What sort of foods are good during diarrhoea?
High energy foods such as fats, yogurt and cereals are quite well
absorbed during diarrhoea. Small, frequent feeds of energy-rich local foods familiar to
the child should be given. A little vegetable oil can be added to foods such as millet or
rice to increase the energy content.
- Foods high in potassium are important to restore the body's essential
stores depleted during diarrhoea. Such foods include lentils, bananas, mangoes,
pineapples, pawpaw, coconut milk and citrus fruits.
- Certain foods should be avoided during diarrhoea, for example those
containing a lot of fibre such as coarse fruits and vegetables, whole grain cereals and
spicy foods.
It is very important to continue feeding a person with diarrhoea. Give
soft, easy-to-digest foods, like khichri, watery dal, idlis, curd, bananas etc. You should also give plenty of other fluids, like lemonade
[nimbu pani], rice
kanji, lassi, coconut water, weak tea etc. If the baby is being breast-fed, continue to
give her mother's milk. Give an extra meal a day, after the diarrhoea stops, to help the body
get strong again.
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