Here’s something to wrap up our series on tummy troubles.

Diarrhea. Don’t you just hate it when it’s given in a spelling quiz? In any case, there’s more than one reason to hate it aside from the spelling. It can just ruin your day (or two). It’s highly recommended that you cancel everything for the next few days. Diarrhea is when you have frequent and excessive discharge of the bowels so that you have watery stools. It could be a symptom of gastrointestinal upset or infection. It is often caused by stress or food poisoning when you ingest contaminated food or water.

Usually, diarrhea goes away on its own after a day or two, but if you want to do something about it, you can drink plenty of water because you need to make sure you don’t become dehydrated. You should also eat broth-based soups which are rich in sodium so you could replace the salts you lost. When eating, you should choose soft and bland foods like rice, bananas, or skinless baked chicken.

Over-the-Counter Drugs: But make sure you don’t have an allergic reaction to these drugs.

There are antidiarrheal medicines like loperamide that help control diarrhea for a few hours. But it is wise to resort to this only if completely necessary. If the infection is caused by bacteria or parasite, medicine can trap these inside your intestines, therefore only prolonging the condition. Usually the best way to treat diarrhea is to just let it run its course.

Know when to consult with your doctor: When you notice that in the course of your diarrhea you become dehydrated, or when you have infrequent urination, a dark pee, fever, severe abdominal pain or a black and bloody stool, then you should definitely see your doctor because these signs are telling you that your diarrhea is getting serious. Don’t be embarrassed to talk to your doctor about diarrhea problems because sometimes diarrhea leads to the inflammation of intestines known as Crohn’s disease.