How often do you get sick here compared to back home?

[punchandjudy]

I am a non smoker and rarely drink.

 

Back in the UK I would get sick perhaps once a year eg. Due to a winter cold.

 

Here in Thailand, I seem to get sick around once every 2 months, sometimes more! ?

 

It is either one of 2 things that I usually get:

 

1. Upset stomach presumably due to street food / water / ice cubed.

 

2. Headache/bad fever, I guess due to the hot weather and the rainy season.

 

I have been in Thailand around a year now, will my body ever adapt? How often do you get sick here?

[sirineou]

 When I was younger back home, I use to never get sick, 61 years old now , and in Thailand, and I seem to get sick more, what's worse is I get body aches and the litle general don't want to go to war sometimes.

Freaking Thailand!!! Grrrrrr

Edited June 10, 2018 by sirineou

[nausea]

If you teach you'll get sick a lot, evety bug going around; on a more serious note dengue fever is a problem, and never, ever, drink untreated water. And don't eat oysters. Speaking from experience here.

[sanemax]

Could be the aircon causing you to get headaches and fever?

[Rc2702]

Drink a minimum 2 litres of water a day 

[jak2002003]

It is either one of 2 things that I usually get:

 

1. Upset stomach presumably due to street food / water / ice cubed.

 

No.  My farang friends and I eat any street food going... even the raw buffalo lab, raw spicy prawns, fried insects, fermented pork, noodles, etc etc, also buy all meat from local markets, eat out at local Thai rural bars, where we also consume the ice cubes (often from a plastic bucket using our fingers), and get drinking water from the vending machines on the street.  NEVER had food poisoning or upset stomach in 10 years of doing this.   Only time I had to run to the loo was when I overdid it on adding the chillies and make it too spicy.  Not a problem now though.. hotter the better.

 

2. Headache/bad fever, I guess due to the hot weather and the rainy season.

 

No.  Due to you not being hydrated enough or staying out unprotected in the sun and heat.

 

Drink plenty of water (room temperature to slightly cool) If you drink lots of ice cold water when you are really hot you will get an upset stomach.  Wear sunglasses when outside for long periods and when you feel too hot take a break to cool down.  

[nrasmussen]

I actually get less sick here. I like to think that the hot climate of Southern Thailand is more agreeable with me than the cold of Scandinavia.

[Wang Lalker]

Quote

I have been in Thailand around a year now, will my body ever adapt? How often do you get sick here?

no it wont adapt but you will learn how to knock down stomach issues fast

fa-tal-e-jor ask for it at chemists comes in capsules or tea bags. 2 capsules at once will be sufficient to take down most stomach issues within say less than 12 hours

if you think it is a real bad stomach issue add also 3 carbon capsules also from the chemist

[Kinnock]

Other way around for me.

 

Back home myself and everyone at work would get colds or flu 3 or 4 times a year, and also viral 'stomach flu' once or twice a year.

 

Since leaving home 10 years ago I'm very rarely sick.   Perhaps a cold once every 2 or 3 years, usually related to a business trip to China.

 

I put it down to warmth, sunlight, fresh fruit, and outdoor exercise in the park.

[tropo]

My health has improved immensely since never touching anything cooked on the street, and avoiding unhygienic Thai restaurants... you know the ones - usually near markets and infested with cats, mice, and cockroaches. My wife used to be plagued by canker sores when she ate food from the street, but she never gets any now that she avoids street food.

 

Yeah, I know... now there's going to be uptien posts from guys bragging that they never get food poisoning and they always eat street food. Yes, I believe you but I prefer not to take the chance. Then there's going to be some people trying to convince us that we should expose ourselves to more pathogens in order to build up immunity. I'm not buying it. Stay clean - stay healthy... and as a side bonus you'll be missing out on all that cheap, rancid palm oil and other cheap oils they use to cook Thai food.

[poanoi]

i used to get gonorrhea a lot more often here,

but it stopped when i stopped doing woman.

 

also norfloxacin works against both diarrhea & gonorrhea,

eat generously

[Damrongsak]

In 3 years in Thailand, I rarely got sick.  No problem with food, but being vegetarian probably helped.  Had the clap once.  First time I ever got the flu was there.  OMG!  I collapsed in the span of 10 minutes, thought I had Dengue Fever.  Was down for days.  But I was in my early 20's then. 

 

Toward the end, I had a bout with Colonitis (more commonly referred to as colitis).  Not fun.  Don't remember the details of the treatment 40 years ago.

Edited June 10, 2018 by Damrongsak

[mstevens]

When I lived in Bangkok I would get sick often enough for it to be annoying.  I'd get an upset stomach once or twice a year and a serious cough / cold around twice a year - and it could take a few weeks to clear completely.  This from someone who eats well, exercises and doesn't drink much.  Back in my own country I almost never get sick.  If I do get a sniffle it never seems to develop in to a full blown cough or cold and always passes within 72 hours.  Healthwise I do much, much better at home than in Thailand.

Edited June 10, 2018 by mstevens

[Ks45672]

4 hours ago, poanoi said:

i used to get gonorrhea a lot more often here,

but it stopped when i stopped doing woman.

 

also norfloxacin works against both diarrhea & gonorrhea,

eat generously

You get less gonorrhoea from thai men than Thai women? 

[poanoi]

19 minutes ago, Ks45672 said:

You get less gonorrhoea from thai men than Thai women? 

no sex = no gonorrhea

[Rarebear]

i get sick here because I'm getting ancient. But on a positive note the sick food is great.  100 different kinds of chicken soup and rice porridge and available anywhere.  Also since the advent of high tech I can watch netflix in bed on my laptop and have remote controls for my lights and can control my computer by voice when I hurt my back.  When my dogs gets sick the vet makes house calls.  

[gk10002000]

The only thing that I have noticed on 11/12 of my trips was within a few days of arrival I get sore throat, hurts when I swallow, fever etc.  Some bug.  A few days on arithromycin or whatever and all is back to normal.  I average being in country twice a year, never stayed more than 2 months continuous in country

[Ks45672]

Just now, gk10002000 said:

The only thing that I have noticed on 11/12 of my trips was within a few days of arrival I get sore throat, hurts when I swallow, fever etc.  Some bug.  A few days on arithromycin or whatever and all is back to normal.  I average being in country twice a year, never stayed more than 2 months continuous in country

That would probably caused by sharing the air in the plane with other sick people 

[gk10002000]

Just now, Ks45672 said:

That would probably caused by sharing the air in the plane with other sick people 

Oh yeah.  No doubt a big contributor.  That and some of the filthy un clean filter air in some of the hotels.

[Rarebear]

2 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

Oh yeah.  No doubt a big contributor.  That and some of the filthy un clean filter air in some of the hotels.

I clean the filters no problem but it takes 1000 baht to take the AC apart and clean the motor fans and compressor and other parts.  Mine get dirty enough to clean the whole thing every 6 months. 

[gk10002000]

4 minutes ago, Rarebear said:

I clean the filters no problem but it takes 1000 baht to take the AC apart and clean the motor fans and compressor and other parts.  Mine get dirty enough to clean the whole thing every 6 months. 

yeah, and here in my soon to be purchased home in Florida, USA. I plan to convert the house to ductless AC units.  I love the modular idea.  I hate central air and the blowing around of dust, dead bug skins, and everything else.  Plus the Ductless units are so much quieter, don't have the big central air blower inside the house that has to have enough flow and pressure to reach all of the house.

 

  Ductless just makes so much sense to me.  One of the things I thank Thailand for showing me.  It just isn't that common in most USA houses, certainly not anything built years ago

[Rarebear]

3 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

yeah, and here in my soon to be purchased home in Florida, USA. I plan to convert the house to ductless AC units.  I love the modular idea.  I hate central air and the blowing around of dust, dead bug skins, and everything else.  Plus the Ductless units are so much quieter, don't have the big central air blower inside the house that has to have enough flow and pressure to reach all of the house.

 

  Ductless just makes so much sense to me.  One of the things I thank Thailand for showing me.  It just isn't that common in most USA houses, certainly not anything built years ago

Ductless AC and on demand hot water and my washer makes it's own hot water rather than a tank heater.  All good Thai ideas (probably Japanese ideas).

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

6 hours ago, jak2002003 said:

It is either one of 2 things that I usually get:

 

1. Upset stomach presumably due to street food / water / ice cubed.

 

No.  My farang friends and I eat any street food going... even the raw buffalo lab, raw spicy prawns, fried insects, fermented pork, noodles, etc etc, also buy all meat from local markets, eat out at local Thai rural bars, where we also consume the ice cubes (often from a plastic bucket using our fingers), and get drinking water from the vending machines on the street.  NEVER had food poisoning or upset stomach in 10 years of doing this.   Only time I had to run to the loo was when I overdid it on adding the chillies and make it too spicy.  Not a problem now though.. hotter the better.

 

2. Headache/bad fever, I guess due to the hot weather and the rainy season.

 

No.  Due to you not being hydrated enough or staying out unprotected in the sun and heat.

 

Drink plenty of water (room temperature to slightly cool) If you drink lots of ice cold water when you are really hot you will get an upset stomach.  Wear sunglasses when outside for long periods and when you feel too hot take a break to cool down.  

Exactly the same response that I would have given but may I add a couple of things..?

 

1. If you get caught out in a bad rain storm, especially up North or in Isaan, go for a shower as soon as possible. I am told it is because the rain contains chemicals from the fields. It may be a load of tosh but I have never been sick after getting a good soaking, and I lived out "in the village" for 16 years..

 

2. I walk a lot and always wear a cap and walk in the shade wherever possible, and I have never had a headache that can be attributed to the sun!! I haven't bothered trying to get a suntan since the 70s....

 

 

[jimmyyy]

I don't get allergies here like I do back home, so i think i am sick much less here.

[gk10002000]

2 minutes ago, Rarebear said:

Ductless AC and on demand hot water and my washer makes it's own hot water rather than a tank heater.  All good Thai ideas (probably Japanese ideas).

yep.  the guest bathroom and a few other places will have on demand hot water.   I don't mind a nominal tank because for things like running and filling a bathtub can require a fairly large on demand system that may or may not be that worthwhile to switch to

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

Regarding hot water ...I always shower in cold water in Thailand and hot water when visiting UK.....

[RayD]

I find mosquito bites often get infected even though I don't scratch them. Quickly cleared up with antibiotics, a nuisance though.

[NoshowJones]

8 hours ago, sirineou said:

 When I was younger back home, I use to never get sick, 61 years old now , and in Thailand, and I seem to get sick more, what's worse is I get body aches and the litle general don't want to go to war sometimes.

Freaking Thailand!!! Grrrrrr

I have only had the odd sore throat out here in the almost 13 years I have been here, even back in the UK, you could count the times in one hand I have been in bed because of the flu during adulthood.

I am a life long non drinker and non smoker

[NoshowJones]

8 hours ago, nausea said:

If you teach you'll get sick a lot, evety bug going around; on a more serious note dengue fever is a problem, and never, ever, drink untreated water. And don't eat oysters. Speaking from experience here.

Not trying to boast, but I never even lost one day as a teacher during three years in the job.

[thaipo7]

Every time is visited Thailand between 1970 and 2010, I would get sick.  Lived with relatives when here and the food would sit out all day under a bamboo cover and I would also lose weight from not eating the rottening food.  Then in 2010 had my own house built which is clean, the wife keeps the food clean before eating and no sickness and have gained weight I want to lose now.   In 1978 went out into the boonies with two Thai policemen.  There was no electricity but someone did have a generator.  First, was not going to eat anything but was drinking.  Drinking lead to eating and I caught hepatitis A.  Spent 2 weeks at St Mary's hospital in Korat and then came back to the US too soon and had a relapse and spent almost 2 weeks in a VA hospital.  Took me 2 years to recover from this.  The VA doctor caught it from me.  Exam with no gloves.  I had a liver biopsy  and told to never drink again.  But I do drink beer and watch my liver function numbers.