Diarrhea can have many causes, including medications. Diarrhea is a common side effect of medications through a variety of mechanisms:
- Laxatives can produce diarrhea by drawing water into the gut, increasing the muscular contraction of the intestine, lubricating the lining of the gut, or a combination of these effects.
- Antibiotics may produce diarrhea by destroying the normal bacteria of the intestine. Another bacterium, Clostridium difficile, may then colonize the GI tract.
- Other drugs may be directly toxic to the GI tract.