Diarrhea is very uncomfortable. It affects digestion. It is inconvenient. Almost everyone experiences it at some point, and knowing the worst foods to eat with diarrhea can help prevent worsening of symptoms.
Diarrhea is marked by frequent, loose and watery bowel movements that leaves you feeling fatigued, weak, and often dehydrated.
While diarrhea is often short-lived and passes without indicators for recovery, symptoms may last longer or worsen. If this occurs, your diet can play a major role in how quickly you recover. 
What Is Diarrhea?
Diarrhea is a very common gastrointestinal issue that can occur for a number of reasons. Eat safe foods to help your body heal. Avoid foods that are bad for diarrhea.
Eating the wrong foods can make your condition worse and slow recovery. Among adults, one of the most common forms of diarrhea comes from intolerance to either dairy (lactose) or artificial sweeteners. Diarrhea is characterized by loose, liquid stools that are more frequent than normal bowel movements.
Diarrhea may be mild in some cases but may also be violent in other cases, it can be quick to onset and cause dehydration. Dehydration makes diarrhea dangerous because it removes fluids and important electrolytes from the body. For these reasons, it is always best to consult a medical doctor if the duration is abnormal, diarrhea is very violent, or accompany other symptoms.
Foods To Avoid During Diarrhea
Fatty Foods
Fatty foods are one of the most notorious food types that can cause digestive problems.Avoid high-fat foods. Eat light proteins like skinless chicken, lean meat broth, or cooked non-starchy vegetables. Fatty foods have oils, preservatives, and sugar that are hard to digest.
Greasy food can irritate your stomach and make diarrhea worse. The discomfort of baked goods comes from sugar and chemical preservatives that are known to aggravate the gut.
Instead of food contributed by hypo fat contents, try light proteins, like skinless chicken breast, vegetable broth from lean meat, or cooked non-starchy vegetables. These foods put less stress on your stomach and, therefore, allow the gut to heal slowly.
Dairy Products
The other category of the worst food to eat when you have diarrhea is dairy – milk and butter. The hassle is straightforward with regards to lactose (the natural sugar in milk). Many individuals struggle digesting lactose.
Not digesting lactose can lead to belly distention, cramps, and even worse diarrhea. Butter is saturated fat, and it is too much for your intestines while they are irritated.
Basically, eating dairy products when you are recovering from diarrhea may delay recovery, and make you more miserable. Instead, try to eat lactose free products (which most can digest), almond milk, or probiotic yogurt. These are probiotics that should help your gut, without overwhelming your system.
Ice Cream And Cheese
Cold ice cream and cheesy pizza are bad for diarrhea. Ice cream has dairy and high fat, which slows digestion. Cheese is dense and hard to digest. Eating these foods may make diarrhea worse.
You may feel comfort at first, but discomfort comes soon after.Instead, patients should look for softer and low-fat, low-sugar snacks such as toast, crackers, or a plain banana. This is much more significant recovery support than ice cream or cheese.
Alcohol
Drinking alcohol can make diarrhea worse and slow recovery. Beer, wine, and spirits can dehydrate you. They also irritate the intestines and affect digestion. Drinking alcohol can make diarrhea worse. It may cause fatigue, dizziness, and prolong stomach issues.Hydration with plain water or herbal teas is a much safer approach.
Sodas
Sodas have been very popular drinks however, it seems that they are just another of the worst foods to eat in cases of diarrhea. When carbonated sodas ferment, gas and bloating develop, which at the same time increase discomfort during digestion.
Besides that, the high sugar contained in these drinks can also break the balance of electrolytes, thus making diarrhea worse. In addition, some sodas have caffeine, which is a stimulant that quickens bowel movements even more.
Beans And Unprocessed Vegetables
Usually regarded as healthful, beans and vegetables can be troublesome in diarrhea. Beans include sophisticated carbohydrates that the small intestine cannot easily digest.
This causes bloating and gas production, therefore increasing diarrheal agony. Similarly, unprocessed veggies are rich in cellulose and fibers that tax already compromised intestinal muscles. For these reasons, beans and raw vegetables are among the worst foods to consume with diarrhea.
Spicy Foods
Spicy foods may taste good but for someone with diarrhea, that can be a whole different kind of hell. Studies have shown that spicy foods can make symptoms worse especially for someone suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D). Spices cause irritation of the intestinal lining which lead to cramping and enhance the severity of loose stools. Therefore spicy foods end up as one of the worst foods to eat when you have diarrhea.
Artificial Sweeteners
Artificial sweeteners are determined anywhere in processed meals and sugar-unfastened merchandise. There are just as many who say they are not harmful. But in many cases they act as a trigger of digestive problems. Artificial sweeteners also suck water into the intestines, and can be laxative to sensitive people causing bloating and loose stools. Because of this they are classified as one of the worst food to eat with diarrhea.
Foods That Cause Excess Gas
Some food items have been shown to cause a ton of gas compared to others. Food items like broccoli, asparagus, cow’s milk, cheese, carbonated beverages, and fried foods are very hard for the body’s digestive system.
If you are already suffering from diarrhea, consuming one or more of the food items listed before will cause more gas, bloating, and stomach discomfort.
Many of them also count among things you shouldn’t eat with diarrhea because they are all hard on the body’s digestion. It is better to eat plain food like rice, applesauce, or banana, which are very easy on the body when trying to recover from diarrhea.
Spoiled Foods
Food poisoning is a common cause of diarrhea, and most commonly starts from spoiled foods, especially dairy foods like milk, cheese, and yogurt which spoil quickly and are dangerous when smelling bad, or change color, or some even begin to leave lumps.
The same thing applies if you sit raw meat after more than two days so if you are on the verge of over cooking raw meat, let it cook longer to destroy the bacteria.
Using spoiled food has the potential to make people sick from food poisoning and severe diarrhea. Unquestionably, spoiled food is worse than most everything else that causes diarrhea, as spoiled food produces many more chemicals than the various dietary supplements presented above.
Treating Diarrhea
Treating diarrhea appropriately is dependent on identifying the cause. If the cause is bacterial or viral, the doctor may utilize antibiotics or antiviral medicine, while those suffering with food intolerance should simply cease consumption of the food causing the problem.
Many over the counter medicines will also provide relief, however natural remedies can be just as effective for many people. These could include peppermint tea, and probiotic supplements in an effort to replenish the healthy gut bacteria.
Most importantly, people suffering from diarrhea should begin replacing lost fluid and electrolytes. Bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast (BRAT for short) are a gentle way to provide energy and support digestion without continuing to irritate the stomach. Typically, diarrhea can be controlled with the right management before serious complications set in.
Top Foods To Eat With Diarrhea
It is just as important to know what to eat to treat your diarrhea as it is to know what the worst food to eat with diarrhea is. Bland proteins are easy on the stomach, providing strength without being too harsh, such as skinless chicken or turkey, or even boiled eggs.
Carbohydrates provide energy white rice, plain oatmeal, or toast are easy carbs to help provides you energy while being easy to digest. If you desire something sweet, low fiber fruits like bananas or applesauce, cooked pears, and canned peaches are good options.
Don’t forget that smaller meals and not large heavy portions is the way to go. Sometimes, if diarrhea becomes more severe the doctor may recommend a change to liquid diets. Depending on the type of diarrhea will allow for quicker recovery and make things easier.
Conclusion
While diarrhea is not enjoyable, if you handle it sensibly, recovery will be a lot easier. The bland foods and fluids will still help your body recover, even if you eat the worst food to eat with diarrhea such as fatty meals, dairy products, spicy food, and sodas.
When your body is fighting an infection, recovering from diarrhea will take longer if you speed up with the use of triggers such as fatty foods or sodas.
If you can reduce your discomfort by avoiding the triggers and focus on bland and hydrating meals, you will decrease your discomfort, decrease your chances of becoming dehydrated, and recover more quickly.
I will remind you again that your diet will always play an important role in the recovery process of diarrhea, and choosing foods correctly will translate into better digestive health.
