BRAT Diet

What is the BRAT diet?

The BRAT diet is used to treat diarrhea in children who eat solid foods. Diarrhea in children and babies has many causes, including illness, infection, and food sensitivity. Diarrhea may be caused or worsened by what the child eats or drinks. Changing the diet may help.

BRAT stands for:

• Bananas
• Rice (or other starchy food)
• Applesauce
• Toast

These foods are low in fiber. Other foods like this are crackers, cooked cereals, and pasta.

In addition to these foods, give babies and children lots of clear fluids for the first 24 to 72 hours. Give babies under 1 year of age Kao Lectrolyte or Pedialyte. For children older than 1 year, give water, diluted Kool-Aid or diluted Gatorade as the main fluids. Fluid is very important because it is easy for a child with diarrhea to become dehydrated. Dehydration is very serious in babies and young children.

As stools become more formed, your child can return to a normal diet. Slowly begin adding other types of food. Foods high in fiber such as raw fruits and vegetables, should be added last.

Call your child's health care provider right away if:

• Your child has not urinated in 8 hours (12 hours for older children) or has a very dry mouth or no tears.
• There is any blood or mucous in the diarrhea.
• Diarrhea is severe or lasts longer than 3 days.
• Your child throws up repeatedly, has a fever that lasts more than 3 days, or starts acting very sick.

Contact your child's provider if diarrhea starts within 1 week of a trip outside of the US or after a camping trip. The diarrhea may be due to bacteria or parasites and may need to be treated with medicine.