Stomach upsets

Nick-H · May 12th, 2007, 11:19

Apart from the antimalarial, taking antibiotics for something you might not catch seems like madness to me.

giripriya · May 14th, 2007, 19:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick-H

Apart from the antimalarial, taking antibiotics for something you might not catch seems like madness to me.

Yes, and this is a big reason why drug-resistant bacteria are becoming more of a problem - overuse of antibiotics, both in humans and animals(livestock).

How do you distinguish between the different kinds of tummy bugs? I got something awful in KTM last year, completely knocked me out for 3 days with both vomiting and runs, not really feverish but very weak, didn't really feel 100% for about a week. Luckily I had a friend with me who practically poured Jeevan Jal down my throat and went to a pharmacist who recommended Cipro and some anti-parasite drug(the name escapes me). I didn't like taking more meds than I needed(who knew if it was parasites or bacteria?) but one or both did the trick.

I am thinking it was from some buff momos I ate in Boudha but really have no idea what brought it on - when I come back TOMORROW!!! I'm eating only veg and being super careful about my water. Last time I only used iodine but did not filter tap water - this time I brought coffee filters as well as iodine tablets.

Kathmandu has a shrine to the Toothache God - there should be one to Dal Bhat Trots God as well!!!

HKeleher · Jun 2nd, 2007, 20:34

Ugh. Today is my fourth full day in New Delhi (11 more days to go) and I've had stomach problems for three of those days. In the past year and a half I've been to China, Singapore, France, UK, Japan, Brazil and now New Delhi. And this is the first time I've had any problems. I understand the differences in all these countries though.

Sigh... I have been careful, or so I thought. Maybe not. I'm beginning to think the Himalayan bottled water the hotel provides is not 100% safe, lol! Must be the paranoia!

So far I'm allowing this to run it's course but today has been worse than the others and I'm beginning to think I need to do something about it. I don't like taking antibiotics unless I really need to (for reasons mentioned here already) and I don't have that many to begin with. We'll see how I do tomorrow. I guess for now I'll chew on a pepto pill.

Nick-H · Jun 2nd, 2007, 21:30

I'm afraid that most docs here have not signed up yet to the don't-take-anti-biotics-unless school. They are still pleasing their patients with a nice long prescription, lot of pills to take.

But if you need just one of those pills, and it does the trick --- then its the way to go, and a doctor's advice is still going to better than trying to work it out for yourself. I guess. Hopefully

Get better soon, all you suffering guys out there...

HKeleher · Jun 2nd, 2007, 21:52

Yeah, the way some doctors give out antibiotics I'm surprised they aren't in gum vending machines at the local super market for a quarter.

This could very easily lead to a discussion on the drug company racket... let's not go there, heheh.

But when you really need them... they are an awesome thing!

bosquef · Jun 3rd, 2007, 08:58

I don't buy the arguement that if you go to India, you will definitely get stomach problems. The reason? I've been in India for 8 months, and my stomach has been no worse than 8 months in the US. My father, who has been coming to India regularly since 1970, has had a similar experience - in all those years, only a few stomach problems. He got really bad food poisoning one time eating at our local restaurant back home in the US a couple years ago, so it could happen anywhere...

Here is what I do. I'm not saying some of this isn't a matter of luck, but I will say that I find I have a stomach that gets upset relatively easy - so going 8 months without a serious problem would be impressive even back in the US.

1. I am very careful about water. I don't drink it! I don't brush my teeth in it! I don't even really trust mineral water. I carry a small electric device for boiling water - an immersion coil or a small container heater - these kinds of things are available back home and also here in India - you might use it to boil water quickly for tea. When I'm on the road, I also carry a bottle of crystalline iodine that dissolves in water (I bought it from http://www.polarequipment.com/purchase.htm), and treat my own water that way. Iodine is not recommended for long-term use, but I checked the medical literature, and found no evidence of any short-term side effects from use for up to 6 months. I don't assume that "filtered water" in a fancy hotel is properly filtered, nor do I assume that boiled water wasn't mixed with unboiled water to cool it down. To me, it just isn't worth the risk, especially now that I've developed my own routine of treating my own water.

2. I follow those rules they give you about not eating anything that could have fecal-oral or water contamination very carefully. I avoid things like fruit juice, chutney, onion salad, etc. I don't avoid street food - but I only eat street food that is still hot from the vat of boiling oil or whatever that it was cooked in - i.e. a fresh samosa, or freshly roasted peanuts. I don't care how fancy the restaurant is, I won't eat raw vegetables. Incidentally, lassis are sometimes made with ice (i.e. untreated water) so I generally avoid them. I also don't ask restaurants whether their water is treated, or whether they washed their vegetables, or whether their lassis are made with ice. I assume the worst, as I know that there are many barriers to my ability to effectively communicate, and I also know that tourist service operators often tell me what they think I want to hear, rather than the truth. I'd rather not trust my health to shaky communication with someone whose culture I don't understand and who is speaking in his second or fifth language.

3. I do take both pro biotics and grapefruit seed extract daily. Incidentally, someone thought that grapefruit seed extract would kill of your stomach bacteria, however it is my understanding that in addition to general immune support, grapefruit seed extract is anti-parasitic (i.e. Eukaryotic and multicellular organisms - ameoba, worms), and not anti bacterial, so it won't damage your intestinal bacteria. Be careful with the grapefruit seed - I understand that it is contraindicated to some prescription medicines.

4. I wash my hands. Actually, there was an interesting study of people getting stomach problems while backpacking in the high country of California's Sierra Nevada. Researchers found extremely low incidence of pathogenic bacteria in the water there, and determined that stomach problems were caused by people not washing their hands after pooping. I wash my hands religiously before eating, and I always carry a bottle of alcohol based hand sanitizer in case there is no soap, or no water. The "paper soap" they sell in railway stations is a great companion for this as well...

5. I adjust to the diet. Actually, back home in the US, I used to eat a diet with alot of rice, beans, and vegetables. Maybe not so many chilies, but basically, pretty similar to India food. So my body didn't have to make a huge adjustment to the basic Indian diet. I think alot of visitors to India get stomach problems because they aren't used to eating so much dietary fiber. But if you accustom your body beforehand, it will go alot easier.

I know there is an element of luck, but I really do believe that stomach problems are an optional part of a trip to India. What I would really love to hear is how people defend against respiratory problems. I think I've come down with at least one cold per month since I've been here...

Nick-H · Jun 3rd, 2007, 10:31

There's definitely no definitely about it!

But, as many a newbie post here shows, people seem to almost want to expect the worst from India!

On the other hand, expectation or not, it is common --- and most of my trips here have involved a stomach upset that lasted at least 24 hours. Most of them were trivial, as most will be, ie not requiring much more than knowing where the nearest toilet is at all times!

The first time I got through two weeks with no upset the airline poisoned me on the way home and I was disgustingly ill for a week.

The longer you stay in one place the less important the precautions become --- it is a simple matter of immunity. But although this method is good for us residents, it obviously doesn't suit travellers! But there is no ultimate guarantee: a bad ice cream can reduce a local to a shivering heap.

"Filtered" water is never fit for drinking, at least not by visitors. Just means there isn't any sand in it! But I haven't encountered it for a long time, in these days when even local residents tend to buy purified water.

May 12th, 2007, 11:19	#31
Nick-H Loud-mouthed, Noisy Bird Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 24,219	Apart from the antimalarial, taking antibiotics for something you might not catch seems like madness to me. __________________ . IndiaMike Mod Team (The Grumpy One)

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Jun 2nd, 2007, 20:34	#33
HKeleher Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: NC Posts: 4	Ugh. Today is my fourth full day in New Delhi (11 more days to go) and I've had stomach problems for three of those days. In the past year and a half I've been to China, Singapore, France, UK, Japan, Brazil and now New Delhi. And this is the first time I've had any problems. I understand the differences in all these countries though. Sigh... I have been careful, or so I thought. Maybe not. I'm beginning to think the Himalayan bottled water the hotel provides is not 100% safe, lol! Must be the paranoia! So far I'm allowing this to run it's course but today has been worse than the others and I'm beginning to think I need to do something about it. I don't like taking antibiotics unless I really need to (for reasons mentioned here already) and I don't have that many to begin with. We'll see how I do tomorrow. I guess for now I'll chew on a pepto pill.

Jun 2nd, 2007, 21:30	#34
Nick-H Loud-mouthed, Noisy Bird Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 24,219	I'm afraid that most docs here have not signed up yet to the don't-take-anti-biotics-unless school. They are still pleasing their patients with a nice long prescription, lot of pills to take. But if you need just one of those pills, and it does the trick --- then its the way to go, and a doctor's advice is still going to better than trying to work it out for yourself. I guess. Hopefully Get better soon, all you suffering guys out there...

Jun 2nd, 2007, 21:52	#35
HKeleher Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: NC Posts: 4	Yeah, the way some doctors give out antibiotics I'm surprised they aren't in gum vending machines at the local super market for a quarter. This could very easily lead to a discussion on the drug company racket... let's not go there, heheh. But when you really need them... they are an awesome thing!

Jun 3rd, 2007, 08:58	#36
bosquef Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Indiana (USA) Posts: 48	I don't buy the arguement that if you go to India, you will definitely get stomach problems. The reason? I've been in India for 8 months, and my stomach has been no worse than 8 months in the US. My father, who has been coming to India regularly since 1970, has had a similar experience - in all those years, only a few stomach problems. He got really bad food poisoning one time eating at our local restaurant back home in the US a couple years ago, so it could happen anywhere... Here is what I do. I'm not saying some of this isn't a matter of luck, but I will say that I find I have a stomach that gets upset relatively easy - so going 8 months without a serious problem would be impressive even back in the US. 1. I am very careful about water. I don't drink it! I don't brush my teeth in it! I don't even really trust mineral water. I carry a small electric device for boiling water - an immersion coil or a small container heater - these kinds of things are available back home and also here in India - you might use it to boil water quickly for tea. When I'm on the road, I also carry a bottle of crystalline iodine that dissolves in water (I bought it from http://www.polarequipment.com/purchase.htm), and treat my own water that way. Iodine is not recommended for long-term use, but I checked the medical literature, and found no evidence of any short-term side effects from use for up to 6 months. I don't assume that "filtered water" in a fancy hotel is properly filtered, nor do I assume that boiled water wasn't mixed with unboiled water to cool it down. To me, it just isn't worth the risk, especially now that I've developed my own routine of treating my own water. 2. I follow those rules they give you about not eating anything that could have fecal-oral or water contamination very carefully. I avoid things like fruit juice, chutney, onion salad, etc. I don't avoid street food - but I only eat street food that is still hot from the vat of boiling oil or whatever that it was cooked in - i.e. a fresh samosa, or freshly roasted peanuts. I don't care how fancy the restaurant is, I won't eat raw vegetables. Incidentally, lassis are sometimes made with ice (i.e. untreated water) so I generally avoid them. I also don't ask restaurants whether their water is treated, or whether they washed their vegetables, or whether their lassis are made with ice. I assume the worst, as I know that there are many barriers to my ability to effectively communicate, and I also know that tourist service operators often tell me what they think I want to hear, rather than the truth. I'd rather not trust my health to shaky communication with someone whose culture I don't understand and who is speaking in his second or fifth language. 3. I do take both pro biotics and grapefruit seed extract daily. Incidentally, someone thought that grapefruit seed extract would kill of your stomach bacteria, however it is my understanding that in addition to general immune support, grapefruit seed extract is anti-parasitic (i.e. Eukaryotic and multicellular organisms - ameoba, worms), and not anti bacterial, so it won't damage your intestinal bacteria. Be careful with the grapefruit seed - I understand that it is contraindicated to some prescription medicines. 4. I wash my hands. Actually, there was an interesting study of people getting stomach problems while backpacking in the high country of California's Sierra Nevada. Researchers found extremely low incidence of pathogenic bacteria in the water there, and determined that stomach problems were caused by people not washing their hands after pooping. I wash my hands religiously before eating, and I always carry a bottle of alcohol based hand sanitizer in case there is no soap, or no water. The "paper soap" they sell in railway stations is a great companion for this as well... 5. I adjust to the diet. Actually, back home in the US, I used to eat a diet with alot of rice, beans, and vegetables. Maybe not so many chilies, but basically, pretty similar to India food. So my body didn't have to make a huge adjustment to the basic Indian diet. I think alot of visitors to India get stomach problems because they aren't used to eating so much dietary fiber. But if you accustom your body beforehand, it will go alot easier. I know there is an element of luck, but I really do believe that stomach problems are an optional part of a trip to India. What I would really love to hear is how people defend against respiratory problems. I think I've come down with at least one cold per month since I've been here...

Jun 3rd, 2007, 10:31	#37
Nick-H Loud-mouthed, Noisy Bird Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 24,219	There's definitely no definitely about it! But, as many a newbie post here shows, people seem to almost want to expect the worst from India! On the other hand, expectation or not, it is common --- and most of my trips here have involved a stomach upset that lasted at least 24 hours. Most of them were trivial, as most will be, ie not requiring much more than knowing where the nearest toilet is at all times! The first time I got through two weeks with no upset the airline poisoned me on the way home and I was disgustingly ill for a week. The longer you stay in one place the less important the precautions become --- it is a simple matter of immunity. But although this method is good for us residents, it obviously doesn't suit travellers! But there is no ultimate guarantee: a bad ice cream can reduce a local to a shivering heap. "Filtered" water is never fit for drinking, at least not by visitors. Just means there isn't any sand in it! But I haven't encountered it for a long time, in these days when even local residents tend to buy purified water.

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