Nutrition and cancer

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Managing eating problems during treatment - VIII

Diarrhea

Some cancer treatments and medications can cause loose, frequent stools. Before taking any over-the-counter medicines for diarrhea, be sure to talk to your healthcare team.


Try these ideas to help manage diarrhea:

* Eat small, frequent meals and snacks throughout the day.

* Drink plenty of non-carbonated, caffeine-free fluids such as water, juice, sports drinks and clear broth. This will help to prevent you from becoming dehydrated.

* Limit greasy, fried, spicy, or very sweet foods.

* Switch to low-lactose milk or a soy beverage if drinking milk makes your diarrhea worse.

* Choose salty foods such as soups, sports drinks, crackers, and pretzels to replace sodium lost from having diarrhea.

* Choose foods that are high in potassium such as fruit juices and nectars, sports drinks, potatoes, and bananas to replace the lost potassium.

* Avoid sugarless gum and candies made with sorbitol, which acts like a laxative.

* Stay away from foods that are natural laxatives (such as prunes and prune juice, rhubarb and papaya).

* Limit foods that contain caffeine (coffee, tea, chocolate and cola).

* Choose foods that contain less fibre, as high-fibre foods tend to increase diarrhea. White bread and pasta, refined cereals, ripe bananas, mashed potatoes or baked potatoes without the skin, meat, poultry and fish are examples of low-fibre foods.

Talk to your healthcare team if the diarrhea does not stop, or if your stools have an unusual odour or colour.

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