Can You Eat Chocolate When You Have Diarrhea?

Having diarrhea is miserable, but treating it doesn’t always have to be. Surprisingly, eating dark chocolate may ease your diarrhea symptoms.

Is Eating Chocolate Good for Diarrhea?

“Dark chocolate has been found to help with diarrhea,” says Elena Ivanina, DO, a gastroenterologist with a private practice in New York City. In fact, she says, the use of cocoa as a diarrhea treatment dates back to ancient European and South American cultures.

“Cocoa contains flavonoids, natural plant-based compounds that have been found to have antioxidant properties,” Dr. Ivanina says. “They have also been found to block a protein that regulates fluid secretion in the gut,” which can improve diarrhea.

“Dark chocolate is especially effective, as it is highest in flavonoids,” she says.

Other Foods to Eat When You Have Diarrhea

Chocolate isn’t the only food that can help, Ivanina says.

If your diarrhea comes on suddenly and is likely due to food poisoning, “it’s best to scale back to broth and crackers,” she says. “When you reintroduce foods, start with the BRAT diet — bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast.”

The BRAT diet slows down your digestive system, which reduces the frequency of bowel movements, according to the International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders (IFFGD).

The IFFGD lists other foods and drinks that might help calm your digestive tract or replace lost sodium and potassium, such as:

• Sports drinks or rehydration drinks
• Potatoes (boiled or mashed)
• Yogurt (if you can tolerate lactose)
• Rice
• Noodles
• Smooth peanut butter (in small amounts)
• White bread

Foods to Avoid

There are plenty of foods that can contribute to diarrhea, too. The IFFGD recommends trying to figure out what foods or fluids cause your digestive symptoms. Some common culprits include:

• Lactose For a lot of people, consuming milk or products made with it can be a problem because of lactose, a sugar found in milk. “Around 65 percent of the world’s population has a decreased ability to digest lactose after infancy,” Ivanina says. If you’re one of the many people with lactose intolerance, you may be able to keep your diarrhea symptoms at bay by following a lactose-free diet. “This includes staying away from cheese, milk, and ice cream,” Ivanina says.
• Gluten Eating foods that contain this protein found in wheat is another possible cause of chronic diarrhea in people who have celiac disease or a non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Ivanina says that removing gluten from the diet can improve diarrhea in people with those conditions.
• Fatty Foods If your snacks and meals contain a lot of fat or you love fried foods, your bowels may have to kick into overdrive and secrete more fluids to digest these foods, according to Harvard Health Publishing.
• Sugar Consuming natural sugars such as fructose, found in fruit and fruit juices, can make diarrhea symptoms worse. The same is also true of eating dried fruits like raisins, dates, and prunes, according to the IFFGD.
• Fake Sugars Some artificial sweeteners found in sugar-free gum, candy, and medications don’t get absorbed properly in the gut, and consuming them can lead to diarrhea, Ivanina says. The most-likely offenders are sweeteners that end in “ol.” These include sorbitol, mannitol, and xylitol, which can have a laxative effect, according to the IFFGD.
• Caffeine Drinking your morning cup of java may be giving your digestive system a bit too much of a jolt, according to Harvard Health Publishing.

The foods that can affect the gut vary from person to person, according to the IFFGD. So, you may need to experiment with some foods by taking them out of your diet, waiting for your symptoms to ease, and then gradually bringing them back to see if they’re behind your symptoms.

The same goes for foods that might help ease your diarrhea, too. And if you decide to try chocolate, remember to pick a plain dark chocolate and check the label for other ingredients.