Travel Health

Treatment? Ha! Just carry plenty of rolls. Photo by flickr user dlisbona.

Imodium will plug you up if you’re about to get on a bus or a plane but you should only use it for emergencies.

Plain white rice (kept hot or refrigerated) should help http://www.flickr.com/photos/kamathln/

The number one healthy cure for diarrhea though is rice and yogurt mixed together. In fact just ordering boiled rice and curd in India is enough to alert half the restaurant to the state of your bowels. Eat it three meals a day and nothing else and your troubles will soon be over.

Others prefer to go on a 24 hour fast. This is also good but make sure you drink plenty of water as diarrhea leaves you dehydrated.

Another hard-to-believe cure from the world of Chinese medicine is to put some salt in your belly button, cover it with a few strips of ginger (no, we’re not kidding!) and heat the area with a cigarette. This stimulates the spleen which will regulate everything else.

Once your bowels have calmed down a little it won’t hurt to eat a few raw cloves of garlic with your next bowl of rice.

Awe shit!! I knew I shouldn't have ordered the deep-fried squid! http://www.flickr.com/photos/mesolimbo/

Do not eat anything fried. Do not eat anything sweet.

If the diarrhea continues it means you may have amoebic dysentery. This can be serious, especially if you shit blood and that point you might want to consider antibiotics. Unless you can find a professional herbalist who’s confident of being able to treat your condition.

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