Bangkok belly... (food fights back!)

[donnnnnny]

(saiphon @ Oct. 20 2008,02:39) On a short trip to Babgkok about 10 years ago I made the mistake of staying and eating at the Nana Hotel. I only had breakfast of scrambled egg and toast as I was meeting some friends for both a major dinner and a good night on the town. By lunch time I was feeling sick and as the afternoon came I knew I was really sick. However I tried to keep going as the guys I was meeting were old work mates of mine and I didn't want to be the odd one out. Within about a few minutes of meeting them in a bar in Patpong I had to run out to the toilets only to find the toilets shut/broken. Tried next door same problem and eventually got to go in the Kentucky Fried Chicken place.

The noise from the toilet with me in it caused many comments but the worst was to come as I began to vomit as well and couldn't leave the toilet seat. Eventually I got a break and told the guys I was going back to my hotel to die. Made a deal with a Metro taxi and told him to rush as I was really sick.

Now this guy decided to take the piss, I had already agreed to pay way beyond the normal rate (worked in Thailand over 5years) and also knew my way around fairly well so I knew when he was taking me off track. In traffic he suddenly announced that he wanted more money from me to get me there quicker thinking that I was too sick to argue. Luckily I knew where I was and told him I was getting out NOW. He started shouting at me so I threw the agreed price at him which fluttered to the floor and tried to open the door. As we were in traffic he couldn't do anything about except shout and curse. I was going to argue but felt the next wave of vomit coming up so I emptied the last I had on top of him and the seat and quickly made my exit.

That was one greedy bastard that wasn't going to rip off a farang again that night as I had visions of him cleaning up after me for some time.

When I got back to the Nana I collapsed a Reception and had to be rushed to hospital and was diagnosed as having samonella food poisoning. I spent the next four days in hospital on drips and my bum felt like a dartboard from the many injections I got. The doctors agreed that it was the butter that I had with my toast that had caused my problems and that it was not the first time that someone that was staying in the Nana had been admitted to hospital with food poisoning. Apparently they refreeze and thaw out the butter pats several times during the day. So if you do not use up the butter supplied to you they re-use it again and again until its gone.

When I got back to the Nana I told the Manager about the food poisoning, which he denied, and decided to leave immediatly. To really rub salt into my wounds they insisted on charging me the full rate for the room including the days I was in the hospital, even though I had not used it.

Needless to say I never used it again, nor would I advise anybody to eat there either.

Saiphon

similar experiance here. i ate a meet pie at sydney kingsford smith airport.
6 hours into the flight and i was stuck in the bog for 3 hours vomit and the runs.The stuardess knocked and i told her the problem. she put an out of order sign on the door and left me in there.BY the time we landed i was was a fucking mess. really illl.
First and only time been to bkk and went to bed first night.
Not thai food, but a fucking meat pie yuk

[Lefty]

(jaymee @ Sep. 04 2008,03:48) Do you smoke? I find that smoking has a laxative effect, and I at least tend to smoke alot more in Bkk.

Maybe its the stuff you eat

I think smoking could only have a laxative affect if you swallow rather than spit.

[Lefty]

(PigDogg @ Oct. 19 2008,14:50)

(Torurot @ Sep. 04 2008,00:43) You ever hear of Imodium, available at all Bangkok pharmacies?

I'm very wary of imodium.

Yes, it will stop the shits but I'd rather get the all the bad stuff out of me.

I'm not a doc or RX, so just a layman's opinion.

I tend to agree, depending on what is causing the shits. If it is just common diarrhea then imodium is ok. But if it is some kind of food poisoning, then imodium likely won't work anyway.

[daveduke007]

(sukhumvitpoler @ Sep. 10 2008,06:08) 6 days to bkk and i have the shits just thinking about getting the shits    i cant sleep because my bum keeps burping  

where are you

[BAM]

Not sure if you guys can get this vaccine where you live but here in Canada I get it through my Doc and I've been on it since 2004 and take a booster before each trip. I've never been sick once so it seems to work.

http://www.travellersdiarrhea.com/Home....uage=EN

[pacman]

For regular travellers diarrhoea nothing works better than Lipoic Acid.

I had never heard of it until a few trips ago I picked up a stomach bug & spent a day hostage to the toilet.

Finally I felt it safe enough to go to the pharmacy where I asked what did they recommend for such a common condition.

I could not believe it when he handed me a mild antibiotic.

Being in SE Asia, I certainly did not want to start compromising my immune system.

Immodium are an absolute last resort, something I would only ever use if I was getting on a long flight or bus trip, but I remembered I had a little booklet, the Travel Health Guide I had kept in my bag for over 10 years.

This was the first time I ever opened it & right at the front it said the most common complaint of all visitors to Asia is diarrhoea.

It advised to take Lipoic Acid, found in the stems of leafy green vegetables.

As luck would have it there was an old lady pushing her fruit cart outside the hotel & there I found some type of spindley looking spinach.

10 baht later, I was in my bathroom scrubbing the stems & roots for ages to remove all the debris & dirt.

Taking a bite from the side of this bunch proved difficult, taking minutes to literally tear off a chunk with my teeth, which I then chewed swallowing the juice & spitting out the rest.

This juice contains the Lipoic Acid which kills the micro-organisms causing the gastric problem.

I only needed one big mouthful, after 10 minutes I felt fine & had not one moments trouble more.

This is definitely not recommended for Amoebic dysentery, an altogether more dangerous type of complaint.

[Guest]

The best natural remedy I have found are Po Chai Pills. These can be found in most oriental groceries in the west at the medicine counter. Very fast acting and all herbal they also make a great hangover helper. I never travel anywhere without a couple boxes of these!

[El_hefe]

Yeah, my impression of Immodium is that it will help you through by essentially corking your colon like plaster: fantastic if you have the shits & have to travel or be somewhere important right then, otherwise I can't see how that is too healthy for your system

sukhumvitpoler.... you sure sound like an attractive guy!

But I sympathize completely.... I've only been in Bangers for a couple of hours & after a simple, nonspicey noodle stir fry at Foodland I had to beat cheeks back to the hotel & enjoy my meal again! As will happen again & again for the next couple of weeks.... so I will plan ahead with my culinary needs against my social schedule.

[jimslim]

A good few pints of Guinness will sort any problems you have with your little bellies

Real men drink Guinness

[ciobha]

(jimslim @ Oct. 21 2008,22:33) Real men drink Guinness  

And so does Dave duke.

[dutch]

(jimslim @ Oct. 21 2008,22:33) Real men drink Guinness  

Yesss (6 pints a day).  

[marshal]

Just come back from a fortnight in los and Laos, no bowel problems till the last night. I had a thai meal(buffet) in the marriot, and had to make a dash from nana to my hotel, but luck enough it was an isolated bowel incident. Quick shower and change(i must i say i did not need the shower and did not shit myself), then back to luckey lukes. I had just made an excuse to kahuna and nine wives about having to freshen up!!!
Incidently i will eat off the streets no problem,but go to a more expensive joint and the problems start!

[BAM]

(pacman @ Oct. 20 2008,12:57) For regular travellers diarrhoea nothing works better than Lipoic Acid.

No way... 12 volt Battery Acid works even better mixed with a bit of sugar... you won't be shitting for much longer once you drink that down.

[pacman]

Battery Acid you say, hmmm.....  I must give that a go sometime....

Seriously, Lipoic Acid, also known as Thioctic Acid has only been known since 1953 when it took several tonnes of liver to yield a few milligrams.

Since then it was discovered that the most easily obtained, best assimilated & nutritionally effective form is lipoyllysine, found in all leafy green vegetables.

Swallowing the juice of these produces enough Lipoic to kill the micro-organisms responsible for the diarrhoea.

The proof is in the eating & I can only say that having tried it, it worked wonders.

I have noticed too that AlphaLipoicAcid is a front line treatment against many forms of cancer. I assume it is a related product.

My booklet advises that all travellers carry with them dried parsley flakes, to be chewed dry with the onset of any gastric trouble, there is enough Lipoic  produced from a mouthful of flakes to stop the diarrhoea.