Children often suffer from diarrhoea. A child suffering from this disease passes stools many times (more than 4 times a day), is foul-smelling, thin and sometimes green in colour and contains mucus. Pieces of indigestible curd are also seen in the stools. In dysentery, both mucus and blood are mixed in the stools. A child suffering from this disease passes stools many times (which can be very thin and may also contain blood).
Main causes of the disease
• Virus, bacteria and protozoa, (giardiasis/amebiasis, helminthiasis).• Due to otitis media, mastitis, meningitis and teething. • Food related causes.
• Infection enters the milk bottle and milk due to not boiling it properly.
Main symptoms of the disease
• Diarrhea is very rare in breastfed babies.Simple diarrhea-
• In this stage, mild fever, vomiting (vomiting), stomach ache, thin diarrhea, color of diarrhea is pale, white or green. Foamy stools have sour foul smell, semi-digested material comes out of the stool, irritability, and insomnia are the main symptoms. Diarrhea from 2 to 10 times a day. Body weight reduced by about 10%.
Severe diarrhea-
• High fever, vomiting, loss of appetite, stomach cramps, bile, mucus and blood mixed in the stool. More number of diarrhea.
• Due to lack of water in the body and dehydration, the skin and lips of the sick child become dry.
• Weak pulse and fast heart rate.
• Less amount of urine.
• Fontanelle and eyes become sunken inwards.
• Body weight reduces by 15-25%.
Child is well nourished. There is less risk of diarrhea. Even if he gets diarrhea, he will recover soon.
Child is severely malnourished. There is a high possibility of diarrhea. There can also be a possibility of his death due to diarrhea.
In dietetic diarrhea
• In diarrhea caused due to excess fat, the stool is thin, smells like curd clots. • Due to excess of carbohydrates, the stool is thin, green with foam and sour. 1
• Diarrhoea starts with green colour like thin diarrhoea, along with curd clots and mucus. The number of stools is 2 to 10. Apart from this, the child also has a slight fever.
• In severe cases, dehydration occurs rapidly.
Symptoms of Dehydration
• Feeling thirsty and mouth/tongue becomes dry.
• Eyes sunken inwards (into pits). • Urine is less or not produced at all.
• Sunken 'funnels' inside.
• Cold hands and feet.
• Fast and weak pulse.
The symptoms of water deficiency can also be of the following types-
1. Simple water deficiency (Mild Dehydration)
• When the child has loose stools and he is stopped from giving water by mouth, usually due to the fear that the child's diarrhea may increase or he is not able to take water by mouth due to excessive vomiting. Due to this the child becomes irritable and keeps crying. He feels more thirsty and feels weak.
• Often mothers or grandmothers etc. stop giving food, water, milk etc. to such a sick child, which is absolutely wrong. Giving food, milk, water etc. to children during diarrhoea may increase diarrhoea a little initially but it maintains the internal strength of the child to fight the disease and the child recovers from the diarrhoea problem/disease soon.
2. Moderate Dehydration
• When diarrhoea increases or the child keeps vomiting along with diarrhoea, the deficiency of water in the body increases. In such children, the eyes appear sunken in the pits, lips and tongue appear dry and the skin takes more time to come back to its place after pinching it with the hands. The palate of the head of small children appears pressed. Urine formation decreases.
3. Severe Dehydration
• When the diarrhoea of the sick child is like water and comes quickly and in large quantity, then there is severe deficiency of water. In such a situation, the child becomes completely weak. (He may even go unconscious.) Urine either stops completely or comes in very less quantity. Hands and feet become very cold. Pulse starts beating very fast. (In this condition, there is a danger to the life of the child.)
Special (Prevention of dehydration)
• Remember that diarrhoea in children is usually not dangerous, but the dehydration that occurs along with diarrhoea is definitely a cause of worry for children. To avoid this deficiency, it becomes very important to fulfil the deficiency of water in such children either by giving them oral solution or by giving them in vein (I/V). (Because it is dangerous and can be fatal.) Children who vomit excessively due to this problem can be fulfiled by giving them some pediatric medicine. Children who are severely dehydrated should be admitted to the hospital in consultation with a specialist doctor and given I/V water and medicines. However, children who have mild diarrhea, normal or moderate dehydration and are not vomiting should be given water orally, homemade solutions and O.R.S.ORS (Oral Rehydration Solution)
Many companies are making it available in the market under various patented commercial names. This is • O.R.S. is a diluted oral rehydration solution which is available in the form of powder packed in medicine packets which is mixed in water. It can be prepared at home by mixing salt, sugar, baking soda and few drops of lemon juice in water.• Remember that ORS does not help in stopping diarrhea. But it helps in overcoming the water deficiency caused due to diarrhea.
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