Diarrhea is characterized by excessive and frequent bowel movements that are loose and watery. Accompanying symptoms might include abdominal pain and cramping, fever, thirst, and vomiting. Excessive or prolonged diarrhea can cause dehydration due to the water loss from the body. It can interfere with nutrient absorption because the digested food rushes through the intestines before nutrients can be extracted and absorbed. Diarrhea can also throw your body’s pH level off balance.

Diarrhea can be the result of a number of causes, including the ingestion of certain foods, lactose intolerance, food poisoning, the side effects of certain drugs, infection, inflammation, irritation, influenza, and poisonous toxins produced by invading pathogenic bacteria. More serious causes for diarrhea include intestinal tumors and malabsorption syndrome—a condition in which the intestines cannot efficiently absorb the nutrients in foods.

No matter what the cause, when you suffer from diarrhea, you lose vast numbers of bacteria at a very fast rate in a very short period of time. This condition dramatically and quickly affects the friendly bacterial populations of the bowel. At times, the resident beneficial bacteria can be completely overwhelmed by the activities of an invading pathogen—bacterial or viral—that produces diarrhea by its toxic byproducts.

What happens in the large intestine differs when the pathogenic invader is a bacterial colonizer (such as Salmonella, Shigella, and E. coli) or a transient bacteria (including Staphylococcus aureus, some strains of Clostridium, and Bacillus cereus). Obviously, any bacterial strain that aims to take up residence is more difficult to deal with than one that will pass through naturally in time. The diarrhea itself can be the result of the rapid growth of colonizing harmful bacteria, or the toxins that both colonizers and transients produce.

Whatever medical treatment your doctor may recommend to deal with acute diarrhea, and that depends on the root cause, your first responsibility is to promptly replace the friendly bacteria you have lost. When you reinforce the friendly bacteria with effective Probiotics, no matter what the cause of your diarrhea might be, you are giving your body what it needs to restore health to the region.

RECOMMENDED PROBIOTIC REGIMEN

Take 1/2 teaspoon each of L. acidophilus, B. bifidum powders, (or 1 capsule each), along with 1/2 teaspoon L. bulgaricus powder mixed in 6 to 8 ounces unchilled filtered water. Continue this regimen every hour until symptoms subside.

NOTE: The information contained on this site is based on the training, personal experiences and research of the author, Natasha Trenev. It is intended for educational purposes, and is not meant to diagnose, prescribe, or replace medical care. Mention of any research organization or individual researcher should in no way be construed as an endorsement of this site or of any of the techniques therein. Because each person and situation are unique, the author urges the reader to check with a qualified health professional before using any procedure in which there is any question of appropriateness. It is a sign of wisdom, not cowardice, to seek a second or third opinion.