Diarrhea diet

A diet for diarrhea, that is, in the case of a disruption of the intestines (which is usually called a disorder), should establish its normal functioning - no matter what the reasons for this symptom.

With frequent and loose stools, the body inevitably loses water and salts, so both need to be replenished. It is also extremely important to temporarily provide the digestive system with a light regime, and this is precisely why it is necessary to follow a diet.

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Treating Diarrhea with Diet

The effectiveness of treating diarrhea with diet has been recognized by medicine since the time of Hippocrates, who wrote that “the effect of dietary remedies is long-lasting, while the effect of drugs is transient.”

The diet for diarrhea in adults is based on: a significant reduction in the amount of food, at least 4 meals a day in small portions, as well as a complete cessation of the use of products that in any way irritate the gastrointestinal tract, increase contractions of the smooth muscles of the intestine (peristalsis) and contribute to increased fermentation in it. The diet for diarrhea in pregnant women adheres to the same principles.

According to Pevzner's therapeutic nutrition, this is a mechanically, chemically and thermally gentle diet No. 4 for the intestinal mucosa and the entire gastrointestinal tract. It is recommended to follow it for all intestinal pathologies accompanied by diarrhea and dyspepsia for 3-5 days (until a noticeable improvement in the condition).

The daily diet should provide at least 2000 kcal, i.e. the caloric content of food is below the average physiological norm (2900-3200 kcal). The daily protein content corresponds to the norm (90-95 g), fats are 30% less than the norm (70 g), but the carbohydrate component is almost two times lower than the norm (no more than 250 g). The volume of free liquid should be at least 1.5 liters per day: in case of diarrhea, it is extremely important to drink water to avoid dehydration.

Diet for colitis with diarrhea

The diet for colitis with diarrhea is diet No. 4B, which is considered complete in physiological terms: its caloric content is 2900 kcal per day, protein and fat content is 100 g each, carbohydrates are about 400 g. It recommends six meals a day in small portions. Food should not be too hot or cold.

The diet for colitis with diarrhea, as in adults who do not suffer from inflammation of the mucous membrane of the colon, limits almost the same products, but at the same time allows the use of:

• vegetable puree (from potatoes and carrots);
• ripe fruits and berries (not sour, peeled);
• dairy products (kefir, yogurt, cottage cheese, but milk and sour cream - only as additives to dishes);
• butter;
• mild cheeses and cooked sausages;
• sauces (based on low-fat broths with dill and parsley).

Likewise, all dishes should be boiled or steamed, and then brought to a homogeneous consistency (boiled or chopped additionally).

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Diet for dysbiosis with diarrhea

Dietary nutrition for intestinal microflora disorders, that is, for severe enzyme deficiency and intestinal microbiocenosis disorders, in principle, does not differ from the above-mentioned diets (see - diet for diarrhea in adults).

The causes of diarrhea with dysbacteriosis are that the number of beneficial bacteria that break down primary bile acids decreases in the small intestine, and too many harmful bacteria accumulate that destroy digestive enzymes. This has a negative effect on the normal metabolism of bile acids - their dehydroxylation, deconjugation and reabsorption. As a result, the volume of deconjugated bile acids in the intestine increases so much that diarrhea begins. In addition, with the so-called syndrome of insufficient digestion, characteristic of dysbacteriosis, nausea and vomiting often appear. And then gastroenterologists prescribe a diet for diarrhea and vomiting.

The main task of dietary nutrition is to maintain the water balance in the body, that is, the amount of liquid consumed should compensate for the volume of liquid lost with vomit and feces. However, doctors warn that you should drink water no earlier than an hour and a half after vomiting, and the amount of water consumed at one time should not exceed 100-150 ml.

Then, if you feel at least a little better, you can drink diluted non-acidic juices (except grape, plum and apricot, of course), tea with the same unsweetened crackers. And then, if there has been no repeated vomiting for several hours, you can gradually drink rice broth, baked apples, semi-liquid mashed rice porridge, cooked in water and without oil.

It is clear that the diet for dysbacteriosis with diarrhea prohibits eating anything that can irritate the gastrointestinal tract and lead to increased secretion of bile: fatty, salty, spicy, sour and canned, as well as fresh bread and buns, raw vegetables and fruits, all types of legumes, mushrooms, sweets, carbonated mineral and other carbonated drinks. So this is diet No. 4 according to Pevzner. But fluid intake is limited - no more than a liter per day.

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Diet for diarrhea in children

A diet for diarrhea in infants who are breastfed involves continuing breastfeeding, but it is necessary to increase the number of feedings. If the child refuses to suckle, do not try to do this in any way... It is better to give the child water: loss of fluid is especially dangerous for small children.

It is important to keep in mind that dietary nutrition for diarrhea in children in the first two months of life may require replacing breastfeeding with lactose-free (milk sugar) formulas for a while. This applies to cases where a newborn (usually a premature baby or one with a low birth weight) has been diagnosed with lactase deficiency - a deficiency of the lactase enzyme that breaks down milk sugar. Feeding with lactose-free formulas continues until the child stops having diarrhea and the pediatrician allows a return to breastfeeding.

After three years, when children eat almost everything and eat with adult family members, the diet for diarrhea includes the same foods and has the same restrictions as the diet for adults.

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Diet after diarrhea

Diet after diarrhea - diet No. 4B, prescribed for the period of recovery after acute intestinal pathologies. The caloric content of this diet is 2900-3100 kcal per day, protein content - 100 g, fat - 100 g, carbohydrates - 420-450 g. Fractional meals, 5-6 times a day. The volume of water drunk per day is up to 1.5 liters.

Following a diet means excluding from the diet rye and grain bread, fresh white bread and any bakery and flour products, as well as fatty meat, fish, poultry and rich broths based on them; smoked and canned foods (meat and fish); mushrooms and mushroom broths; all legumes; fresh vegetables and fruits that have not undergone heat treatment; coffee, cocoa, carbonated water and beverages.

In addition to boiling and steaming, it is allowed to prepare dishes by baking in the oven, and there is no longer any need to chop the food.

Dietary nutrition after diarrhea allows the use of:

• dried wheat bread;
• first courses in weak broth or vegetable broth (with finely chopped and well-boiled vegetables and cereals);
• lean meat, fish, poultry (boiled, chopped or baked without crust);
• crumbly porridges (except pearl barley and millet);
• boiled vermicelli and noodles;
• fermented milk products, and milk, sour cream and cream - when added to dishes;
• vegetable purees (potatoes, carrots, cauliflower);
• ripe and sweet fruits (apples, pears, citrus fruits) and berries without skin (except plums and grapes) - no more than 200 g per day.

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Diet menu for diarrhea

The diet menu for diarrhea in the acute period may consist of semolina porridge cooked in water and tea with a white rusk (for breakfast); about 100 g of cottage cheese (for a second breakfast); meat puree soup with a white rusk (for lunch): a cup of blueberry jelly (for an afternoon snack); mashed rice porridge in water and a glass of tea (for dinner).

Approximately the same diet menu for colitis with diarrhea: strained rice porridge on water and a glass of tea with a white rusk (for breakfast); protein steam omelet (for the second breakfast); soup on chicken broth with strained carrots and vermicelli, steamed chicken cutlet with strained buckwheat porridge, blueberry jelly (for lunch); applesauce (for an afternoon snack); boiled fish with mashed potatoes and tea with a white rusk (for dinner).

The diet menu after diarrhea can include milk rice porridge and coffee with milk and biscuits (for breakfast); steamed omelet (for an afternoon snack); meat soup with potatoes, carrots and cauliflower, boiled chicken fillet with rice (for lunch); applesauce (for an afternoon snack); cottage cheese and banana pudding and tea with milk (for dinner).

Diet recipes for diarrhea

In principle, the recipes for a diet for diarrhea do not present any culinary difficulties. Here, for example, are recipes for preparing two dietary dishes that are suitable for both adults and children suffering from diarrhea.

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Diet Applesauce Recipe

This dish is good for the intestinal mucosa and intestinal microflora due to its pectin content. To prepare it, peel and core 2-3 sweet apples. Boil the peel for 10 minutes, discard, and add the sliced apples to the resulting broth and simmer them under the lid until completely soft (this will take no more than 20 minutes). Then cool them a little and grind them into a homogeneous mass using a blender.

Recipe for dietary steamed cottage cheese and banana pudding

To prepare this wonderful diet pudding, you will need 200-250 g of low-fat cottage cheese, 2 raw eggs, one ripe banana, a tablespoon of granulated sugar or a dessert spoon of powdered sugar, half a packet of vanilla sugar and 40 g of soft butter.

The whites are separated from the yolks and whipped into a foam; the cottage cheese, sugar, butter and egg yolks are mixed well until smooth (with a mixer), then the whipped whites are added. The peeled banana is cut (not too finely) and added to the resulting mass. Everything is mixed again, laid out in a mold and placed in a steam bath for 40 minutes (or in a steamer for 20 minutes).

It is worth remembering that diarrhea is only a symptom. And this symptom has many serious diseases. Of course, a diet for diarrhea helps stop diarrhea and normalize bowel function. But if intestinal disorder occurs quite often, you should think about your health and consult a gastroenterologist.

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What can you eat when you have diarrhea?

The classic "menu" for diarrhea consists of wheat (white) crackers with strong black tea, rice porridge cooked in water, baked apples and blueberry jelly. You need to stick to such food for several days, although nutritionists also included the following in the list of what you can eat for diarrhea:

• buckwheat and oatmeal porridge (in water, well boiled, semi-liquid);
• soups with weak meat or fish broth (with rice or semolina);
• vegetable broths;
• lean beef, veal, rabbit, chicken or turkey (boiled or steamed, finely chopped);
• boiled lean fish;
• low-fat cottage cheese;
• eggs (soft-boiled or steamed omelette);
• cocoa (without milk), black coffee, juices diluted with water (except plum, grape and apricot).

Nutritionists claim that in case of diarrhea, especially profuse, in addition to baked apples, it is very useful to consume carrot juice with pulp and fresh bananas. These three products provide the body with the necessary organic acids, pectin, carotene and potassium.

What shouldn't you eat if you have diarrhea?

When you have diarrhea, you cannot eat anything that is not included in the list of foods permitted for consumption in the same diet No. 4, namely:

• fresh bread, including rye;
• baked goods and any other pastries and flour confectionery products;
• fatty meat, poultry and fish, as well as broths made from them;
• soups with vegetables and cereals;
• millet, pearl barley, barley and corn porridge;
• whole milk and dairy products;
• canned goods, pickles, sauces and seasonings;
• cheese and sausages;
• beans, mushrooms, nuts;
• fresh vegetables, fruits and berries;
• all sweets, including honey and jam;
• alcoholic and carbonated drinks.