5 Great Home Remedies Against Gastroenteritis

Home remedies against gastroenteritis (stomach flu) can cure the unpleasant infection in a gentle way. With these little helpers you will get rid of the symptoms!

A gastroenteritis is extremely unpleasant: Often it begins with some nausea, but soon vomiting and diarrhoea are added. This puts additional stress on the body and understandably we want to get rid of the symptoms quickly. Fortunately, we often have suitable helpers for the symptoms at home: you should definitely test these gentle household remedies against gastroenteritis!

1. Drink plenty!

Through vomiting and diarrhoea we lose a lot of vital fluids – and dehydrate. The only thing that helps against this is to drink as much as possible. Two to three litres of (lukewarm) water should be enough. But herbal tea also helps: chamomile in particular calms the digestive tract and has a relaxing effect, while peppermint helps to drive away the nausea.

2. Do not forget electrolytes

We need the so-called electrolytes to regulate the water balance and the pH value of the blood. However, we lose a lot of it in diarrhoea and vomiting. On the other hand, electrolyte powder is available in the pharmacy, but we can also easily make a solution ourselves. This is done by mixing a level teaspoon of table salt with seven to eight teaspoons of dextrose or household sugar and one litre of still water. The solution should be drunk throughout the day.

3. Heat relaxes

A stomach flu is often accompanied by stomach cramps – and heat is the best remedy. The easiest way to do this is to place a warm hot water bottle on your stomach.

4. Go on a bland diet

If you cannot eat solid food at all because of the symptoms, vegetable broth is the best choice: it provides the stressed body with the nutrients it needs and can be drunk in small sips, one after the other. As soon as you can tolerate solid food again, switch to a bland diet. Easily digestible foods such as rusk and various types of fruit such as bananas or apples are particularly suitable.

5. Psyllium seeds

Psyllium seeds are very versatile for digestive disorders, because the mucilage they contain can bind water and the seeds swell up in the intestines. In diarrhoea, for example, they bind excess fluid, which causes the stool to condense and the diarrhoea to subside. For acute symptoms, simply mix one teaspoon of psyllium with about 200 millilitres of water and drink it – then rinse off with two glasses of water.

And what about Coke and pretzel sticks?

Again and again one reads of Cola and salt sticks as effective household remedies against gastro-intestinal infections. You’d better leave that alone! Cola can even increase diarrhoea due to the many sugars it contains. And as far as salt sticks are concerned: Basically, the idea of an increased salt intake is not wrong in the case of gastro-enteritis, but salt sticks are not really suitable for this. This is because potassium and citrates – two of the salts that we urgently need for diarrhoea and vomiting – are completely absent. Instead of relying on these outdated household remedies, you should rather drink the electrolyte mixture.