella, Escherichia coli, etc. These are widely witnessed bacterial microbes which cause loose motion.
Some people may live with chronic spells of loose motion; this can be due to medical conditions like ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome – IBS, Crohn’s disease, hyperactive thyroid gland, Celiac disease, etc. Of these, ulcerative colitis shows up as ulcers formed in your colon; this is often accompanied by internal swelling. As per reliable estimates, more than 500,000 people in US live with this form of colitis.
On the other hand, IBS – i.e., irritable bowel syndrome – is known to affect more than 9% of population in US. This is chronic problem that centres around your gastric system. Typical symptoms include loose motion along with dyspepsia, pain as well as bloating. When the internal linings or membranes of your gastric tract witnesses an inflammation, it causes Crohn’s disease. This may cause traces of blood in feces as well as a severe pain in your lower abdomen. In some instances, Crohn’s disease is also likely to cause an inexplicable loss of body weight, a significant drop in appetite level and being in a permanent state of tiredness.
Diarrhea symptoms
The most common symptom of diarrhea is the discharge of watery and loose stools. Bowel movements are often more frequent; it may make you visit the toilet more than 4 times within a 24-hour timeline.
As per inputs from National institute of diabetes & digestive & kidney disease i.e., NIDDK – the standard symptoms include pain in abdomen, cramping of abdominal muscles, urge to use the bathroom on an urgent mode, inability to control bowel-based movements and being nauseated.
On the other hand, onset of diarrhea is due to internal swelling or an infection, it may sport the following symptoms: traces of blood in feces, child / tremors, increase in body temperature, spell of vomiting as well as turning dizzy / lightheaded.
In general. people experiencing acute episodes of diarrhea witness dehydration. This condition is characterised by drying of mouth, parching of skin, sunken cheeks and / or eyes, inability to urinate freely, etc. One of the other symptoms of diarrhea is malabsorption: this shows up as alterations in your appetite level, formation of gas, bad-odored bowel movement, etc
Bloody diarrhea treatment
Bloody diarrhea is a symptom often associated with gastric bleeding due to a disease or an internal injury. Traces of blood in watery stools can occur at any age. If you see blood in diarrhea, you are advised to talk to a qualified medical practitioner without any further delay. Most common reasons for bloody diarrhea are inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) – this can take the form of ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease.
Bloody feces may also occur due to potentially serious / near-fatal conditions like cancers in your colon, trauma inside your abdomen or due to acute infections in the intestinal tract. Bloody diarrhea treatment depends on the reason underlying this condition. If this is due to fissures in your anal channel or a hemorrhoid, your doctor may prescribe a topical ointment or a cream. But if bloody diarrhea occurs as an adverse effect of a drug you took used, your doctor may prescribe a safer alternative.
As you tend to get dehydrated very easily, your caregiving team will advise you to drink a lot of liquids like water or juices. If the spell of dehydration gets very acute, you may need an intravenous supply of fluids i.e., IV fluid. This procedure is generally done inside a healthcare setting like a hospital or a clinic
Medicine to stop diarrhea in adults
Most forms of diarrhea may go off after a few days – i.e., without treating it. There are a few meds – both OTC-based and prescription meds – to get needful relief from watery stools. Also, these meds are widely available in online pharmacies as well as physical drugstores.
Drugs such as loperamide, bismuth subsalicylate, etc. are commonly used to stop diarrhea in adults. Of these, bismuth subsalicylate helps decrease inflammation of intestines, promoting more fluids to be absorbed into your intestine, inhibiting harmful microbes as well as toxins. Loperamide slows the motility (movement) of liquids passing through the intestine.
As an added measure, your doctor may recommend probiotics – which are friendly bacteria. Once your digestive system gains access to these helpful microbes, they start remedial measures and stop diarrhea. You can consider foods like yogurt – which are endowed with high level of probiotics. Once you take such foods, good bacteria present in such foods outnumber the harmful microbes inside your gastric system. This process eventually leads to stopping the discharge of loose / watery stools.
In case diarrhea is caused by microbes like bacteria, your doctor is likely to prescribe antibiotic meds. These meds help fight infections triggered by strands like Escherichia coli, Salmonella, etc. But if diarrhea is caused by virus(es), these meds are of little / no use.
Caveat: if you take antibiotics when there is no need for these meds, you may soon witness resistance built-up among microbes. In such cases, antibacterial drugs may lose their efficacy to treat infections caused by microbes
Bloody diarrhea treatment at home
During spells of diarrhea, your body loses a lot of fluids as well as essential electrolytes. These include salts like chloride, sodium, etc. The foremost home–remedy for bloody diarrhea is to take as much water as possible. However, avoid taking caffeinated beverages like tea or coffee, carbonated drinks like soda, etc. It can do a lot of harm if you take hot beverages or beverages containing alcohol in them.
It is helpful to eat BRAT-diet. This comprises Banana, Rice, Applesauce and Toast i.e., BRAT. This diet is widely preferred as it is endowed with starch and also has low level of fiber. As an added benefit, BRAT has a few essential nutrients like pectin, potassium, etc.
Lastly, you are advised to refrain from taking a few types of foods. You must avoid those having man-made sweeteners in them, fat-heavy food products such as fried chips, pastries, cakes, etc. Also keep off foods that are rich in sugars – mainly sugars like fructose, meat or meat-based products that have copious amount of fats, etc.
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Education: Master of Public Health (MPH) from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh Experience: A dedicated health writer with 8 years of experience covering a range of health topics, including public health and nutrition. His work has appeared on reputable Indian health websites and journals such as India Health Journal and The Health Times. Ravi also collaborates with Indian health agencies on public health campaigns.