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Dehydration & Fatigue

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28 June 2004, 07:47
Nickudu
Dehydration & Fatigue
Dehydration & Fatigue by Gregor Woods
29 June 2004, 09:32
GeorgeS
Quote:

Stick with water and/or drinks similar to Gatorade.



You're right, assuming the water is safe. In 2001, I caught amoebic dysentery from the bottled water in Tanzania ('Kilimanjaro' brand). It was bloody hot (95 degrees F. or higher every day), and I was sweating profusely as the sun beat down on us.

I had brought powdered Gatorade as a defense against dehydration, but the water I was mixing it with was impure.
So I'd sweat, drink Gatorade to replenish my electrolyes, get the 'trots', take loperamide, drink Gatorade to restore my fluids, get the 'trots', take loperamide, and so on.

It didn't occur to any of us that it was the water that was making me ill, until I stopped at the dispensary in Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. It took another 36 hours for my GI tract to return to normal.

George
29 June 2004, 09:23
Redlander
The advocation of drinking soft drinks (carbonation + caffenine) is entirely wrong as both are diuretics. Stick with water and/or drinks similar to Gatorade. Exclusive use of pure water will lead to electrolyte imbalance, you must eat and a bannana (phosphorous) or two will help greatly.
29 June 2004, 09:40
GeorgeS
Nick,



I've been accused of worse things.



Man, I've never been so sick as during those 11 days! There are several spots in the Muhesi, where nothing will EVER grow again.



George
29 June 2004, 09:37
Nickudu
George, there are a lot of trolls around here who still think you've got a bug up your ass!

Sorry, couldn't resist. Just teasing.
29 June 2004, 09:47
WannabeBwana
So, what's the solution, George? Take water purification tablets or one of those super-filter things?

I detest carbonated drinks, and know how dehydrated beer (and other alcohol) makes me (I figure I piss two for every one I drink). Plus, I don't relish the idea of spending most of my Africa trip in a drunken stupor. I also drink very little coffee. I was planning on sticking with bottle water as much as I could during my trip.

I drink a LOT of water in a day. I also don't relish the idea of spending most of my Africa trip with the trots.
29 June 2004, 09:41
Will
In theory, Coke or other such stuff will be bottled to a higher sanitary standard than bottled water, which is just as typically water in a bottle as opposed to bottled water.

Drinking Coke is safer than drinking anything else.
29 June 2004, 09:57
Nickudu
George, I can't think of anything worse than being sick like that on such a grand occasion. I've been lucky, just a bad toothache, once.
29 June 2004, 10:07
GeorgeS
Will,
While I will drink clear carbonated drinks (seltzer, club soda, et al.), I don't drink colas.

Fischer,
I guaran-damn-tee that I will bring a Katadyn filter and my Camelbak, and take care of my own water purification the next time I visit Africa. I had no trouble in Zim, where water came from a bore hole.

Nick,
It was piss-poor timing to say the least. As if the unscheduled change of hunting camps (I was supposed to hunt the Moyowosi), the heat, tsetse flies, and the worst camp cook I've ever had to deal with, the dysentery just about wrecked my ability to hunt effectively.

George
29 June 2004, 10:20
Redlander
Even bottled water in the US is less sanitary than tap water so I would hazard a guess that water in the "less-developed" countries in Africa are not any better. From what I've read, an established lodge in RSA, Namibia, etc. probably has good water. It is the more "in-the-bush" camps you should worry about. Also, if you can't cook it or peel it, don't eat it - I read that somewhere.

A small filter pump and a little bottle of purification tablets are little burden compared to getting the "trots". In Bass Pro the other day, I even saw a filter that looked just like a normal sports bottle where you just fill it up with whatever water is available and it filters as you suck on the straw. Remember also that ice is just frozen water and that as it melts it releases whatever "bugs" right into your drink.