| The book "Where There is No Doctor" is an excellent resource for cycle tourists who will spend extended periods of time far from a reliable doctor. Best of all, the digital version is free! The book is published by a non-profit foundation and can tell you all the gory details without concern for liability. |
| Cycle Touring Health & Medical Issues |
| Cycle Touring Health | Diarrhea |
Diarrhea can be caused by any of the three little
bugs; viruses, bacteria or parasites. According to
the Centers for Disease Control 80% of travelers
diarrhea is caused by bacteria, 10% by viral
infection and 10% by parasites. The most
common way these buggers find their way into the
cyclists gut is from contaminated food or water.
Determining which type of diarrhea and treating it
is a complicated process. If you are unable to get
to a doctor here is a link that may help you. Go
to page 155
If you are traveling outside of your own country you
will more than likely be hit by at least one case of
the trots (unless you have a cast iron Mexican
stomach like Amanda).
If you are in a place long enough you will build a
resistance to the unusual bacteria and will get
used to it.
The travel medical guidebooks suggest drinking
only bottled water with an unbroken seal, and
avoiding fruits and vegetables that cannot be
peeled. How sad.
We couldn't do it. Amanda gorges on spinach
salads with broccoli, cauliflower, green peppers
and mushrooms whenever she has the chance.
Rich is a fruit lover. Mushy papaya from a
Bangkok street vendor and unwashed Chinese
pears from an old woman's pushcart are his
favorite afternoon snacks. But, by indulging in
these forbidden foods we are opening ourselves
up to some pretty nasty bugs. (cholera, E. Coli,
salmonella, hepatitis... it's a wonder we are still
alive)
Rich suffered from a really horrible, week-long
case of bloody diarrhea in, of all places,
Vancouver, Canada. Finally after a week of
suffering in the tent he went to a walk-in (more like
stumble-in) clinic where the doctor prescribed
Cipro.
bugs; viruses, bacteria or parasites. According to
the Centers for Disease Control 80% of travelers
diarrhea is caused by bacteria, 10% by viral
infection and 10% by parasites. The most
common way these buggers find their way into the
cyclists gut is from contaminated food or water.
- Bacteria: We carry the bacterial
thermonuclear diarrhea bomb of the
antibiotic Cipro and Immodium which are
both available over the counter in most
developing countries.
- Parasites: Medications we carry.
- Giardia: Tinidazole
- Cyclospora: Cotrimoxazole
- Virus: We do not carry any medications.
Determining which type of diarrhea and treating it
is a complicated process. If you are unable to get
to a doctor here is a link that may help you. Go
to page 155
If you are traveling outside of your own country you
will more than likely be hit by at least one case of
the trots (unless you have a cast iron Mexican
stomach like Amanda).
If you are in a place long enough you will build a
resistance to the unusual bacteria and will get
used to it.
The travel medical guidebooks suggest drinking
only bottled water with an unbroken seal, and
avoiding fruits and vegetables that cannot be
peeled. How sad.
We couldn't do it. Amanda gorges on spinach
salads with broccoli, cauliflower, green peppers
and mushrooms whenever she has the chance.
Rich is a fruit lover. Mushy papaya from a
Bangkok street vendor and unwashed Chinese
pears from an old woman's pushcart are his
favorite afternoon snacks. But, by indulging in
these forbidden foods we are opening ourselves
up to some pretty nasty bugs. (cholera, E. Coli,
salmonella, hepatitis... it's a wonder we are still
alive)
- Water: One thing we do consistently is pump
our own water. While purchasing bottles of
water is certainly an option, it just seems
wasteful to buy ten or more plastic bottles full
of water each day when we can simply pump
it ourselves. We carry a Katadyn Pocket
Water Filter and hold it in our stainless steel
water bottles and MSR Dromedary bags.
- Food: Making most of our own food has
allowed us to avoid many of the common
pitfalls of other travelers. Since we are
vegetarian and we generally make our
meals from fresh vegetables and fruits we
are at lesser risk of eating spoiled or rancid
foods. Walking through an Asian meat
market can make even the most ardent
carnivore a vegan.
Rich suffered from a really horrible, week-long
case of bloody diarrhea in, of all places,
Vancouver, Canada. Finally after a week of
suffering in the tent he went to a walk-in (more like
stumble-in) clinic where the doctor prescribed
Cipro.
| The book "Where There is No Doctor" is an excellent resource for cycle tourists who will spend extended periods of time far from a reliable doctor. Best of all, the digital version is free! The book is published by a non-profit foundation and can tell you all the gory details without concern for liability. |
Cycle Touring Health & Safety > Diarrhea
