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Healthy Diet Plans >>  Health Issues and Diet >>  Diet for intestine infection

Diet for intestine infection:

What is the diet for amebiasis?

Amebiasis is an infection of the intestine, liver or any other tissue caused by protozoan parasites or ameba - entamoeba histolytica. This orgasm finds its way in the body through ingested foods or contaminated water (by infected feces). This is a single-celled orgasm which multiples and moves around the intestine scavenging from small particles of food and bacteria. Most of the people with amebiasis have mild or no symptoms but people with severe infection can show symptoms like fever, abdominal pain, profuse diarrhea, anorexia, jaundice, and weight loss. In more severe cases it can also lead to development of pockets and inflammatory ameba cells in the liver and in rare cases in the brain.

Amebiasis is more common in areas where public hygiene and sanitation is low, where transmission can occur from ingestion of cysts from water and food contaminated by feces. It is more severe in elderly people, infants, and debilitated people. Person to person transmission can also occur so it becomes important for all the members of the house to examine their stools for any traces of the infection. However some strains of ameba can be harmless but others can invade the intestinal wall causing mucous secretion in the intestines. This mucous is then responsible for diarrhea, also known as amebic dysentery. Other common symptoms include fever, abdominal pain and cramping. If the infection lingers for a long time without any treatment then it can lead to ulcers in the intestinal wall from which the organism can gain accesses to the bloodstream and travel to the liver to form abscesses.

The treatment would largely depend on the clinical presentation of the disease that is if the infection is in the intestine itself or has spread to the intestinal walls too. In some cases it may be necessary to drain the liver abscess. Besides the medical treatment given by a health care provider, it is essential to take some precaution to prevent amebiasis. These include drinking only bottled or boiled water because other water purifying tablets are not effective against amebic cysts. Eat only washed, peeled, and cooked vegetables and fruits. Preferably avoid eating stale food; only eat fresh food to protect the food from fly contamination. It is very important to wash your hands thoroughly after defecation and before preparing any food. There is no special diet per say for this infection but once the symptoms appear it is important to consult a specialist to avoid any complications and maintain a hygienic environment.

Submitted on January 16, 2014