Diarrhoea

What is diarrhoea?

What happens in your body to cause diarrhoea is really quite simple. Normally, food and liquids follow a path through the intestines where nutrients and water are absorbed, and the undigested waste is later expelled.

Sometimes, infection, poison, inflammation or a variety of other events can hamper the normal operation of the intestines and the rate at which nutrients and water are absorbed. The normally slow, wavelike movement of the intestinal tract can become hyperactive, moving food and fluids through the colon too quickly. This results in frequent watery stools - better known as diarrhoea.

There are 2 main categories of diarrhoea:

  • Acute, which is temporary diarrhoea
  • Chronic, where the diarrhoea lasts longer than four weeks.

Acute diarrhoea

This is a common disorder that occurs in a majority of adults at least once a year.1 Causes can include:

  • Ingestion of toxins
  • Food intolerance
  • Psychological stress
  • Adverse reactions to medications.

Symptoms of diarrhoea include loose watery stools, often accompanied by abdominal cramps.

Chronic diarrhoea

This type of diarrhoea is generally described as diarrhoea that doesn’t resolve within four weeks.

1 Michael A Kaplan et al. Loperamide-Simethicone vs Loperamide Alone, Simethicone Alone and Placebo in the Treatment of Acude Diarrhea With Gas-Related Abdominal Discomfort: A Randomized Trial.