Watch out for parasites!

ms.mathilda

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May 5, 2002
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I just returned from my trip to Puerto Plata and have some helpful infor for those of you traveling.
I came down with a parasite the second day I was there. I have no idea how this happened since I did not drink the water. I did in fact brush my teeth with it though. I also ate dinner at a Dominican's house which was the usual rice, beans, chicken.
I started vomiting and then for the next week had terrible stomach cramps, diarrhea, of and on.
I ended up going to the hospital in Puerta Plata where the doctor said that I had an amoeba and wrote down a list of medications I should get at the pharmacy! i only bought the antibiotic and refused the rest since I didn't know what they were. I also refused the pain shot I was offered in the hospital. You may know why!
Anyhow just a forwarning: if you feel sick don't wait like I did. I didn't think it was anything and just an adjustment to the food, climate. Also be especially careful of the water even brushing teeth, rinsing of fruit, vegetables. Don't do it! My dominican friends did not get sick and ate the same things I did. Foreigners are very prone to these parasites unlike the people that live there.
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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Dominicans have built up resistence to many of the bugs that attack foreigners. But parasites are a problem for Dominicans, also.

ms. matilda is right. Don't use untreated water from the faucet to brush your teeth, wash vegetables, etc. Use bottled water or treat water with clorox (cloro) or a commercial product called Purissima that is sold in many supermarkets and farmacias. Also be very careful about eating food sold by street vendors.

A product call fel-6 (fel seis in Spanish) is sold for approx US$1 in most farmacias. There are 6 tablets; 1 in morning and 1 in evening for 3 days. It kills the 6 parasites most often found in man. If you think there is any chance you might have picked up a parasite during your visit, take the fel-6 as a precaution.
 

ricktoronto

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Jan 9, 2002
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ms.mathilda said:
I did in fact brush my teeth with it though. I also ate dinner at a Dominican's house which was the usual rice, beans, chicken.
I started vomiting and then for the next week had terrible stomach cramps, diarrhea, of and on.
I ended up going to the hospital in Puerta Plata where the doctor said that I had an amoeba and wrote down a list of medications I should get at the pharmacy! i only bought the antibiotic and refused the rest since I didn't know what they were.

The water is not safe for brushing either, since it is still inside your mouth and you don't need many parasites. Ditto with rice though the boiling and the steam should kill the bugs in the water but really a rolling boil for 10 minutes is safest.

My buddy got Giardisis probably from bananas and had to take both antibiotics and Flagyl for 6 weeks. - if you are back in USA or wherver you neeed to see a physician as the amoebas can cause long term damage.
 

Escott

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Jan 14, 2002
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You don't get Giardia from Bananas. You get it from Water or can be sexually transmitted.

One cell protozoa that causes havoc with the small intestine and the intestinal track. Horrible if not treated. Dehydration will kill you.

I just got a great business idea. A "Lose weight Camp" in the DR. Just serve the water straight up:) Bring on the Fatties!
 

richard

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Jan 1, 2002
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Ken said:
Dominicans have built up resistence to many of the bugs that attack foreigners. But parasites are a problem for Dominicans, also.

ms. matilda is right. Don't use untreated water from the faucet to brush your teeth, wash vegetables, etc. Use bottled water or treat water with clorox (cloro) or a commercial product called Purissima that is sold in many supermarkets and farmacias. Also be very careful about eating food sold by street vendors.

A product call fel-6 (fel seis in Spanish) is sold for approx US$1 in most farmacias. There are 6 tablets; 1 in morning and 1 in evening for 3 days. It kills the 6 parasites most often found in man. If you think there is any chance you might have picked up a parasite during your visit, take the fel-6 as a precaution.

Good old fel6 we used it years ago so I guess it stilll works.
 
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giardiasis

Giardiasis occurs worldwide, not only in the DR.

Giardiasis is a disease caused by a one-celled parasite with the scientific name Giardia lamblia. The disease is characterized by intestinal symptoms that usually last one week or more and may be accompanied by one or more of the following: diarrhea, abdominal cramps, bloating, flatulence, fatigue, and weight loss. Although vomiting and fever are listed as relatively frequent symptoms, they have been uncommonly reported by people involved in waterborne outbreaks of giardiasis in the United States. Giardia, however, rarely causes intestinal bleeding. Therefore, blood in the stool of a patient with giardiasis almost always indicates the presence of a second disease.


Three drugs are available in the United States to treat giardiasis: quinacrine (Atabrine*), metronidazole (Flagyl*), and furazolidone (Furoxone*). All are prescription drugs.
(*) Use of trade names is for purposes of identification only.

Just be careful of what you drink, "Don't Drink the water." and watch what you eat, hopefully the veggies have been washed with purified or boiled water.

For more information check this link http://gorp.com/gorp/health/wtrflfaq.htm

A very long and comprehensive article
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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Purissima is a good product to know about. Sold in many supermarkets and farmacias (blue bottle) and comes in a variety of sizes, including a bottle small enough to carry in your purse, backpack, or pocket. (Bottle that size costs about RD$25) It is very concentrated; only a very small amount required. You may want to carry a bottle with you during you visit as a precaution. Before you drink something that you aren't sure is purified, put a drop or two in the glass and stir. You can do the same with the water you take from the faucet in your hotel room to brush your teeth.

I have been relying on Purissima for many years, so can recommend it based on personal experience.

My wife also puts it in the water she uses to wash vegetables. In that case, more Purissima than is needed to purify water for drinking is required. And the vegetables must be submerged in the treated water for at least 5 minutes.
 

ms.mathilda

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May 5, 2002
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thanks to everyone for the info- I wish i new about Purissma before!
Rick do you really think I should see a doctor now that I'm home? I took the antibiotics for 5 days and feel great now. But now I'm worried.....
One more question: The antibiotics I received in the DR are called:
Entero Bacticel written underneath are the names: Attapulguita and Cotrimoxazol. Does anyone know if these are similiar to the drugs in the US that are common to treat parasites?
Thanks again,
Mattie
 
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ricktoronto

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Jan 9, 2002
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ms.mathilda said:
thanks to everyone for the info- I wish i new about Purissma before!
Rick do you really think I should see a doctor now that I'm home? I took the antibiotics for 5 days and feel great now. But now I'm worried.....
One more question: The antibiotics I received in the DR are called:
Entero Bacticel written underneath are the names: Attapulguita and Cotrimoxazol. Does anyone know if these are similiar to the drugs in the US that are common to treat parasites?
Thanks again,
Mattie

The Cotrimoxazol sounds a lot like an anti fungal/protozoal agent but as my friend took Flagyl ( same sort of thing) for some time more than 5 days I would check with a doctor - they test, hmm...shall we say... certain "output" to see if the beasts are present. I recommended to him and he went to, a tropical medicine specialist however Giardisis is common in USA as well, but there are other amoebic pesties, so maybe that is the best course of action.
 

ricktoronto

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Jan 9, 2002
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jazzcom said:
You don't get Giardia from Bananas. You get it from Water or can be sexually transmitted.

I should have been more specific, my friend of course stayed away frm the water ( which is filtered in the hotel, but not in my opinion adequate to drink it), used bottled for tooth brushing etc., of course. The suggestion was that the bananas which he ate copiously and other fruit may be sprayed or washed and the non-stem end (of bananas) is quite permeable to protozoa and can/should be cut off to afford the protection of the skin farther down.
 

Pib

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Jan 1, 2002
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Althought it is probably yuckier than PurissimaTM, I rely on a few drops of chlorine to wash vegetables. And yes, they have to be submerged in the water for a few minutes.
 

Ken

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Chlorine (clorox, or cloro in Spanish) is great for washing vegetables. It isn't as concentrated as Purissima, but this is no problem in a home. Purissima is better for carrying with you when you go to hotels, restaurants, etc. Being so concentrated, you only need a drop or two for a glass of water and the bottle is small enough to carry in your purse or pocket.

Re clorox, my wife and I lived on a cruising sailboat for 16 years, spending nearly all of the time in the DR or the islands of the Caribbean. During the entire time, all the water we used on the boat was treated with clorox before putting in the tank. The ratio for clorox is a teaspoon for 5 gallons of water for drinking unclouded water. For washing vegetables, it would be greater than this.

There have been studies showing that clorox, etc., is more effective than boiling. Just bringing water to a boil isn't enough, it must boil for 20-30 minutes.

When we go to a hotel in Santo Domingo or elsewhere, we always carry a bottle of Purissima. When we eat in a restaurant we order the individual bottles of water, then carry the empties back to the hotel room. There we fill them with water from the faucet, put in about 3 drops of Purissima, and shake to mix. We then use this water for drinking in the room, brushing teeth, etc.

If you buy Purissima, when you remove the cap the first time you will find the opening is covered with an aluminum foil seal. Punch a small hole in the seal, using an ice pick, point of a ballpoint pen, or something similar. When you use the Purissima, squeeze the bottle to force the drops through the hole.
 
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andy a

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Feb 23, 2002
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Thank you for the information, Ken - precise and descriptive - the kind that can be used.

A few additional questions:

Do the vegetables have to be soaked the entire 5 minutes or can they simply be doused and left unmolested for 5 minutes?

Does one also have to wait 5 minutes to use purissima-treated water?

Is pouring too much purissima into the drinking water a problem? Would using a medicine dropper be better?

Thanks again.
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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andy a, the vegetables have to be submerged for at least 5 minutes, then drained. When my wife takes them out of the water she puts them into one of those big dishes with many holes in the bottom, or in a big sieve, to let them drain. We are talking, now, about things like lettuce, broccoli, etc., that are eaten raw in salads, etc.

For potatoes, carrots, etc. that are cooked or peeled, she scrubs them with a vegetable brush in dishwater after finishing the dishes, then puts them into the refrig or the container we have for potatoes.

Before eating apples, pears, etc., I wash them good with soap and water.

Bananas we don't worry about because they have a thick skin that is removed before eating.

Water treated with purrisima for drinking can be drunk right away. Just be sure that it is well mixed. That's why, whenever possible, we fill bottles with water and put in the Purrisima, then give the bottle a good shaking.

To be truthful, when mixing in Purissima I often err on the side of a drop or two more, but I wouldn't consider putting a medicine dropper of the stuff in a small container. I've been using clorox and purissima in my drinking water for more than 16 years without apparent harm, but I think you could overdo and damage the stomach. Look what clorox will do if you spill a drop or two
on your clothes.

Speaking of that, if you are carrying an opened (meaning with a hole in the seal) bottle of Purissima with you outside of the hotel, I'd recommend protecting yourself from the possibility a little can leak out and damage your clothes. What we do is to find the smallest bottle we can that a small bottle of Purissima can fit in and put the Purissima in it when carrying it in suitcase from our home in Sosua to the hotel in Santo Domingo. You could do the same if carrying it in a backpack. Otherwise, I would put a small piece of plastic paper (tear a little off a shopping back, for example) and put this over the top before screwing on the lid.
 
D

Dubld

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Not having been the most cautious person when visiting, I have eaten from roadside stands, had many frio-frio's, etc. and with no ill effects. I contracted Giardia (sp) here in Toronto. Now that I know how disgusting it is I thank you for the Purrisima tip, and will grab some for my next visit, since after 10 visits, I am out of resorts more than in them......
 

Jane J.

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Jan 3, 2002
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Merits of Purissima

Basically, you have 2 choices:

1) Buy bottled water

2) Treat water laced with fecal matter with two, tiny drops of bleach-like substance.

Why not just drink bottled? While the Purissima may work for you, KEN, after having been in the country for however many eons, others may be slightly more sensitive to the presence of excrement in their drinking water. Just my opinion.
 

sjh

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Jan 1, 2002
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bottled water is cheap, readily availible, and can be bought in 5 gallon containers...

If you would rather treat your drinking water with a known toxin, go ahead..
 

Ken

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FYI, we put some Purissima in the 5 gallon bottles we use in our home. Foolish, hardly. The fact that water is in a bottle with a label on it is no guarantee it is pure. My wife picked up a very-hard-to-diagnose/very-hard-to-kill parasite about 10 years ago and after taking Flagyl and other drugs, all of which took a real toll from her system, we decided we would rather err on the side of caution.

Every so often in the US there is a big fuss made about the impurities found in commercialy prepared bottled water. I can recall not too many years ago when it was reported that the bottled water purchased by the White House had more impurities in it than the water that came out of the faucets.

There have been similar reports about the bottled water sold in the DR.

Something I have personal knowledge about. One of the UK tour companies that booked tours to Cayo Levantado hired inspectors from a lab in SD to test the food and water wherever the clients were likely to eat or drink, including the hotels. One day when they tested the water taken from a 5-gallon bottle used by food vendors on Cayo Levantado they found that the water was contaminated. The policy was to give the vendor another chance; but next time the inspectors tested the water (a new bottle) it was found to not meet standards. It was decided to make another test--of a new bottle--using different inspectors to be sure the motives of the inspectors were beyond suspicion. Every precaution was taken to insure no outside influence, but again water impure.

The water was tested in the plant filling the bottles and was found to be pure. So it was theorized that a small quantity of the solution used to clean the bottles was left in the bottle, and that this was the source of the impurities. Apparently this has been found to be the case in some other instances. However, in this case, when the source of the impurities was finally tracked down, it was found to be quite different. The colmado from which the Cayo Levantado food vendors bought the water did not have many customers for 5-gallon bottles of water. Consequently the bottles sat in his rack, in the sun, for a long period before being purchased and used. It was that long period in the intense heat of the sun that was apparently causing small impurities in the water to multiply, resulting in the water to going bad.

I am not saying don't buy and drink bottled water. I drink it myself when at a restaurant. But, remember, the fact that it is in a bottle is not a guarantee it is pure. And I am not just talking about water purchased in the DR.

With respect to the comment that it works for me because I have been drinking it for so long, I keep in mind that virtually all of the people on cruising sailboats in the Caribbean are drinking water treated with clorox. It is working for them, too, no matter how long they have been cruising.

Regarding the water Jane J has laced with excrement, I am sure that will come as news to many expatriates. As has been reported by others in previous posts, the problem isn't the water, it is the condition of the pipes. (And I don't think they meant that the pipes were coated with excrement.)

Finally, I am not mandating, Jane J, that people use Purissima. I offered it as a suggestion to those who thought it made sense for them. If no one decides to use it, that's fine with me. But if someone, like ms. matilda who started this thread, is using water from the faucet to brush their teeth, or who is visiting Dominican homes and drinking the water served there (which may come from the faucet), or who wants an extra measure of protection when they move around outside the confines of the resort, then I think they should at least be aware that there are alternatives to strapping one of shadley000's 5-gallon bottles on their back.
 
Some EPA information

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/faq/emerg.html

Boiling: Vigorous boiling for one minute will kill any disease-causing microorganisms present in water. The flat taste of boiled water can be improved by pouring it back and forth from one container to another (called aeration), by allowing it to stand for a few hours, or by adding a small pinch of salt for each quart of water boiled.

Chemical treatment: When boiling is not practical, chemical disinfection should be used. The two chemicals commonly used are chlorine and iodine. Chlorine and iodine are somewhat effective in protecting against exposure to Giardia, but may not be effective in controlling Cryptosporidium. Therefore, use iodine or chlorine only to disinfect well water (as opposed to surface water sources such as rivers, lakes, and springs), because well water is unlikely to contain these disease causing organisms. Chlorine is generally more effective than iodine in controlling Giardia, and both disinfectants work much better in warmer water.

More information available at link.
 

arroyodmb

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Mar 13, 2002
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Lots of good advice about the water, but here is something that may seem unnescessary to mention.

Well that is until you visit an all-inclusive hotel, a restaurant or a bar and use a toilet. How many people do you see use the toilet and walk out without washing their hands?

In Britain they were stepping up public service information after a rise in problems of "food Poisoning". Wash your hands!

Also "when in Rome", how many times do you shake hands and look at some of the money that you handle during your stay here.

Hands are one of the main avenues for passing bacteria to food and person to person.

During 6 years of living here I take great precautions, I even got ill during my honeymoon in 1996 and most visits here before our marraige!!!