Well, I know many of you will not be surprised, but it has been a rough couple of days after I was afflicted with a horrific case of Delhi Belly…or Bombay Belly?
Delhi Belly? Bombay Belly? My Stomach “Issues” in India…
Folks, it’s part of travel and part of life I guess, and I’ll spare you the lurid details, but let’s just say I’ve been making frequent trips to the toilet the last 48 hours. Very frequent.
Thankfully, I’ve moved to the Four Seasons Mumbai where I’m quite comfortable, but gosh…this was my worst-nightmare and it happened. Go ahead and gloat after I had Taco Bell in Delhi and other Mexican food in Mumbai, but I’m not sure we can definitively trace the source…though I’m happy to share exactly what I’ve had to eat and drink the last few days.
Let’s work our way backwards. It started Sunday afternoon. For brunch on Sunday about five hours earlier I had coffee, fresh-squeezed orange juice, and “Mediterranean-spiced eggs” at a place in Mumbai called Nandan. This was my last meal before “the troubles” started:
The night before, I had Mexican food from Maiz plus bottled water (sealed):
For lunch, I had Amritsari Choley Tikki on Air India and ate all of it:
There was also a fairly nasty PDB beverage that I thought was fruit juice but actually tasted like turmeric:
I did not eat in the lounge prior to the flight. A few hours earlier, I had coffee:
For breakfast I had an omelette, masala eggs, bacon, avocado, bircher muesli, beet juice, orange juice, pistachios, and a salad:
The Andaz appears to bottle its own water, like the other Hyatts in Delhi, and I did drink this and brush my teeth with this:
The night before I had lamb shank with bottled sparkling water and pistachio ice cream for dessert:
Earlier in the day I had a coffee and blueberry smoothie:
Also another coffee a few hours before that:
For breakfast I had eggs (omelets, shakshuka, scrambled eggs) with ham and bacon plus a salad and fresh-squeezed juices:
Also more hotel bottled water.
I could continue, but I’ll stop here.
It seems the most likely culprit was the Mexican food from Maiz, but I suppose it could have been the water or the salads? Even though it was “bottled” water, perhaps it was bottled from local sources and my poor Gorā stomach could not handle it?
Whatever the source, I’m living on the toilet right now but trying to replenish myself with more hotel-bottled water. I haven’t lost my appetite (though I’m eating very tenderly) and am otherwise feeling well, so I’m thankful for that.
But goodness, I was hoping to escape the Delhi/Bombay Belly this trip, but nope…it has struck.
The Mexican food is the most likely culprit but the salad might have been washed in tap water.
9 times out of 10, it’s the water.
Salad. The lettuce in your taco-hell order. Those are by far the most likely candidates.
For any produce, chant this mantra: “Boil it, peel it, or forget it”. You’ll miss the crunch of veggies, but you gotta have strict food discipline or you’ll be spending a lot of time with porcelain fixtures.
Did you have any ice in any cold drink? If so, add that to the suspect list.
Did you take a shower? If so, unless you are extremely careful and always-on conscious of this 100% of the time you’re in the shower, it’s easy to unconsciously lick your lips, or just allow a few drops of shower water to enter your mouth (or even your nostrils). We take for granted that the water we shower in at home is potable and safe, but that is NOT the case in much of the developing world. You need to treat tap water like it was poison, and develop the habit of keeping your mouth tightly closed while showering, when you open your mouth (briefly) have “negative pressure”, and slowly exhaling (same for your nostrils if water might enter them). It can be a chore (we have deeply ingrained habits we need to modify) but…it’ll keep you from getting sick.
Trying to figure out the is near impossible when it comes to food poisoning.
It could have been from LA or lounge….. although, everyone gets sick in India so India-somewhere is almost certainly the answer.
Why its so hard to pin down: these are just a few critters that can cause your malady with the timeframe runway
Staphylococcus aureus: 30 minutes-8 hours (typically 2–6 hours)
Bacillus cereus: 6–15 hours
Enteropathogenic E. coli: 1–6 days
Shiga toxin-producing E. coli): 1–10 days (typically 3–4 days)
“Salads” are always suspect. In my many years of overseas business travel I’ve always avoided them outside of Europe and the U.S.. I couldn’t take a chance on any kind of “belly” before a business meeting. Taking pepto bismol tablets before visiting non-advanced countries also seemed to help.
Lettuce.
I never touch it in the developing world. And it is even an issue in the first world. Whether contaminated in the field by some pathogen in the soil or upon “cleaning” with sus water, it is best avoided unless one is confe=ident of its provenance.
Get well.
Salad, salad, salad (lettuce). The biggest culprit just after ice cubes from unfiltered water. Did you not read up on how to avoid the illness? Only eat heat-treated food -or bread- if you want to stay clear. But I´m glad you finally tried the local kitchen instead of Taco Bell
It’ll be one of the salads.
Last time I was in India I stayed with friends. After 7 days I came down with the Belly and we think it was some of the chillis from a takeaway curry (yes, in Bengaluru) which might have been left out in the sun to dry.
The golden rules is, if it’s not cooked, don’t trust it unless you have washed it yourself.
I would bet for the fresh-squeezed orange juice, but man, there are so many suspects you might want to write a mystery novel: the salads, the lettuce on the taco, the smoothie, the combination of spices…..
My first rule in India is to never eat raw vegetables and fruits and never accept ice on beverages (besides not using tap water not even to brush my teeths). It has worked fine for me.
Could be anything other than the coffee.
I’d blame poor food handling as the culprit.
Can happen anywhere, even in our great country.
“And I’m proud to be an American… *explosive diarrhea* …where at least I know I’m free!”
“And I’ll gladly stand up… *sharts loudy* …next to you”
You’ll never know. I for one jokingly blame @1990 for joking about the buckets in your last hotel (which looked perfectly nice, actually).
Feel better!
It was indeed foreboding. *shivers*
Mate I can’t believe you had the stomach to rehash all the meals and photos of food. Mind you I assume this was a while ago now.
Was thinkin’ the same thing. Matt’s a glutton for punishment. “Very frequent.”
Uncooked veg in the salads or the ice blended into your smoothie. The source is usually local tap water that’s on or in your food.
Salad. I got sick from vegetables in Egypt.
Did you use bottled water when brushing your teeth as well? I made the mistake of thinking it was okay to use tap water if you spit it out after a few seconds, but nope.
You will be fine. Be gentile to your stomach in recovery as not to risk a setback.
To echo others, my bet is on the lettuce in the Mexican food or the salads. I’m going in February and have read extensively about best ways to avoid stomach issues. All state not to each lettuce or other vegetables that may be washed in water. Apparently bananas and others with a “skin” are OK. Also, some suggest only doing vegetarian meals since so many in India are vegetarian they don’t always store and refridgerate meat like it should be. Obviously a Hyatt hotel wouldn’t have this issue.
My plan in bottled water (to brush teeth also), no ice, minimal vegetables (and ones I eat will have been cooked which apparently helps kill the bacteria) and only to eat hot, freshly prepared items. Not sure I’ll go vegetarian but may.
Then, there’s the dichotomy… do you ‘let the spice flow,’ or do you dam it up with Imodium. I guess you could say, it Depends. Yes, adult diapers, too.
doctor: it’s the maiz salad. You should consider taking pepto-bismol (you can get bismuth at any pharmacy OTC in india as colloidal bismuth). It has natural antibacterial and antiviral properties and I often recommend it to patients for prophylaxis for travelers diarrhea. if you want an antibiotic to take care of it, any pharmacy will sell you azithromycin without a prescription.
Salad and fruits….I am an Indian living in the US for a bit and fruits/vegetables and dairy gets me all the time when I return to India for a visit. So avoid Milk/smoothies and any thing raw. Well Cooked items, are fine.
Some of my friends warn me about eating street food abroad. Interesting enough, the two times I experienced food poisoning were in restaurants in Las Vegas and Cabo.
So sorry to hear this – I trust that you have recovered well.
During our travels to India we avoid all salads / non-cooked food. I applied the same rule during our trip to the South Pacific a couple of months ago.
Generally speaking, we eat everything when traveling to Europe and Singapore.
India does have fake bottled water where fraudsters fill up discarded containers with tap water.
It is also possible that inadvertent swallowing of a little water caused it. 3 years ago, I went to India for a short business trip. I brought my own food and water. I ate no local food and consumed no water. However, I got cramps and mild soft stool because of the local water. I brushed teeth using my own water but rinsed the handle of my toothbrush with tap water. I believe a few drops of that water got in my mouth. It was insufficient to get diarrhea but enough to cause cramps and enough for the intestines to try to expel it quickly, causing soft stool.
I will note that bringing 4 days worth of water is very heavy and requires precise planning unless you are ok with throwing out excess food and water. My luggage into India was very heavy but I left with carry on baggage only.
Just to be clear, though I said it in the story, I’ve not used tap water to even brush my teeth…I’ve used bottled water. I have showered!
Agree with the above, its the water not poor food handling. Salads, maybe the ‘fresh squeezed juice’ has added water, and of course water in your room (washing or brushing). If the room has a kettle or coffee maker use that to boil water to clean your toothbrush.
Why would ANYONE go to a place where you know it’s not safe to even brush your teeth with the water?
It’s no wonder their best and brightest all fight to come here.
It’s world most populous country with a rich history – much to see and like there, despite the poverty/corruption/mismanagement that does exist.
Hmm . Coffee? Usually the water is not up to boiling temperatures.
It literally could have been anything…even the coffee.
I’m still betting on the lettuce.
NEVER EVER eat uncooked food – i.e., salads and the like in India or similar countries.
My dad taught me – any hot food is OK – you can drink hot tea from a roadside stall, but no ice creams or juices from street vendors or salads and uncooked food from anybody anyplace.
It’s always the salad. I know too many people (especially in India) who have eaten a salad at a nice nice hotel and gotten sick.
If I am remember correctly, you had something similar in Istanbul a few years ago (I believe it was from something you ate at the four seasons).
I have a weak stomach, so I am especially careful when travelling.
Matthew, it could have been anything, but my guess would be the ice cubes from the beet juice you had earlier in the trip.
It also could have been any of the raw vegitables as they could have been washed in tap water.
You flew to the other side of the world to eat Taco Bell? Gurl, figuring out where you got food poisoning is the least of your problems.
lol. It’s an inside joke.
See? Mexican food in India, a doubly whammy.
The basic rule of thumb is this: If you can’t crack it, if you can’t peel it and it is not cooked, DON’T EAT IT.
Maybe just the sheer quantity of food and drink you consumed overwhelmed your gut!
You should see the quantity I eat at home! (Though it is mostly clean ;))
A contributing factor could be repeatedly eating spicy food. If you’re not used to eating spicy food daily, it can do a number on your digestive system.
‘my poor Gorā stomach could not handle it?’
Lololol
A doctor’s humble opinion → Whether the reason is food or drink, it is extremely important to have softgels or caplets containing 2 mg of LOPERAMIDE HYDROCHLORIDE in your travel bag for such situations.
It’s a good thing you were at or near your hotel when your acute gastrointestinal symptoms started, and you weren’t traveling by any means of transportation.
For those interested, the correct slang term is “Delhi Belly,” a common expression for traveler’s diarrhea. While you can also encounter stomach issues in Mumbai, the specific phrase “Bombay Belly” is less common.
I never eat salad in foreign lands as i do not know how its washed. Usually that’s the culprit. Otherwise Indian food are super cooked, so they kill pretty much all parasites.
That juice on Air India is made of a berry that’s called java plum or Indian blackberry. Its a very much an acquired taste and i am not sure why Air India replaced the pomegranate juice with this concoction.
I stayed at the Andaz Aerocity a week and a half ago and used tap water for brushing my teeth and the bottled water for drinking. No issues.
@ Matthew — Thank you for the series of posts confirming that we should never return to India again. Once was enough.
I am born and raised in the US, and I’ve been traveling back to the Indian Subcontinent at least once per year for almost the past two decades.
Looking at your list of things consumed, honestly I see a lot of things that likely caused it. Often, bottled water is actually filled without boiling the water by the restaurant/establishment to save money. The chaat (specifically the yogurt) is also a likely culprit (has been for me 50% of the time I ate chaat). The smoothies as well (the ice used to make them likely was made with unboiled water, and the fruits used to make the smoothie as well). Same thing with the salads (washed in unboiled water, and veggies contain water that will upset your stomach). I’ve also gotten food poisoning every time I eat cheese from western establishments, so your nightly dinners are also likely a culprit.
My point is, you can’t avoid getting an upset stomach in the Indian Subcontinent. It’s impossible. My advice to travelers is to enjoy the country, and expect that this will happen. I have been there dozens of times, yet I have never been able to avoid getting an upset stomach (no matter how hard I try). If you want to try, stick to hot fully cooked meats at high-rated establishments where food safety being followed is more likely. I would also avoid western food (Indian western food often has a local twist, which has more spices in line with the preference for locals, but that makes the food not really settle well in an American’s stomach). But then you won’t really be able to experience the food culture of the country.
I do try my best to avoid food poisoning though. If I was you, I would stick to Indian food from reputable/reliable establishments. Though I understand that is harder for you since your not from the country, nor do you have any family who are locals.
My advice, carry pepto bismol with you. It’s an essential item when I travel to South Asia. Also bring electrolytes packets for dehydration.
No matter what, you will get an upset stomach. Western stomachs aren’t used to the bacteria and microorganisms that exist in the local water in South Asia, while the locals bodies are used to it. This is why it will almost always happen to foreigners from developed countries.
Well, maybe you would be surprised but i had a constipation there. Probably the only foreigner with this in town. Even went with laughter to the pharmacy, but decided to try a natural remedy. A streetcart momo stand and got it spicy. Within 30 min i was healed. No other issues within my 2 weeks stay. But last day after 2 weeks of curry and indian food i simply could not anymore.
With the amount of fresh produce you’ve been eating especially the lettuce, I would’ve been surprised if you hadn’t gotten sick. When it comes to fresh fruit and veg in India, it best to remember boil, peel, or forget. Honestly you were asking for the 3am booty squirts.
Delhi Belly. Bombay Belly. Seems like you had a lot of Splattering Episodes.