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Poop, There It Is

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Let’s just jump right it, shall we?  Today we’re gonna talk about diarrhea.

Poop, there it is…

Ahem.  I will try like heck to keep this post above a 12-year-old boy’s funny-bone level. You have my shaky word.

Diarrhea is only funny in slap-stick movies or when someone other than you has it.  Then, omgosh, high-hilarity, right?! Especially the sounds, but never the smells.

Calvin-Sick

Suffering from the loosey-gooseys yourself, or when babies suffer with it = NOT FUNNY.

As a new grandmama, I’m becoming familiar again with maladies that are associated mostly with childhood, one of which is diarrhea.  As a new grandmother, omi, grams, choochie (faint), I have reached back into my bag o’tricks for remedies that I relied on to help my son when he was an itty-bitty and have found that some things have changed, while others, not so much.

Back in the day, we followed the ABC’s for firming up loose stools.

A: Applesauce.  Applesauce has pectin which…

Pectin and Diarrhea

According to “The New Healing Herbs,” pectin works with natural intestinal bacteria, or good bacteria, which turns the fiber into a soothing coating for irritated intestinal walls. The book also states that apple pectin has been found to counteract bacteria that causes diarrhea, such as Salmonella, E.Coli, and staphylococcus. Pectin adds bulk to the stool, which can help to ease diarrhea symptoms as well.

Pectin also absorbs water and slows down digestion, translating into decreased bowel movements and severity of those still hanging around.

B: Bananas. Bananas (on the green side) have long been used to bulk up loose and watery stools and to get it moving through a sluggish system, IE constipation. Seems contradictory, but ‘nanners work!

Bananas and Diarrhea:

Bananas are good food for diarrhea because they are soft, bland, and supply complex carbohydrates, all of which render this food easy to digest. Bananas are also a rich source of the essential electrolyte mineral potassium, which is lost from the body because of diarrhea, as well as pectin, a substance that helps reduce diarrhea.

C: Cereal.  Not Cap’t Crunch.  Not Lucky Charms.  But cereal along the lines of white rice.

Boy ate rice cereal formulated for babies and it was the gold standard of bland.  Grownups can have boiled rice.  No butter.  Hold the etouffee.  It’s easily digestible and contains binding starches that encourages elimination.  Just remember: WHITE RICE.

It’s true we should eat more whole grains and lots of veggies and fruits, but when you are shooting horrible stuff from your bum suffering from diarrhea, it’s best to go back to the 1970s food groups and of course, lots of fluids so everyone stays properly hydrated.

Looking at the linked info, there is no doubt some of the wisdom of yesteryear has survived the test of time.  ABC, easy as 123, but is it still recommended today?

Here are a few schools of thought.

#1) WebMD states: The BRAT diet (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast) was once a staple of most pediatricians’ recommendations for children with an upset stomach. The idea was that it gave the gut a chance to rest and reduced the amount of stool produced.

#2) American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that kiddos can resume their regular diet within 24-hours of sickness onset. Unless that diet is chicken nuggets and french fries.  No.  Just no.

#3) OMT says: Do what you know is best for you and your kiddo.  If you or your itty-bitty has an appetite and it’s not waging war on your Southern fire exit, then YAY for you.

Personally, once the flood gates are open for me, it’s plenty of fluids (water, 7-up or  sports drinks, diluted by half) and bland crackers or pretzels until things start turning around.  Once my innards stop trying to escape, then it’s back to all things cake!

Some days, I’m all-in with my docs and where science has brought us, medically.  Other days, I’m all about using old stand-bys that I know work based my experience and of those I trust.  You guys will do the same.

To all the new mommies, I say: be open when your mom or grandmother offers you a remedy that was used waaay before you were born.  Today you may roll your eyes at the sheer craziness of it; tomorrow you might be desperate to try what works.

Research. Investigate. Learn.

To all the older moms and grannies, I say: be open to the unfamiliar information that new mommies are exploring and sharing with you.  Just because #1: you’ve never heard of it before or #: you wouldn’t try it, doesn’t mean it’s not valuable or doable.

Research.  Investigate.  Learn.

The day will come when one of you, or the baby, has the dreaded diarrhea and maybe you’ll remember this article with its helpful information and find something that works for you.

See?  That wasn’t so hard.

Poop, there it is…

 

 


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