Food Safety

[chelseafan]

Did they give you the correct tabs ? I ask that because when I went the other day to the docs, the nurse asked where I was going, told her thailand and she then consulted a chart to get me the correct Malaria tabs.....apparently there are difference types for different parts of the world

 

But as I said, nothing is fool-proof. One of the side-effects for my tabs is that excessive drinking nutrilises the effects.....

[limbo]

Food safety,

 

I merely stopped eating prawns, for the simple reason that if they are re-refrigerated, they turn bad and will make you sick badly, other sorts of fish do well when re-refrigerated.

Problem is, you can't see if prawns are fresh or are on a second day out of the fridge.

 

Other than that, maybe once a year a little bit of sitting on a toilet for a day, had two or three more serious cases of food poisoning, but nothing that lasted any longer than a few days.

[Pom_Jao_Choo]

I didn't read it that way actually.

 

I think all of us have some upsets in our first few months, and that was the point I thought you made well, and supported with good reasoning.

 

I meant that those who believe their symptoms are caused by more severe infections, are often supported in their beliefs by physicians too willing to collect fees for treatment.

 

I don't know why I'm so often misconstrued. I really need to learn how to better comunicate and do it more concisely.

 

David66UK said:

And that's why the food complaints of tourists staying in LOS less than 3 months need to be taken with a grain of salt.

 

I wasn't complaining. Just commenting on my experiances.

 

Mainly the first day or two of a trip - nothing too serious I just don't fart unless sitting on the pan

 

The occasional "dodgy tummy" or even rarer "bad" episode could well be hygiene , a liquid diet or mainly not eating Thai Food - which I think would help. BTW my stays in the LOS used to be up to 6 months - although not this long for a few years now

 

Never take any drugs to remedy the situation - as I find a trip to McDonalds "bungs up the works" quite nicely.

[lembeh]

 

>>Flat coke is well known to help in curing upset stomachs."

 

>it's an urban myth it must be flat,

 

Not really. The point is, I think, that some one with an upset stomach is not really gonna want to put a "fizzy" gaseous mix into that stomach. Hence the recomendation for "flat" coke. Coke is probably traditionally recommended as many areas have "uncertain" water supplies, and coke is "safe", readily available (everywhere) and the high sugar content is not gonna hurt. Yes, replace coke with pepsi or your beverage of choice, but again flat is better. Isotonics are good, but again flat is better, and some of these can be a bit "acidic" to the taste buds.

 

As an aside, I saw that several people recommend antibiotics. In "mild" cases this is probably overkill, and liable to do more long term damage than not (as it will kill the "healthy" intestinal flaora as well as the bad). Again, things like immodium are also best avoided where possible, as they really only "block you up" rather than "treat" anything.

 

In most cases a good compromise is charcoal/carbon tablets (yes they taste like shit) and wait it out...

-j-

[elef]

Hi Josh,

 

the advice to use normal cola comes from a friend of mine who is a pediatrician; he says a little extra gas has no effect on an upset stomach, but the main reason of course is to have kids to drink it.

 

elef

[drogon]

Let's just say that being sick is not fun at all

But

especially when you are a tourist-whorist in Thailand

 

[elef]

After I took Dukoral some years ago I never had any big trouble with the stomach at least. ::

[BrownFox77]

On my very 1st trip to LOS got deathly sick after eating the "mixed meat" plate at a Chinese restaurant in the lobby of the Pattaya Centre Hotel at just after 2:00 AM - food was most likely sitting there all day, girl I was with wisely had a hot bowl of noodles.

 

Was OK until the morning - then was sick to the max for 3 days, the runs, fever close 103F, chills, and the worst stomach cramps I ever experienced. I thought I could handle pain but this was like many knives inside my gut, I couldn't even sit up right let alone stand up and walk. I've told this story here before, although I just met her that bar girl stayed with me the entire 3 days using her own Baht to buy me food and medicine - and never asked for a single satang, not even to pay her bar fines for those days (needless to say I subsequently took very good care of her).

 

I really should have gone to the doctor and was seriously thinking about it but then whatever medicine she had got me from the pharmacy started to make a difference - but I really was curious as to what it was I had. I've had food poisoning before (in Ameriga) but nothing ever like that.

[june11]

Gee, it's sure a good thing you told us your not a doctor, because I"m sure everyone would think you might be, given the highly knowledgable words you wrote!

 

****************************************8

 

I am not a doctor!

 

I recall reading somewhere a few years ago thatsome of the bugs / bacteria? in your stomach which help the food digest are different in Asia and that basically your body has to get rid of the old stuff and replace it with the new and that this often involves sitting on the pan shitting liquid

 

I also recall a few occassions where I was never sure which "end" to point at the toilet

 

...........and the smell...........

 

Dunno how true this is............. but the shitting liquid is familiar. In fact one of the few good things for me about returning to Franagland is dropping a "proper" log

[Boo Radley]

elef said:

After I took Dukoral some years ago I never had any big trouble with the stomach at least. ::

I get Bangkok Belly quite badly in LOS. Am thinking of trying Dukoral too...