diarrhea | Pragmatic World

Drinking Water in India

Here are a few tips on how to stay healthy in India when it comes to water. Water is not drinkable in almost all parts of India.

Not even in the north near the Himalayas. The best precaution you can take is to buy bottled water. When buying water make sure it is properly closed and that the bottom of the plastic bottle is untouched. The cases are known of sellers filling up the empty bottles with water from the water pipe and selling it as drinking water.

When you finish the bottle please destroy it to prevent someone from filling it again and selling as drinking water.

Find out what happens when you let some water enter your mouth while showering

When you take shower be sure that not even a drop of water reaches your mouth. Wash your toothbrush with drinking water as well.

Is drinking Chai or Tea safe in India?

Boiled water is fine so don’t worry about your tea, you’re safe drinking it.

Water in restaurants and bars

They use filtered water which is safe for drinking but you can also order mineral bottled water.

How to prevent and cure Diarrhea in India

Some statistics say that 80% of tourists get some kind of stomach issues in India. I don’t know if it’s true but I’m the one of those “lucky ones” who got a worse case of Diarrhoea in India.

Diarrhoea prevention tips

Never drink unfiltered water. Use only bottled water and make sure it was properly closed when you bought it.
When washing your toothbrush use bottled water
When you shower keep your mouth closed
Don’t eat street food especially in hot season when flies spread bacteria.
Use dry-cleaning gel on your hands before eating
Inform yourself about popular eating places- lonely planet has plenty of info

How to cure Diarrhoea?

Diarrhoea can cure on it’s own if you’re patient. When it happens, the body looses water and minerals. Therefor, it is important to drink water and add some salt to it- or you can use rehydromix solutions sold at any pharmacy. Avoid eating any food.

If your digestion flora is damaged than your body has a problem keeping water and minerals, they go out of the body. In that case you can use Carbo medicine. If problems don’t go away you might need to use antibiotic to kill the bacteria.

Is Indian Food spicy?

Yes and no- indian food can be spicy but they use green chilli, not the red one.

Green chilli is spicy but, unlike red chilli, it is good for the stomach. You won’t get diarrhea from green chilli. Which doesn’t mean you’ll avoid diarrhea in India. Almost 80% of travelers do experience problems but mostly because water is polluted with bacteria and some food has bacteria as well- especially if it’s in contact with flies.