Treatment for Stomach Flu - Part 2

You can help to settle the gastrointestinal tract by allowing it to rest and not eat for several hours. If vomiting is an issue, then sip on very small amounts of clear liquids or suck on an ice chip to help with dehydration. These small amounts of fluid can be absorbed more quickly and are less likely to upset the stomach.

Once vomiting has stopped for at least four hours you can gradually reintroduce food. Start with very bland foods that follow the BRAT diet. These foods include banana, rice, apples and toast with some bland chicken broth. Avoid any dairy products, caffeine and alcohol as well as getting plenty of rest until recovery is complete.

If vomiting goes on for more than 12 hours, the individual stops urinating or the individual vomits more than five or six times in a couple of hours it is important to seek the advice of your primary care physician. Nausea and vomiting is often triggered from a center in the brain and not directly from the stomach itself. A feedback loop can sometimes trigger, which is recurrent, and even when the virus has completely been cleared from the body, the individual can continue to vomit. Physicians have medications which can be used in order to calm the brain and stop that feedback loop.

Symptoms of dehydration are excessive thirst, dry mouth, dark yellow urine or no urine at all, severe weakness or lethargy and dizziness or lightheadedness. These are all signs and symptoms that an individual should be treated in an emergency room. Dehydration is a symptom of a lack of fluid in the body which is vitally important to maintain life. Your physician may recommend hospitalization for a short time in order to replace fluids through an intravenous line and stop the feedback loop that is causing the nausea and vomiting.

Resources:

(1) Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Viral Gastroenteritis

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/gastro/faq.htm

(2) Brown Univesity Health Education: Stomach Flu

http://brown.edu/Student_Services/Health_Services/Health_Education/common_college_health_issues/stomach_flu.php

(3) Pediatric Annals: Parasitic Gastroenteritis

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7838606