Chronic diarrhea is loose watery stools occurring three or more times per day for more than four weeks. It is a core symptom of IBS-D, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, food intolerances, SIBO, and post-antibiotic gut disruption. The microbiome is central to stool consistency: gut bacteria regulate water absorption in the colon and produce short-chain fatty acids that keep the gut lining healthy. Targeted probiotic therapy has strong evidence for reducing chronic diarrhea frequency.
