Is your Tap Water poisonous!

[Doodle]

Judith, I bought that book a couple of years ago, lent it someone who hasn't returned it but a very interesting read. If I remember rightly the chappy (a doctor) was a prisoner of war and offered a fellow prisoner who asked him for help a glass of water as that was all he had. I think he continued to give him a daily glass of water and saw a marked improvement in the fellow. He decided to research the effects of water on the body when he got out of prison. Since reading that book I drink loads of water, sometimes boiled up first though not sure why no doubt I read about it somewhere!

I live in dept 53 Mayenne, sometimes late at night or very early morning, our cup of tea tastes disgusting (we drink black tea, no sugar). When I asked the locals about the water problem they thought I was mad and I was told to stick with the pastis! However, I eventually found out that when our reservoir is about to be tested the person who looks after the thing bangs in a load of chemicals so that when the results are posted at the Marie we are shown as having good water! I now fill the kettle early evening to make sure we always get that decent first cuppa.

[pachapapa]

[quote user="Salty Sam"]

[quote user="Swissie"]Remember the worst school ski trip ever - we were in Montgenèvre, on the Italian border - brilliant snow and very hot sunshine. So we explained to the kids that they had to drink loads of water because of altitude and exercise. We the teachers led by example - apart from my OH who stuck to beer, and another teacher who stuck to Coca-cola.
by the third day 80% of the kids had the worst possible stomach upset, including all but the 2 above teachers. A ski instructor told me she would lose her job if it was ever known she'd told us - but that the new water reservoir/pumping station was polluted, and that nobody locally drank tap water. It was kept quiet to avoid loss from tourism!!

On hols wit the family visiting my parents in the Jura - and walking one of our gorgeous Dales, I told the kids they could drink from a small stream coming down the mountain, as the water was so pure. We all had a good drink - and 5 mins later upstream found a decomposing chamois in the stream. None of us were ill - but they don't trust me with water anymore.
[/quote]

Might want to think twice about drinking that crystal clear mountain spring water these days;

[url]http://www.nathnac.org/pro/factsheets/giardiasis.htm[/url].

[/quote]

Specially in India and Switzerland!

Laboratory reports of Giardia lamblia by country of travel, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland: 2004 and 2005

Country of travel	2004	2005	2004-05
India	86	60	146
Pakistan	28	28	56
Turkey	7	12	19
Egypt	15	8	23
Africa	4	8	12
Kenya	11	8	19
Spain	12	8	20
Nepal	8	7	15
France	8	7	15
Thailand	8	6	14
South Africa	7	4	11
Mexico	5	4	9
Bangladesh	5	4	9
Bulgaria	1	4	5
The Gambia	3	4	7
Malaysia	1	4	5
Dominican Republic	2	3	5
Cyprus	2	3	5
Greece	2	3	5
Guyana	-	3	3
Sub total - top 20	215	188	403
Other countries	87 (N=41)	72 (N=33)	159
Country not stated	19	14	33
Total	321	274	595

 

[Chancer]

Giardia AKA amoebic dysentery that brings back happy memories [:D]

I caught it in the Bolivian mountains when I thought that I was taking water from a spring so high up as unlikely to be contaminated and hence didnt use my usual horrible tasting but effective iodine tablets.

I carried the bug for quite some while before being able to diagnose it, I knew that I had read somewhere of a travellers illness where the keynote symptom was explosive flatulence and believe me explosive is an understatement ,and then I found it someone elses guide book.

Easily cured but I did miss the sound effects [;-)]

[Judith]

[quote user="knee gel"]Judith, I bought that book a couple of years ago, lent it someone who hasn't returned it but a very interesting read. If I remember rightly the chappy (a doctor) was a prisoner of war and offered a fellow prisoner who asked him for help a glass of water as that was all he had. I think he continued to give him a daily glass of water and saw a marked improvement in the fellow. He decided to research the effects of water on the body when he got out of prison.

[/quote]

Abosolutely true - it was during [one of] Iranian "revolutions.  A very nice man.  I met someone else who knew him a couple of years ago, and she said he had died recently (ie two / three years ago), but he was quite sure that it was water, rather than any special water, that did the trick.  But obviously not stuff with nasty chemicals in it!!!

[Salty Sam]

[quote user="Chancer"]

Easily cured but I did miss the sound effects [;-)][/quote]

I agree Chancer, 'acquired ' in the US of A and apart from the sound effects, a sure way of losing friends but being able to clear a crowded bar [:D]

[tonyinfrance]

Brings back happy (?) memories of a G&T in Karachi many years ago which had very longlasting after effects..........

[mint]

You mean you had the mother of hangovers?

[andyh4]

No but he became a world champion in dancing - the Katmandu Quickstep.

[Judith]

But tonic is supposed to be so good for night cramps .......

[mint]

The quinine in the tonic is good for malaria.  You didn't catch malaria in Karachi did you?