Diet in poisoning: general rules

A diet for poisoning is a key method for restoring the normal condition and functioning of the gastrointestinal tract when its mucous membranes are damaged by toxins, bacteria or microbes that enter the body when consuming poor-quality food products.

The body's reaction to food poisoning in the form of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramping abdominal pain, weakness, chills, and often an increase in temperature is defined as acute gastroenteritis, acute toxic gastroenteritis, bacterial gastroenteritis, or infectious bacterial enteritis.

Regardless of the terminology (its nuances in this case are not particularly important), in any case, a diet is necessary for intestinal poisoning.

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Diet for food poisoning

Treatment of diet poisoning begins only after the stomach has been washed and sorbents have been taken, that is, the remains of what was eaten and toxic substances have been removed.

After this, the diet for food poisoning begins with a temporary cessation of any food intake and its replacement with liquid, and in increased quantities. Fasting for one or two days gives the digestive system a break and thus creates optimal conditions for eliminating the consequences of the gastrointestinal "accident".

But drinking a large amount of liquid is necessary not only to replenish its loss during vomiting and diarrhea and normalize water-electrolyte metabolism, but also to finally remove toxins from the body. Gastroenterologists note that in such situations, the required minimum of liquid for adults is 2 liters per day.

You should drink regular purified water (if mineral, then only non-carbonated), unsweetened teas (green and black), dried fruit compote, rosehip decoction; in case of very severe diarrhea - mucous decoction of white rice. The optimal temperature of drinks is approximately +25°C. Drinking should be frequent (2-3 times during each hour), but in small portions (60-80 ml); the liquid should be drunk in small sips, so as not to avoid spasms of the esophagus muscles and the urge to vomit. Alternating with other liquids, you should also take special solutions against dehydration of the body (Regidron, Trigidron, Glucosolan, etc.).

What diet for poisoning? Of course, one that does not cause chemical, mechanical or thermal irritation of the esophagus and stomach, and also does not provoke excessive intestinal peristalsis - that is, as sparing as possible. The daily caloric intake should not exceed 2000 kcal, fats and carbohydrates are limited, dishes should be boiled or steamed. It is recommended to eat small portions up to 6-7 times a day.

During the first two days after the acute manifestation of symptoms, the diet menu for poisoning includes crackers with tea and porridge. And crackers should not be store-bought, but in the form of well-dried white wheat bread. And semi-liquid unsweetened porridges cooked in water - rice and buckwheat - should be well boiled to a homogeneous state. Buckwheat and rice do not contain the vegetable protein gliadin (gluten) and are completely digested in the stomach, so they do not burden the large intestine. But there are some doubts regarding the often recommended oatmeal. Oats contain this prolamin protein, which is “famous” for the fact that it is difficult to digest in the small intestine, that is, it additionally burdens it and acts as a laxative for many... On the other hand, oatmeal contains quite a lot of starch, which when cooking porridge turns into mucus, which is useful for irritable intestines. This dilemma has been resolved by nutritionists who claim that a diet for food poisoning should include oatmeal.

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Diet for poisoning in a child

Treatment of diet poisoning in children is carried out according to the same rules as in adults. If the poisoning happened to a baby who is breastfed, then the volume of milk is reduced by 40% for two days, but the number of feedings is increased. And it is imperative to give the child something to drink to avoid dehydration. The calculation of the daily norm of water (or rehydration solution) is as follows: for every kilogram of body weight of a child aged 1-12 months, 150-180 ml of liquid is needed; the entire volume is divided by 18-20 hours to get the volume of liquid for each hour. For example: a child weighs 10 kg, which means he needs 1500 ml of water per day (150 ml x 10); 75 ml of water is needed for each hour (1500 ml: 20). These 75 ml should be given to the baby to drink over the course of an hour, but not all at once, but a teaspoon every 10 minutes. And this must be done until vomiting and diarrhea stop.

In the following days, it is necessary to gradually (by no more than 15% per day) increase the volume of food until it returns to its normal amount.

The diet for poisoning in an older child - both restrictions on products, and methods of cooking, and diet - are the same as for adults, but with the exclusion of milk for at least 12-14 days. The lactose (milk sugar) contained in milk is digested in the small intestine, and after poisoning it must be given time to fully recover.

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Diet for alcohol poisoning

The diet for alcohol poisoning, that is, ethyl alcohol, consists of drinking plenty of fluids and taking sorbents, for example, activated carbon - four tablets every 2-2.5 hours.

Signs of alcohol poisoning include facial flushing, loss of coordination, increased sweating, headache, irregular heartbeat, tremors – vomiting is not experienced by all victims, and diarrhea is absent. This is because 0.3-0.5% alcohol in the blood is a powerful toxin for the central nervous system, heart and, of course, the liver. That is, the gastrointestinal tract does not react to alcohol poisoning… It does, but not immediately, and with constant alcohol abuse, leading to gastritis, stomach ulcers and liver cirrhosis. But now we are not talking about this, but about what kind of diet for alcohol poisoning will help get rid of its symptoms.

In this case, food does not matter, the main thing is drinking liquids: sweet tea with lemon, milk, compote, fruit juices or water with natural honey.

As for the products recommended in such cases, it is better to eat lightly for several days: vegetable soup, lean meat, porridge (oatmeal and buckwheat), cottage cheese, kefir.

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Diet recipes for poisoning

Diet recipes for poisoning are not difficult in culinary terms, but there are some subtleties in their preparation. For example, the same rice and buckwheat porridge.

In order for these simple dishes to become a truly useful component of diet poisoning treatment, they need to be cooked correctly. In order for rice and buckwheat to boil well and the porridge to be viscous, the washed grains should be poured into cold water, not boiling water. And you need to add salt only at the very end of cooking. By the way, buckwheat is good not only for porridge, but also for soup.

Diet buckwheat soup

To prepare the soup you will need: 1.5 liters of water, half a glass of buckwheat, two medium potatoes, one small carrot and 25 g of butter. Pour cold water over the washed buckwheat, bring to a boil and reduce heat, cook for 10 minutes. Then put the pre-peeled and grated potatoes and carrots in the pan, add salt and cook for about 20 minutes more - until the buckwheat and vegetables are soft. Add butter before the end of cooking. Before serving, you can additionally chop the soup with a blender.

The principles on which the diet for poisoning is based are physiologically sound, so such a diet will help to quickly eliminate the consequences of food intoxication.

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What can you eat if you are poisoned?

Only after the condition has stabilized (vomiting has stopped and the intensity of diarrhea has decreased) is it permissible to consume other products. In addition to those already mentioned, the list of permitted products in the diet for intestinal poisoning includes: soups with weak meat or chicken broth (with rice or buckwheat), vegetable puree soups, semi-liquid mashed potatoes, boiled or steamed lean meat (chopped), lean sea fish (boiled, steamed), eggs (steamed omelet or soft-boiled), low-fat cottage cheese, one-day fermented milk products (kefir, yogurt), butter (only in dishes and no more than 30 g per day).

Then, baked apples and pears (without sugar), boiled vegetables in the form of puree, porridge with added milk (in a ratio of 1:3 with water), fruit kissels (except plum) can be used in the diet menu for poisoning. After 8-10 days, you can try to eat fresh vegetables and fruits without coarse fiber little by little.

What should you not eat if you are poisoned?

What you can't eat when you're poisoned can be determined by the method of exclusion. As a result, the following are prohibited:

• fatty meats, poultry and fish;
• any fresh bread, as well as baked goods;
• whole milk and hard cheeses;
• any sausages and all meat delicacies;
• pearl barley, millet, barley porridge;
• pickles, smoked meats, canned goods, sauces and seasonings;
• white cabbage, beets, radishes, horseradish, onions, garlic;
• legumes;
• mushrooms;
• grapes, apricots, dried apricots, dates, prunes;
• all confectionery products;
• coffee, cocoa, carbonated and alcoholic drinks.