There we were, driving down to the land of salt water and waves for a winter vacation…when the norovirus hit. Good readers, I was never more glad to have our emergency med kit than when raging diarrhea hit during a very long drive on a Christmas day (no stores were open).
More critically, diarrhea & diarreal diseases historically have, and in some parts of the world still do, reduce average lifespans by more than a decade — mostly by killing children under five. To most of us with good medical care handy, diarrhea is just very unpleasant. To a young child without access to IV fluids, they are often a death sentence. That’s why I felt the need to bring up such an unpleasant topic.
Avoiding diarrea
Nobody wants to play this game, so wash your hands, and your kids’ hands. A lot. That’s the best defense for diarrhea, as many of the germs are what are delicately called ‘fecal-oral transmission’ where traces from one victim’s bottom end up entering the next victim’s top.
If that’s not possible, alcohol sanitizer gels are a good backup plan. Are both soap and gel in your go bag? That’s what hotel soaps are *for*, don’t ya know. The next big route is through water, including that used to wash uncooked food or make ice.
Nip the diarrea problem in the bud
When it does strike (norovirus in particular is a sneaky rascal), hauling it up short with drugs is a beautiful thing. Beautiful as a Florida beach; now where did That mental image come from I wonder? I’m no doctor and am not going to play one on the internet, so make your own choices — but have something that works in the bag that’s always with you. On that point I can speak with conviction.
Make your own choices of course. This variety is my choice: loperamide. I don’t leave home without it.
Rehydration
When diarrhea kills, it’s by dehydration. Getting the victim to down plenty of rehydration drink is a challenge worth the effort. Sports drinks work fine if they’re handy. They even make little envelopes of them to add to a bottle of (clean, please) water.
I recommend keeping a few in the bag, but swap them out every six months or so while they’re still … well, not gross. Heat is hard on them. No sports drinks? There are plenty of recipes on the internet of course, but the time to go looking is not during the crisis. Pick one and put the recipe or pre-measured ingredients in the bag.
What a lovely segue to let me introduce one of my favorite sources: Here’s the copy of the recipe I’ve got to hand:
Clear directions using readily available materials and plenty of ideas on how to improvise. I love this source: Where TheBeans, Bullets, Bandages & You: Your one stop source for prepping, survival and survivalist information. re Is No Doctor, by Dr. David Werner.
Spice signing off, with a fervent hope that you don’t need this particular post.
The oral rehydration solution I’ve been using to good effect is a bit different:
0.5 liter of water
1/16 teaspoon salt
1/16 teaspoon salt substitute (Potassium salt)
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
If available a few drops of lemon juice make it more palatable. And I cheat on the salt and salt substitute since Morton’s Lite Salt is half regular salt, half potassium salt…so I use 1/8 teaspoon of Morton’s Lite Salt.
Keep drinking until it tastes salty. If patient can’t hold liquids down, give them small sips regularly as they will absorb some and it’s better than nothing. When traveling, I always keep the ingredients on hand to make ORS and on hot days that I’ll be outdoors, I always make up at least one bottle in the morning just in case. Note: once mixed into water the ORS should be used within 24 hours or discarded.
Thanks, dmwalsh. Yours sounds like a great idea for diarrhea, as potassium and base is often lost. For sweating, the baking soda should not matter a lot, but potassium’s still good. For vomiting, I’d leave out the baking soda, as vomiting depletes acid so adding more base wouldn’t be my choice. Potassium salts probably aren’t readily available to the people (in rural areas of Mexico) the book was originally aimed at.
Please note for those with blood pressure problems who may be reading: Some blood pressure meds already save potassium; you might get into trouble using potassium salts. Also, the baking soda is sodium rich, so if you’re counting, count it.