Why diarrhoea is dangerous

Diarrhoea is one of the main reasons young children in Afghanistan become seriously ill, especially in the hot months. The biggest danger is dehydration: the body loses water and salts faster than they are replaced. Most diarrhoea is caused by germs in dirty water, food and hands, so much of it can be prevented.

Prevent it with safe water and hygiene

  • Drink safe water. If you are not sure the water is clean, bring it to a full, rolling boil and let it cool, or treat it with chlorine tablets or drops as instructed.
  • Store drinking water in a clean, covered container, and take water out with a clean cup or ladle, not with your hands.
  • Wash hands with soap after using the latrine, after cleaning a child, and before preparing food or eating.
  • Use a latrine and keep it clean. Put children's stools in the latrine too.
  • Wash fruit and vegetables with safe water, cook food well and eat it while it is hot.
  • Give babies only breast milk for their first six months.

Treating diarrhoea at home: ORS and zinc

ORS (oral rehydration salts) replaces the water and salts the body loses. Give a child ORS after every loose stool, in small sips from a cup or spoon. If the child vomits, wait ten minutes and then continue more slowly.

  • Make ORS only from a packet. Mix the whole packet with exactly the amount of clean water written on the packet. Do not add sugar or salt, and do not use less water.
  • Use the mixed solution within 24 hours, then make a fresh one.
  • Zinc tablets shorten diarrhoea and help stop it from coming back. Give zinc for the number of days a health worker advises, even after the diarrhoea stops.
  • Keep breastfeeding and keep giving food. Do not stop feeding a child who has diarrhoea.
  • Do not give anti-diarrhoea medicines or antibiotics unless a health worker advises them.

When to see a doctor

Take the child to a health worker if diarrhoea lasts more than two weeks, if there is blood in the stool, or if the child has a fever. Go to the nearest hospital immediately if the child cannot drink or breastfeed, vomits everything, is very sleepy or hard to wake, has sunken eyes, has not passed urine for many hours, or has a convulsion.

If you are unsure how to give ORS and zinc, book a consultation with a doctor in the app or visit a clinic.