Traveler's Diarrhea
Traveling always comes with surprises, sometimes good and sometimes bad. You can have delayed or cancelled flights, experience bad weather, or arrive and find your favorite attraction is closed. Unfortunately, we’ve experienced all of these including the worst one; traveler’s diarrhea (TD). And let me tell you, it is the worst.
Being sick while traveling is an annoyance because you are not familiar with the medications available and have no access to a medical provider. However, there are measures you can take to be prepared in case it happens. During my second year of pharmacy school I took a class called “Travel Medicine” and absolutely loved it. From this class I learned about TD, how to prevent it and how to treat it. Below you will find some general but useful information that may help you in case you are ever faced with this dilemma.
Keep in mind everybody is different and you should always consult your doctor or local pharmacists for specific recommendations (especially if you have any allergies).
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What is traveler’s diarrhea (TD)….
Traveler’s diarrhea is the most common travel-related illness affecting up to 70% of travelers. Your risk changes depending on the destination and the time of year you are visiting, but the highest-risk destinations include Asia, Middle East, Africa, Mexico, and Central and South America.
Traveler’s diarrhea presents suddenly with symptoms like mild cramps, urgent loose stools, abdominal pain, fever or vomiting. It results from organisms called pathogens that colonize your gastrointestinal tract disrupting its normal flora. These pathogens can include bacteria, viruses, or parasites. However, most cases of traveler’s diarrhea are the result of bacterial pathogens. If left untreated, bacterial diarrhea will last 3-7 days.
How to prevent TD…
Traditionally, the recommendations for prevention focused around the “boil it, cook it, peel it, or forget it,” but this is no longer emphasized because people that do this may still become sick. And let’s be honest, sometimes this is hard to do while traveling.
When traveling take the following approaches to reduce your risk of becoming sick on your next adventure:
Always drink boiled or bottled water – I think this is a great rule to follow when traveling anywhere. Tap water is not always filtered as it is in the United States, so be sure to avoid drinking tap water anytime you travel outside the United States. Likewise, be mindful of drinks that are heavy with ice, it may have been made with unfiltered tap water.
Use water bottles with filters – Another way you can be sure to always have water with you, and save some money is to buy a water bottle with a filter. Something like this. Water filters come in different pore sizes and depending on which size you choose you will be able to filter out specific pathogens. A filter with a pore size of 0.1 to 0.4 µm will be effective for protection against the most common culprit of traveler’s diarrhea, bacteria.
Choose your food wisely – I believe this one is hard, because when traveling you will want to try all of the local cuisine. But there are some minor steps you can take. Eat foods that are well cooked and avoid food that has been sitting on a buffet or plate for a while.
Wash your hands – This is probably the most universal recommendations for avoiding just about any type of infectious disease. Because it works! Alternatively, you can use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol if there is not a restroom close by. These have 70%! I always be sure to bring one with me on my travels and keep it attached to my handbag or backpack.
How to treat TD…
In the unfortunate event this happens to you, like it did to me, there are ways to treat traveler’s diarrhea.
Drinks Lots of H2O – The reason diarrhea can be so dangerous is because you can experience massive water losses and become dehydrated. So, it is important to drink water to avoid this. If there is vomiting and diarrhea, then dehydration is more likely, and you’ll want to replace your fluids with oral rehydration solution (ORS). These are packaged oral rehydration salts available at stores and pharmacies in most developing countries.
Take Over-The-Counter Drugs – There are drugs called antimotility agents that provide symptomatic relief and decrease the frequency and urgency of needing to use the bathroom. The two most commonly used are loperamide and diphenoxylate. Loperamide is the most common, is available in various forms, and can be used in by children. However, these agents should not be used if there is bloody diarrhea or fever.
I hope you find this post helpful for your next adventure and if you have any questions about traveler’s diarrhea, its symptoms and other ways to prevent and treat send me a message! I will be very happy to help you. Until then, keep traveling and go on exploring!