If you’ve ever been out of the country, you may have experienced the most common illness affecting travelers: travelers’ diarrhea. As many as ten million international travelers develop travelers’ diarrhea.
The illness most often begins during the first week of travel but can strike at any time while traveling, and even after returning home. I was lucky enough to experience travelers’ diarrhea on a family trip to the Caribbean; for at least half of our time on a lovely island, I was curled up in the hotel room. My brother and cousin laughed at me, but once we got home, the travelers’ diarrhea caught up with them.
The symptoms of travelers’ diarrhea are pretty much what you would imagine: an abrupt and unexpected increase in frequency, volume, and weight of stools. You may also experience nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramping, bloating, fever, and a general feeling of malaise. Most cases take care of themselves without treatment: ninety percent of cases resolve within a week and ninety-eight percent of all cases are cleared up within a month. If you do develop travelers’ diarrhea, be sure to increase your fluid intake. Diarrhea often leaves people dehydrated. For more severe cases, antibiotics may be necessary.
Certain people may be at a higher risk: young adults, people with immune system problems, people with IBS, and people with diabetes. A variety of bacteria, viruses, and parasites may cause travelers’ diarrhea.
So what can you do to prevent the problem in the first place? Avoid eating raw or undercooked meat and seafood when you are abroad. You may also want to avoid foods and beverages purchased from street vendors, or any establishment that seems unhygienic or unsanitary. Be careful with raw fruit and vegetables; they are safer to eat if you peel them. Tap water, ice, and dairy products may also be culprits when it comes to traveler’s diarrhea. Stick to bottled beverages and treated water to be safe.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization are working to improve food and water safety around the world. You can learn more about staying healthy when traveling abroad at the CDC Travelers’ Health site.