What is diarrhea?

Answer 1

Diarrhea is loose stools. It is an uncomfortable and unpleasant medical condition caused when there is far too much water in the intestinal tract. This results in watery stools which usually appear with considerable urgency and may be accompanied by pain and cramping. So your feces (or poop if you prefer) has a much higher water content than is healthy. Most times it comes out rather quickly.

The most common cause of diarrhea is an intestinal virus sometimes called "stomach flu" or "intestinal flu", although totally unrelated to influenza virus. It can be caused by food poisoning, but it can also be caused by bacteria, parasites and viruses. It can also be caused by food reactions or chemicals. Artificial sweeteners such as sorbital and sucralose are notorious for causing intestinal inflammation in some people.

Occasionally constant diarrhea occurs as part of a serious condition such as intestinal infection, Crohn's Disease, ulcerative colitis, or cancer. Also diarrhea is almost always a side effect of cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Diarrhea can be very dangerous if you do not get enough fluids. A lesser risk is that you won't get all the nutritional value from your food because it is not in the lower intestine long enough and this irregular digestive pattern can disrupt the bacterial balance.

Most diarrhea is harmless and goes away in a couple days. The most important thing about treating diarrhea is to drink lots of fluids in small amounts to keep your body from dehydrating. If it is severe, painful, doesn't go away or doesn't harden up with over the counter medicines or if the person afflicted is very young, very old or in generally poor health, seek professional medical attention immediately.
The failure of the extraction of the liquid in the human waste, which is done by the large intestine. It is not communicable.
a diarrhoea is a sickness in which there are stomach pains and watery matter passes through the bowels.

Answer 2

There is no one set definition of diarrhea. The normal pattern of bowel movement varies from one person to the next. What one may consider a normal bowel movement may be abnormal for others. Generally speaking the term "normal" bowel frequency ranges from three bowel movements per day to three per week. These bowel movements consist of firm stools passed with no urgency or straining (IFFGD, 2010).

"Diarrhea means different things to different people" (IFFGD, 2010). In the end it is up to the individual whether he or she is experiencing diarrhea. Many diseases, abnormalities and prescription medications can cause diarrhea. Functional diarrhea is diarrhea that is unexplained. Doctors can diagnose functional diarrhea by looking at history and symptom pattern, and by making sure there is no underlying disease causing the diarrhea (IFFGD, 2010).

Functional diarrhea can be diagnosed when diarrhea is chronic for at least three months in a time span of 12 months. People with functional diarrhea can still have normal bowel movements or even constipation between bouts of diarrhea. After taking one's full medical history and doing a physical examination, the doctor will check to make sure that other diseases are not the cause of diarrhea. The doctor will check for bleeding, weight loss, low blood count, nutritional deficiencies or fever. An individual's diet can cause diarrhea. This includes caffeine, alcohol, artificial sweeteners, Chewing Gum, candies, soft drinks, and milk products. It is important when suffering from functional diarrhea to let a doctor know which medications are being taken. In addition, part of the diagnosis of functional diarrhea may include bloodwork (IFFGD, 2010).

Medications are not always necessary to relieve the symptoms of functional diarrhea. The causes of functional diarrhea which can go unknown, change of diet may sometimes help improve the symptoms. A doctor may recommend to avoid caffeine or artificial sweeteners. A doctor may recommend a high-fiber diet or use a dietary fiber supplement to add bulk to the stool. If a specific item of food always causes diarrhea, it is advisable to avoid that food item (IFFGD, 2010).

If diarrhea does not go away by altering the diet, the doctor might recommend an anti-diarrhea medication. Anti-diarrhea medication may be useful before social or business engagements. If symptoms are unpredictable taking an anti-diarrhea medication when diarrhea develops may help slow it down. Medication or changing the diet can alleviate the symptoms of functional diarrhea. One may work on one person and not on the next (IFFGD, 2010). Whatever has the best results is the better method of alleviating the symptoms of functional diarrhea.