Should you eat yogurt when you have diarrhea?

Diarrhea is a common and usually short-lived condition. A person can have diarrhea several times a year. This is an increased frequency of bowel movements with at least 3 loose stools in about 24 hours. Diarrhea can be caused by many factors, and certain foods like yogurt can alleviate or worsen it. So when you have diarrhea, should you eat yogurt?

Some yogurts contain bacteria (called probiotics) that can help prevent or treat diarrhea.
1.1 Infection-associated diarrhea Studies show that consuming probiotics in the weeks before travel can reduce a traveler's risk of diarrhea by up to 15%. A review of 63 randomized trials found that probiotics can shorten the duration of symptoms by up to 25 hours if diarrhea is caused by a bacterial, viral, or parasitic infection. The same review also found that people using probiotic products were 59% less likely to have diarrhea for more than 4 days compared with those who didn't take probiotics.
So, to the question of whether a child with diarrhea can eat yogurt, the answer is yes. The probiotics in yogurt can help prevent and treat diarrhea caused by infections.
1.2 Antibiotic-associated diarrhea Antibiotics are also one of the common causes of diarrhea. They can disturb the balance of the intestinal flora, giving rise to harmful bacteria that cause diarrhea.
Studies have shown that taking probiotics and antibiotics can reduce the risk of diarrhea by up to 51%. However, their effectiveness may depend on your age. According to the study, probiotics were most effective in children and young adults, and less effective in people over 64 years of age.
So the answer to the question of whether to eat yogurt for diarrhea is yes, for the cause of diarrhea is antibiotics.
1.3 Diarrhea Related to Other Conditions Probiotics found in yogurt can reduce diarrhea caused by digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome or ulcerative colitis. Therefore, the answer to the question of whether to eat yogurt with diarrhea is: Yes, if the cause of diarrhea is due to the two conditions above.
Some yogurts contain probiotics, which are beneficial bacteria that have been shown to help prevent or treat different types of diarrhea.

Bacteria are found in all fermented dairy products, including yogurt. To make yogurt, specific bacteria are added to the milk, which converts sugars into lactic acid. This fermentation process helps produce yogurt.
To be considered a probiotic, bacteria need to be alive and able to provide health benefits. The first types of bacteria used to make yogurt are not considered probiotics because they usually do not survive the digestive process so they do not bring any effect to the body.
However, some yogurt manufacturers have added digestive bacteria to their products. Probiotic strains that are effective in preventing and treating diarrhea in yogurt include: Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium lactis, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus reuteri, Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Saccharomyces boulardii.

To benefit the gut, experts say yogurt needs to meet two requirements:
Provide more than 10 billion colony-forming units (CFUs) of probiotics per serving; Contains strains of beneficial bacteria that can survive well in the acidic environment of the intestinal tract. However, very few yogurt manufacturers currently list the probiotic strains and CFUs they use in their products. Furthermore, research shows that quite a few yogurt products contain strains of bacteria that are not listed on the ingredient label. Additionally, up to 33% of products provide less CFU than needed.
These factors make it difficult for users to choose a yogurt based on food labels. However, some companies have now sent their products to 3rd party labs to analyze the product and confirm the number of CFUs to confirm the quality is commensurate with consumer confidence. If you can't find a 3rd-party tested probiotic fortified yogurt, choose one with a high CFU count that provides one of the probiotic strains listed above.

Yogurt contains lactose - a milk sugar that up to 70% of people in the world cannot digest. People with lactose intolerance often experience diarrhea from eating foods rich in lactose, including yogurt.
However, some evidence suggests that probiotic-rich foods like yogurt may make it easier to digest lactose. From there, it reduces unpleasant side effects like diarrhea. Therefore, if you have diarrhea after eating regular yogurt, you can choose probiotic-rich yogurt.
However, if you know for sure you have lactose intolerance, it's best to avoid probiotic-free yogurt products altogether.
Thus, probiotic-rich yogurt can protect against many types of diarrhea such as traveler's diarrhea, infections, antibiotics, Crohn's disease and irritable bowel syndrome. Therefore, the answer to the question of whether diarrhea should eat yogurt is yes. For the strongest effect, you should choose yogurt that contains 10 billion CFU or more, containing many strains of good bacteria for the intestinal tract. However, if you are lactose intolerant, yogurt can cause diarrhea and so you should use probiotic-rich plant-based yogurts.