Job Discussion Forums

[Essarro]

Hi. I'm about to leave for Mexico and I'll be staying almost 4 months. I've been before, the longest being for about a month. Last time I got sick even though I thought I was doing everything right. I know I will drink only bottled water, but I was wondering, should I take the effort to use water from a bottle to brush my teeth the whole time? Avoid ice everywhere? I appreciate advice- thanks.

[MELEE]

I wrote a really long detailed reply but I use the internet at work, and have many interuptions and was timed-out before I posted my reply and what I had written was lost into the abyss. So here's the short version.

It is extremely difficult to avoid a minor bout or two of "Moctezuma's Revenge". Usually it occurs once or twice in the first six months, then if you are careful you can be more or less in the clear. Four months is, in my book, an extended holiday--not residence in a place. Therefor, you can not hope to get your system aclimated in that short of time.

Here are some tips to minimize sickness and hopefull avoid anything really bad.

--get a typhoid vaccination
--get hepatitis vaccinations
--don't put tap water in your mouth ever--don't brush your teeth with it
--be choosy with where you eat
--wash your hand throughly and frequently
--eat lots of dark orange foods (papaya and raw carrots) they have parasite fighting enzymes
--eat yogurt with "good" bacteria (Activa and LC1 for example)
--make sure all the meat you eat is well done
--in hot weather, avoid dishes with cream and soft cheeses (very hard to do!)
--always stay well hidrated, but especially when you get sick.
--ice chiped from big blocks should be avoided, but other ice is usually fine.
--use straws, don't put your mouth on the tops of drink cans.

Best of luck to you,

[M@tt]

i don't follow all those rules, but i have to second the advice about never putting tap water in your mouth. i use bottled water to brush my teeth. it's a hassle but so is vomiting.

i got severe food poisoning at the school cafeteria, i think from chicken, and it was horrible. other than that, i think you should expect mild didarrhea. there's no guarantee that you will get terribly ill in 4 months. i would say if you avoid eating from stalls on the street, are careful about water, etc. you might make it fine without any serious problems. incidentally, if you do get sick, just go to a phamacy and they will sell you lots of helpful things OTC. any mexicans you know while you are here will be happy to help/advice you, i think. at least, that has been my experience.
good luck

[lozwich]

I actually brush my teeth with the tapwater, but I don't swallow it. I've had all the injections I could possibly need for here, and some more besides.

I don't each much meat anyway (been largely vegetarian for the last 14 years), and find when I'm forced to eat chicken its so overcooked there is no possibility of anything surviving in it. I accidentally ate some pork yesterday for the first time in a lot of years, and felt sick pretty much instantly, but I think that was just me.

The thing I have the most trouble with is the chiles. I really like to eat them, but find that when I eat too many I start to get stomach troubles.

A day rarely goes by when I don't have yoghurt at least once.

Due to some other stomach troubles I have had for my whole life, I tend to eat oatmeal/porridge every morning during the week, which puts a nice soft coating on the inside of my stomach and prevent lots of indigestion and other problems..

The only time I've been really ill here was when I ate fish. I live in the mountains, and I think that's not too good an idea. I ate lots of fish when I was at the coast recently and had no problems at all!

Lozwich.

[tesolbrother1]

I was talking to a medical professional who told me that probably only 10% of the bacterial stomach illnesses here are caused by water ingestions - the vast majority are caused by food. But maybe that's just because people are super careful with the water but not so much with food. Or maybe he was just making his stats up.

[Guy Courchesne]

Most of the problems with water in Mexico is in the gravity-fed storage tanks on the roof. Many people have switched to a cleaner, PVC or plastic type tank, but many concrete tanks still abound. I'm sure some of you have seen what wet concrete looks like? Green slime, mold, every little life form that can gain a toehold in it does. that's where you get sick.

You can drink the water here, if you really wanted to...just acclimatize first, and check the water tanks.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

[lozwich]

On the water thang, this morning while I was brushing my teeth, I was thinking about what Guy said....

[MELEE]

Concrete? In my town at least half of the roof top tanks are made out of asbestos. Yum yum.


Lozwich mentioned that too much chile could be the cause of stomach problems. Any suddend change in diet could be. You see many foreigners eating huge plates of tropical fruit. More than their normal monthly intake of fresh fruits, yet they never think to blame that as the cause for the runs.

[M@tt]

i've been sick now for two days with bad bad cramps and diarrhea. who knows what caused it? i spent the weekend in mexico city and had juice and nuts from street vendors, meals in 5 different restaurant (hair in the food in the last one, but otherwise good), and who knows what was on my hands every time i touched my face. yet i did use bottled water, washed my hands frequently, etc. i don't feel that i took abnormal risks with things but i was still unable to avoid getting sick. so my point is,

hmm....

well, i think i just wanted some sympathy.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

M@tt,

Sorry to hear that you're feeling under the weather.

Although it most likely was from something you ate, those symptoms aren't always caused by food. For the past couple of weeks here, some type of flu bug (same symptoms) has been making the rounds. Seems to run its course in 2 or 3 days.

If you aren't feeling better soon, I'd suggest you get yourself to a clinic. Who knows what you might have picked up in Mexico City!

[lozwich]

Apart from it being the general evils of Mexico City , I'd blame the nuts. I used to work in a nut factory (yes, really) and you wouldn't believe the things that like to hang around there.. A couple of years ago in Australia a whole bunch o people got sick from the rats that had been bouncing around a certain peanut butter factory. Rats luuurrve nuts...

Urgh.

Don't eat nuts on the street!

Drink gatorade, eat potatoes, pasta and bananas and feel better soon M@tt.

Lozwich