What Does Having Diarrhea For Months Mean?

Chronic diarrhea is a common occurrence in some people, often due to a reaction to abnormal bacteria, viruses, or parasites in the colon. It can indicate serious disorders like ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, or less serious conditions like irritable bowel syndrome. Chronic diarrhea, which lasts for four weeks or more, can be caused by diet, medications, or other factors. Acute diarrhea, which usually lasts for less than two weeks and improves on its own, is usually a sign of an infection, food poisoning, lactose intolerance, or other health issues.

The main symptoms of chronic diarrhea are loose or watery stools that persist for weeks, often accompanied by a sense of urgency. Diarrhea that lasts more than four weeks is considered chronic, according to the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA). Diarrhea can also be the result of anxiety, a food allergy, medication, or a long-term condition like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

To identify and treat chronic diarrhea, it is essential to consult a healthcare provider, who can assess the patient’s diet and medications. Chronic diarrhea can indicate serious disorders, such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, or less serious conditions like irritable bowel syndrome.

How do I know if diarrhea is serious?

Call your healthcare provider if you have diarrhea that doesn’t improve or go away within a few days. Reach out if you have a fever, severe pain and a bloody stool in addition to diarrhea. See a healthcare provider if you’re experiencing symptoms of dehydration, which can be serious without treatment.

How is diarrhea treated?. Usually, you can get rid of diarrhea at home. Over-the-counter (OTC) medicines for diarrhea, like bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol® or Kaopectate®), often help people feel better quickly. You’ll need to see a healthcare provider for diarrhea that doesn’t improve or that happens alongside symptoms of severe diarrhea.

• Antibiotics or antiparasitics. These drugs kill infection-causing germs.
• Medications that treat chronic conditions. Treating underlying conditions that cause diarrhea, like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and IBS, can help.
• Probiotics. Probiotics introduce good bacteria into your gut to combat diarrhea. Your healthcare provider may suggest you try them. Always talk to your provider before starting a probiotic or any supplement.

Can I stop diarrhea without taking anti-diarrhea medicine?. You can often get rid of acute diarrhea through lifestyle changes you can make at home.

What is stage 3 diarrhea?

• Mild diarrhea will cause a few watery stools during a 24-hour period
• Moderate diarrhea means more than a few watery stools, but not more than ten during a 24-hour period
• Severe diarrhea causes more than 10 watery, loose stools during a 24-hour period

If symptoms of diarrhea continue for more than four days, visit a primary care doctor who can help address the symptoms. If a child is experiencing diarrhea, contact a pediatrician.

Diarrhea symptoms depend on the severity of diarrhea and the cause of the gastrointestinal discomfort. Severe diarrhea can be an indication of a more serious, underlying condition. The leading symptom of diarrhea is loose or watery stool.

Is it normal to have diarrhea for months?

Patients experiencing loose, watery stools three or more times per day for over four weeks are likely to have an underlying disease process that requires diagnosis and treatment. Chronic diarrhea is a condition where patients have loose or watery stools three or more times per day for four weeks or longer. The history and physical exam are typically nonspecific, but should focus on the timing of diarrhea relative to ingestion. Screening for malabsorption, electrolyte abnormalities, and acute kidney injury is essential, along with radiographic imaging for bowel obstruction, strictures, or fistulae.

To improve healthcare team outcomes, patients should undergo blood tests for anemia, kidney injury, electrolyte abnormalities, and celiac disease, as well as stool tests for inflammation. Pharmacists can review medication records for potential drug-drug interactions or adverse events, and the diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome is after blood and stool testing. Specialty-trained nursing can be among the first to be aware of chronic diarrhea, and if symptoms do not resolve after first-line agents, a specialist may be referred. Collaboration and communication across interprofessional lines are crucial for effective diagnosis and treatment.

What is grade 4 diarrhea?

Grade 4 diarrhea is so severe that you cannot take care of yourself. This grade is life-threatening and requires immediate hospital care.

How do I manage diarrhea?. Managing diarrhea starts with letting your care team know if you have symptoms. They can recommend changes to your diet or medicines that can treat diarrhea.

Dietary changes to ease diarrhea’s effects. Since diarrhea can lead to dehydration, make sure to replace the liquid and electrolytes that you are losing. Drink plenty of water throughout the day and try to eat some salty foods such as pretzels. Some liquids that help with both water and electrolytes are:

You can also choose foods that may help settle your stomach or that will not aggravate your digestive tract. The foods that are part of the BRAT diet — bananas, rice, apples, and toast — are gentle on the digestive tract and likely won’t upset your stomach.

What is type 7 diarrhea?

Diarrhea: Type 7. Type 7 describes very loose stools or fully liquid diarrhea. With this type, you may feel an urgent need to have a bowel movement and may not be able to hold it. If the diarrhea persists, you may also become dehydrated or malnourished.

This type of diarrhea is most often caused by a viral or bacterial infection such as norovirus. Parasitic infections such as Giardia lamblia can cause watery diarrhea. Certain medical conditions can cause type 7 stools as well, including celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, or ulcerative colitis.

How the Bristol Stool Chart Is Used. Your healthcare provider may use the Bristol Stool Chart if you have unusual bowel symptoms or notice a change in your bowel habits or the way your stools look.

Why is my poop never solid anymore?

“Loose stools” can be natural for some people or signal diarrhea for others. Common causes include from foods – especially if something was spoiled or tainted. GI viruses, chronic conditions, food allergies and medication side-effects can also cause them.

When the patterns in our stools change, it can mean something’s up. But common sense and a bit of expert advice can help us balance between overly fixating on what’s in the bowl – and perhaps missing a sign that we need medical attention.

“Avoiding the extremes can help you achieve better gut health. Don’t be preoccupied with every minor change,” said Christopher Hurley, MD, Avera Medical Group Gastroenterology. “On the other hand, don’t avoid looking altogether and miss a red-flag warning like blood in the stool.”

What Can Cause a Loose Stool. The most common causes of a loose poop are things like viruses, food allergies and medication side effects. Some chronic conditions can, too:

How long is too long with diarrhea?

Schedule a doctor’s visit for an adult with these symptoms: Diarrhea lasts more than two days without improvement. Excessive thirst, dry mouth or skin, little or no urination, severe weakness, dizziness or lightheadedness, or dark-colored urine, which could indicate dehydration.

What does unhealthy stool look like?

“Healthy stool is usually brownish in color,” Dr. Cheng says. “There is cause for concern when stool is black or reddish, which may be indicative of gastrointestinal bleeding. Stools that are gray may also be concerning for liver problems.”

Yellow, greasy, foul-smelling stool indicates that the intestines didn’t properly digest and absorb fat. This could be caused by a disease of the intestinal lining, such as celiac disease or chronic pancreatitis.

Tips for maintaining healthy bowels. It’s important to maintain good bowel health, as 70% of the body’s immune system is contained within the digestive tract. To keep your bowel movements frequent and healthy, Dr. Cheng suggests the following tips:

Eat a balanced, high-fiber diet. Fiber can help prevent or relieve constipation. Try fiber-rich foods like apples, carrots, beans, and whole wheat cereals.

Why is my diarrhea not stopping?

Luckily, diarrhea is usually short-lived, lasting no more than a few days. But when diarrhea lasts beyond a few days, it is usually a clue to another problem — such as medicine side effects, changes in diet, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), or a more serious disorder, including ongoing infection, celiac disease or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Symptoms. Symptoms associated with loose, watery stools, also called diarrhea, may include:

• Belly cramps or pain.
• Bloating.
• Nausea.
• Vomiting.
• Fever.
• Blood in the stool.
• Mucus in the stool.
• Urgent need to pass stool.

Why has my diarrhea not stopped?

A wide range of problems can cause chronic diarrhea; some of the most common causes include irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn disease and ulcerative colitis), malabsorption syndromes, like celiac disease, in which food cannot be digested and absorbed, and chronic infections as well as …

Why do I have diarrhea but not sick?

Diarrhea not related to an infection can occur as a side effect of antibiotics or other drugs, food allergies, gastrointestinal diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, and other diseases. In addition, there are many less common causes of diarrhea.