It may sound gross but diarrhoea is actually GOOD for you. Here’s why…
Diarrhoea helps rid your body of bacteria when you are sick, research has concluded
IT has long been thought that diarrhoea is the body's way of ridding itself of nasty tummy bugs but it has never been proven...until now.
Scientists have finally discovered exactly how our bodies loosens stools to flush out bacteria that cause infection.
Most people reach for medication like Imodium to plug themselves up when they have the runs, but it turns out it is best to let nature take its course.
In sick mice, scientists found proteins that caused small leaks in the intestinal wall which allowed water to flow in - making their poo looser and reducing the severity of infection or disease.
Diarrhoea can have many different causes, including infection, too much alcohol, too much caffeine and some medication.
It's caused by an excess of water in the intestines, which loosens bowel movements.
Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) infected mice with bacteria and monitored how their body responded.
Dr Jerrold Turner, study author of the BWH Departments of Pathology and Medicine, said: "The hypothesis that diarrhoea clears intestinal pathogens has been debated for centuries.
"Its impact on the progression of intestinal infections remains poorly understood.
"We sought to define the role of diarrhoea and to see if preventing it might actually delay pathogen clearance and prolong disease."
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Turner and his colleagues infected mice with citrobacter rodentium - the mouse equivalent of E.coli infection which can cause diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach cramps in people.
Within two days of the infection their intestines began to leak water to trigger diarrhoea, they found.
The intestines began flushing out the infection before any cell damage or inflammation could occur.
Turner and researchers discovered two new proteins responsible for diarrhoea - interleukin-22 and claudin-2, a protein known to cause diarrhoea.
When the mice were infected, immune cells travelled to the intestines and created interleukin-22, which then bound themselves to the walls of the intestine to allow water to flow in.
They found interleukin-22 had a direct impact on claudin-2 when infection is involved.
When the two proteins interact they promote pathogen clearance through diarrhoea.
Researchers concluded that diarrhoea does play a critical role in clearing the early stages of an infection.
But that does not mean you should be experiencing diarrhoea regularly.
If you are experiencing persistent diarrhoea you should speak to your GP.
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