Job Discussion Forums

matador · Joined: 07 Mar 2003 Posts: 281

When I was working as a trainer for EF in Shanghai, I was sick about half of the time (flu, headache, upset stomach, coughing, etc). It also appeared that about half of the trainers I worked with were ALSO sick half the time with the same sort of things.

Question (assuming its not only me!): Why do we tolerate such an unhealthy environment when we could be teaching somewhere a lot healthier? I understand the `exploring China and its culture` angle for up to a year...but beyond that...?

KWhitehead · Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2006 6:09 am Post subject:

when i was in beijing, i'd be sick for at least one week every month. it drove me nuts. only once did i require an IV, but the other times still made me miserable.

in qingdao, it was once every other month. much better air quality.

my stepbrother finally confronted me and said that living in a developing country is great and all, but if it's really affecting your health, get the beep out.

now i'm in South Korea. people here complain about the pollution in seoul, but it's nothing NOTHING compared to Beijing.

my carbon monoxide levels are so low i'm going to start chasing cars soon.

___________________
PORCHMONKEY 4 LIFE

7969 · Joined: 26 Mar 2003 Posts: 5782 Location: Coastal Guangdong

in two and a half years, have had some kind of stomach/bowel illness from eating something bad at least 7-8 times. just getting over the latest one right now. had the flu a few times but thats normal i think..... it just goes around, here, there and back home too.

Steppenwolf · Joined: 30 Jul 2006 Posts: 1769

What's "ill"? 'Hill' without an 'H'? Or the verb "to kill" minus the ugly 'K'?

I don't have health issues - most of the time; maybe once in two years I come down with a cold or the flu, and this is getting worse - probably because Chinese bugs are even more xenophobic than Chinese people are...

But seriously and chronically ill? I might be if I lived up north with its cold winters! Not in the South, though!

petergunn · Joined: 15 Feb 2006 Posts: 150

7969 · Joined: 26 Mar 2003 Posts: 5782 Location: Coastal Guangdong

Calories · Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 361 Location: Chinese Food Hell

As long as I avoid the food, I'm sick less often in China but, I drink less of that alcohol stuff and quit smoking cigarettes. I've gotten really sick twice. Once from some terrible food I couldn't digest and a 7 hour bus ride on those oh so taken care of Chinese roads and once a really bad cold/chest/fever thing that stopped me from being able to work one afternoon but, I was so sick I couldn't breath enough to smoke and that's when I quit smoking so I suppose it was good in the long run.

jwbhomer · Joined: 14 Dec 2003 Posts: 876 Location: CANADA

I taught in Shenzhen for two years and Guangzhou for one, and never had anything bad enough to keep me from teaching. Oddly enough, when I returned to Canada I came down with the flu twice in two months! I guess my body got used to the sub-tropical climate of Guangdong!

tarzaninchina · Joined: 16 Aug 2004 Posts: 348 Location: World

My first month here, my system was haywire. 10 degrees hotter than I could stand, tap water, pollution, poor sanitation in restaurants, MSG.... BTW, I'm in the coal province of Shanxi.

My first year saw me lose my voice due to pollution 6 times (requiring one week of treatment each time).

My second year saw me lose my voice three times (requiring a 5-day treatment each time).

My third year saw me lose my voice twice (requiring a 3-day treatment each time).

Now I'm beginning my fourth year. I've learned that using disposable chopsticks IN THIS PROVINCE greatly improves health, but elsewhere in China it's not a problem.

Let's see what this academic year has in store in terms of health. They say it takes 4 years to acclimatize yourself to the weather and pollution in Shanxi province, even for Chinese. Hmmm....

Steppenwolf · Joined: 30 Jul 2006 Posts: 1769

Arno · Joined: 15 Sep 2005 Posts: 14

I'm in Zhejiang and have also had more throat infections in five months than I probably had in the past five years. I think sleeping with the aircon on is a major contributor. Also, my stomach was uncomfortable for more than a month. Back home I was used to eating butter and olive oil and almost no deep fried food. Here the food is almost always fried and served with copious amounts of oil and the oil different and perhaps sometimes recycled. I've cut down on fried food especially one of my favourites, green beans, and chicken (the type that is fried and has a dark colour) and both my stomach and the throat infections are better. I've read that in the past it was believed that at the onset of a cold or flu one had to clean out the digestive system. From I own experience I suspect their is a link.

vikdk · Joined: 25 Jun 2003 Posts: 1676

when I first started to teach small children in europe I was also frequently ill. Classrooms seem also to be dissease breeding areas - the immune system needs a little time to counter this new environment. In china - with its special type of common disseases - new food types - pollution - stress levels (phsychosomatic triggers) - then that immune systen takes another battering - put classroom dissease contact together with that - then a regular sniffle - at least for the first 6 months or so - seems part and parcle for this job Laughing

what's this Roger