Diarrhoea is not an easy condition to handle, but once in a while we all may have to deal with it. We might eat something that can cause food poisoning or some bacterial or viral infection may trigger diarrhea.
You will get frequent watery stools, stomach cramps and bloating when you diet diarrhea. These symptoms can drain all your energy as you lose water and electrolytes from your body. Some diarrhea can be life threatening, but most diarrhea can be resolved with natural remedies at home. We will discuss whether orange juice for diarrhea is the right remedy or not in this article.
Table of Contents
- Can You Drink Orange Juice When You Have Diarrhea?
- Orange Juice is Beneficial for Diarrhea Caused by Indigestion
- Remedies for Diarrhea Excluding Orange and Other Fruit Juices
- Other Tips and Precautions
Can You Drink Orange Juice When You Have Diarrhea?
You have to be really careful about using oranges for diarrhea. In fact in some cases it will worsen the situation instead of resolving it.
Let us look at different types of diarrhea and understand where it will be useful and where it worsens it.
Different types of diarrhea are caused by different underlying conditions.
First let us look at the broad categories, acute and chronic diarrhea. A diarrhea is considered chronic if it lasts for more than a few weeks. If chronic diarrhea lasts for more than 4 weeks then you must consult a gastroenterologist.
At this stage itself we can say that orange juice is not good for chronic diarrhea. Most chronic diarrhea requires medical interventions. Home remedies alone can't work in most of such cases.
Orange juice can work for certain types of acute diarrhea. But, loose motions caused by bacterial infection will become worse with orange juice as the sugar in the juice increases diarrhea symptoms.
If you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or crohn's disease causing your diarrhea then all kinds of citrus juices will worsen the condition. Orange juice is no exception.
These are inflammatory types of diarrhea. In such cases your body is unable to absorb a kind of sugar called fructose. As a result diarrhea occurs. Citrus juice like orange juice and other fruit juices rich in fructose should be completely avoided.
If your diarrhea is accompanied with vomiting then also avoid orange and other citrus juices. They will worsen the condition.
Diarrhea caused by bacteria also becomes worse with consuming orange juice. The sugar in the orange juice feeds the bad bacteria so the condition worsens if you take orange juice or any other fruit juice.
Does it mean orange juice is really bad for all kinds of diarrhea?
Well only one type of diarrhea may benefit from orange juice.
Orange Juice is Beneficial for Diarrhea Caused by Indigestion
The only kind of diarrhea that gets better with orange juice is diarrhea caused by indigestion
There are many causes of indigestion but the most common one is the lack of digestive acids in the gastrointestinal tract.
As a result of indigestion you can get bloating, stomach upset, pain, loose motions, diarrhea and constipation.
If you can identify your condition as diarrhea due to indigestion then drinking orange juice and other citrus juices will help you to increase the gastrointestinal acidity.
This increased acidity in the intestine will improve digestion and stop the diarrhea and other symptoms of indigestion.
Oranges are citrus fruits containing many acids including the two main natural acids, particularly citric and ascorbic acids.
Consuming orange juices balances the pH towards the acidic side which helps in excretion of digestive juices.
In order to get the best results from orange juice in diarrhea drink orange juice 30-40 minutes before food.
You can also use orange peel tea for such acute diarrhea. Make sure that oranges are organic otherwise the dyes and pesticides will get into your intestine.
It's easy to make orange peel tea.
- Pour 2 cups of water in a saucepan
- Peel one medium size orange and toss the peals in the saucepan
- Bring it to boil
- Reduce the heat and let it simmer for 15 minutes
- Put off the burners and let it cool to palatable temperatures.
- Two cups of tea is ready
- Strain and drink a cup of tea with other cup offered to someone for company
If you eat orange juice with the food then the carbohydrates and proteins will interfere with it and neutralize its digestive juice excreting capabilities. This will lead to bloating , cramping and more diarrhea.
Remedies for Diarrhea Excluding Orange and Other Fruit Juices
Since orange juice is not good for most kinds of diarrhea it is better to go for home remedies that are good for most types of diarrhea
- Eat pain white rice
- Prepare Buttermilk and drink
- Drink chamomile tea
- Drink honey mixed in warm water
- Eat applesauce
- Drink diluted apple cider vinegar
- Enjoy Caraway tea
- Make ginger tea
- Take aloe vera juice
Other Tips and Precautions
Avoid taking Orange or any other site resource if you do not understand what kind of diarrhea you have.
Following precautions will help you to deal with your diarrhea better.
- Drink lots of water
- If you take orange or any other juice then make sure that it is fresh. Stop using the juice if it worsen the condition
- Make sure that you consume electrolytes true sports drinks or added salt particularly pink Himalayan salt.
As you would have realised that you have to know the underlying cause of diarrhoea before taking orange juice or any other home remedy to deal with it. If you are not able to control it within a day or two then you must consult your doctor.