Diarrhea
Diarrhea involves bowel movements
that are loose and watery. About 60-90 percent of stool weight consists of water, but when
the water content goes too high, you know it. Abdominal pain and cramping, a sense of
urgency to have a bowel movement, and sometimes nausea or vomiting are the clues
you’ll get if you have mild diarrhea.
Severe diarrhea may be a sign of serious illness and may be
accompanied by blood, mucus, or undigested food in your stool, weight loss, or fever.
Contact your healthcare provider promptly if these severe symptoms persist longer than 24
hours. Losing all this fluid can deplete much-needed water and salts that your body needs
to function. Keep drinking water to replace lost fluids.
Diarrhea, which literally means "through-flow,"
is taken from the Greek word diarrhoia, a term coined by the famed physician
Hippocrates for abnormally frequent defecation.
Acu-Points to Slow the Flow
People around the world have been dealing with diarrhea
for centuries. Oriental medicine has developed effective strategies to treat acute or
chronic diarrhea. A mild case of diarrhea helps your body clean out toxins and bacteria,
and is of little concern for the first two days. However, we see patients who have
continual loose stools that disrupt their lives and who need safe and effective solutions
for their conditions.
We find that irregular diet, emotional stress, and overwork
are frequently at the root of chronic diarrhea. After our initial exam, your total
condition will be taken into account as a comprehensive treatment plan is designed for
you. I use acupuncture, nutrition, and Qi Gong meditation to slow the flow. Chinese herbs
can also be used to treat underlying conditions that lead to poor overall health and loose
stools in diarrhea. Qi Gong meditations such as standing facing a forest beautiful pond or
stream while you breath deeply in through your nose imagining the peacefulness and majesty
of nature flowing into you and exhaling all of the unwanted tension or toxins out your
mouth is a great way to help with the excess worry and stress that often accompany
diarrhea. Depending on the diagnosis herbs such as Bai Tou Weng, Huang Lian, Fu Ling, and
Bai Zhu will be used to reduce the spasms in your colon and regain optimal health for
preventative care of your digestive tract.
An estimated 30-50 percent of endurance runners experience
cramping, gas, nausea, and diarrhea known as runner’s trots. Vigorous exercise
reduces the blood to the intestines, and the up-and-down mechanical stress causes untimely
run-ins.
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