Diarrhoea and on holiday

I'm on holiday in south east Asia with my family, ever since i came here i've had diarrhoea on and off and now (3 weeks later) it's gone more severe. I literally needed to go around three times a day for the past 4 days. It's quite a small place and i'm not too familiar with the local health care though it's well known for being crap and aiming to get the most money out of you by making you take jabs/ buying medicine that you don't really need. Anyway, i had to tell the relatives i live with and they gave me some medicine that's suppose to be very good. But i'm still very worried. What do you think it is? It's not the food as the rest of my family's ok. I'm starting to think i have IBS :s.

Reply 1

ßlαcksωαn

This often happens due to a number of thing, just travelling, different place, different food, different water.
I'd suggest you drink only bottled or boiled water because some of the water supplies in asia can be dodgey..depending on where you are. Get some medication to prevent dehydration, I dout ibs could come on like this when there are so many other factors involved.

Reply 2

fleur de lis

Yeah Blackswan is right. It could very well be the water. Drink bottled water only ;yes;

Reply 3

kiss-the-rain

If the healthcare where you are isn't up to your standards - maybe travel to somewhere that is.

Depending on where you are, it could be some kind of disease, water borne, mosquito borne, food borne, being ill for that long really needs to be checked out. Especially if you are having any other symptoms(?)

Keep hydrated. Bottled water. For teeth washing as well.
Watch what you eat
Take immodium?

If it carries on getting worse, i really suggest seeing a doctor..

Reply 4

jason1988

i wouldnt worry tbh it doesnt sounds to severe. 3 times a day allbeit more than normal isnt really to much to worry about, if you were having urges to go several times a day you could be in risk of dehydration but as the earlier post said just drink lots of water and maybe try and stick to some simple food :smile:

Have fun..... :wink:

P.S I had it quite bad in australia to the point where i was going every 30minutes and passing liquid from all angles lets say :P

Reply 5

randomgirl

Say no to tap water.

Also, are you eating a lot of rice and stuff like that? Because the locals will cook that in tap water (I think) so it's hard to get away from it.

It's normal in this situation. Obviously it's annoying, but I doubt there's anything wrong with you.

Reply 6

Apricot Fairy

Just take immodium to slow your bowels down a bit. It's perfectly normal and to be expected when you are in that part of the world. You can help by sticking to bottled water and eating tinned food and things like bananas which you can pretty much guarantee are safe to eat.

Reply 7

Paeony

It could be dehydration - my brother used to get really ill with it whenever we went somewhere warm, he once announced his arrival at a hotel by throwing up over the receptionist lol. We used to take salt tablets, they make you drink more and they really do help.

Just follow the basic precautions - eating food that's been cooked in local water should be ok, as most of the bacteria will be destroyed by boiling. Improper refrigeration is a much bigger problem, so just make sure that what you eat has been stored properly (as far as you can, obviously). If you're eating out, go for hot rather than cold food. Avoid things like fruit and salad, as these may have been washed in local water (fruit you peel is fine) and don't have ice in your drinks. Brush your teeth with bottled water, and when you buy bottled water make sure that it's 'sealed' - some places just refill the bottles with tap water. Also, if you're swimming a lot, make sure the pool is clean - a lot of people get dodgy tums from dirty pools rather than dodgy food.

Make sure that you keep hydrated (the salt tablets will help with this) and make sure that you're getting enough salt and sugar, as these will help you rebalance your electrolytes, which get screwed up when you've got vomiting and diahorrea. Take Imodium (or Kaolin and Morphine - similar stuff but cheaper, but it tastes FOUL) and try to eat vegetables and wholemeal bread rather than fatty stuff, as this can irritate your stomach.

I doubt you've got IBS, it's probably just a combination of factors - my brother went out to Sri Lanka and most of the people he went with got ill, some just got worse than others.

Hope you feel better soon!