How to prevent and treat diarrhea

Three clinical types of diarrhoea:

• Acute watery diarrhoea – lasts several hours or days, and includes cholera
• Acute bloody diarrhoea – also called dysentery
• Persistent diarrhoea – lasts 14 days or longer

What are some symptoms?

• The passage of three or more loose or liquid stools per day (or more frequent passage than is normal for the individual).
• Frequent passing of formed stools is NOT diarrhoea, nor is the passing of loose, "pasty" stools by breastfed babies.

What causes diarrhea?

• Infection: Diarrhoea is a symptom of infections caused by a host of bacterial, viral and parasitic organisms, most of which are spread by faeces-contaminated water. Infection is more common when there is a shortage of clean water for drinking, cooking and cleaning.
• Malnutrition: Children who die from diarrhoea often suffer from underlying malnutrition, which makes them more vulnerable to diarrhoea. Each diarrhoeal episode, in turn, makes their malnutrition even worse.
• Source: Water contaminated with human faeces, for example, from sewage, septic tanks and latrines, is of particular concern. Animal faeces also contain microorganisms that can cause diarrhoea.
• Other causes: Diarrhoeal disease can also spread from person-to-person, worsen by poor personal hygiene. Food is another major cause of diarrhoea when it is prepared or stored in unhygienic conditions. Water can contaminate food during irrigation. Fish and seafood from polluted water may also contribute to the disease.

Diarrhoeal disease is treatable with a solution of clean water, sugar and salt, and with zinc tablets.

Key measures to prevent diarrhoea include:

• Access to safe drinking-water
• Improved sanitation
• Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life
• Good personal and food hygiene
• Health education about how infections spread
• Rotavirus vaccination

Key measures to treat diarrhoea include the following.

• Rehydration with intravenous fluids in case of severe dehydration or shock and/or oral rehydration salts (ORS) solution for moderate or no dehydration. ORS is a mixture of clean water, salt and sugar, which can be prepared safely at home. It costs a few cents per treatment.
• Zinc supplements reduce the duration of a diarrhoea episode by 25% and are associated with a 30% reduction in stool volume.
• Nutrient-rich foods – the circle of malnutrition and diarrhoea can be broken by continuing to give nutrient-rich foods, including breast milk, during an episode and by giving a nutritious diet, including exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, to children when they are well.
• Consulting a health worker if there are signs of dehydration.

(Source: WHO)