In Europe,North America, japan, Australia and other developed countries you
can drink water from public supplies in total safety. Also in mountainous
regions there are often clean springs. However elsewhere you may come into
contact with diarrhoea bacteria, and diarrhoea is dangerous.
Water filtration is often not capable of some of the most harmful pathogens in unclean water.
If you or your family get tummy troubles on holiday it can ruin the day for you. All adults and children can become rapidly dehydrated due to diarrhea (diarrhoea).
Our lips are great indicators of dehydration, wrinkled or cracked lips are a sign that the body needs liquids (remember that coffee, tea and coca-cola have caffeene which is not good for you when trying to rehydrate yourself. Alcoholic drinks will also do more harm than good to a dehydrated person.
But luckily there is a simple solution. A simple recipe made from easily obtainable ingredients will help prevent dehydration and will help return someone who is dehydrated to a healthier state.
Mix one level teaspoon of salt and seven level teaspoons of sugar together with one liter of cooled boiled water. Drink. It is safe for adults to drink up to 5 litres of this mixture per day. Children should drink one litre over a 24 hour period.This mixture really does help rehydrate the body quickly.
When we visited Paradise Island in the Maldives this simple mixture proved very effective.
Unicef's medical rehyhdration solution is very similar in composition. For your reference, the rehydration sachets they send to disaster zones contain:
Glucose 13.5g
Sodium Chloride 2.6g
Trisodium Citrate Dihydrate 2.9g
Potassium Chloride 1.5g
In the meantime, you may also wish to address the diarrhoea itself. Try a little charcoal tablet as a remedy for a minor stomach bug. These worked very well for us on a holiday in egypt. If you look at a number of anti-diarrhoea products available from chemists you will see that many are just coated charcoal tablets.
If the condition does not improve within 12 hours seek medical advice.